C6 **CHAPTER 6 — His Eyes Never Left Her**

The storm outside had calmed to a gentle whisper against the cathedral walls, a soft hiss that filled the silence hanging between Aria and Lucian. She hadn't slept at all during the night, and she suspected neither had Lucian—mostly because every time she blinked, she found him watching her.

Not just glancing.

Watching.

As if ensuring she was still there.

As if making sure she wouldn’t vanish.

Aria wrapped the blanket more tightly around her shoulders, trying to silence the uneasy flutter in her chest. Moonlight filtered through the shattered stained-glass windows, casting an ethereal glow of blues and silvers throughout the space. Yet none of that unsettled her as much as the feeling creeping up the back of her neck…

…Lucian’s gaze.

He sat on one of the stone benches, elbows resting on his knees, shadows draping across his face like a painting. The dim light highlighted the sharp contours of his jaw and the inscrutable expression he wore.

He didn’t speak.

He didn’t move.

He simply continued to stare at her as though she were the only thing keeping him grounded.

Aria cleared her throat. “You don’t have to keep looking at me like that. I’m not going anywhere.”

Lucian didn't blink. “You say that as if I can trust the world to let you stay.”

His voice was calm—too calm—but an unmistakable tension lay beneath it.

Aria turned her gaze away, her heart pounding in her chest. “You’re acting like I might disappear.”

“You almost did,” he replied quietly, and that slight tremor in his voice made her look up again.

He wasn't angry.

He was… scared.

And that frightened her.

Before she could inquire about what he meant, the cathedral door creaked open. Lucian was on his feet in an instant, positioning himself protectively in front of her in less than a second. Aria gasped at his speed—she hadn’t even seen him cross the distance; she just felt the shift in air.

A figure stumbled inside.

Not a creature.

A person.

A girl—about Aria’s age—wearing torn clothes, with scratches on her arms and fear trembling through every part of her. She collapsed onto the floor, coughing violently.

Lucian kept his guard up. “State your name.”

The girl flinched at his tone. “M-Mara… I’m Mara. Please… help me.”

Aria stepped out from behind Lucian and rushed to the girl’s side. “She’s hurt, Lucian!”

Lucian remained unmoving, his voice still icy. “They use illusions."You know that."

Aria hesitated but kept a firm hand on Mara’s shoulder. “She’s bleeding. Illusions don’t bleed.”

Lucian’s jaw clenched.

Aria leaned in and whispered, “Let me help her.”

After a long pause, he stepped back slightly—not enough to relax but just enough for Aria to kneel beside the trembling girl.

Mara’s eyes flitted around the cathedral. “They… they’re coming. The shadows… they were everywhere—I saw something terrible—something wrong with the sky—”

Lucian interrupted. “Did they follow you?”

“I don’t think so,” she whispered. “I… I ran until I couldn’t feel my legs.”

Aria assisted the girl in sitting upright. “What happened?”

Mara gasped for air, her breath trembling. “I saw them. The hunters. And—and this thing in the fog. It wasn’t human. It was searching for someone.”

Aria’s heart sank. “Someone?”

Mara nodded slowly. “A girl. They kept saying she’s awakening… that they have to reach her before he does.”

Lucian stiffened, every muscle in his body tensing like a wire pulled too tight.

He already knew what Mara was about to reveal.

“They’re looking for you,” Mara whispered, her gaze falling on Aria.

The cathedral seemed to grow colder.

Lucian moved so quickly that Aria nearly flinched. He towered over Mara, his voice as sharp as glass. “Who told them? Who directed them towards her? Speak.”

Mara recoiled slightly. “ I-I don’t know! I heard them mention something about the mark, the bloodline—”

Aria gently touched Lucian’s arm. “Stop. You’re frightening her.”

Lucian glanced down at her hand on him, his breath catching momentarily as if her touch both burned and soothed him simultaneously.

He stepped back—but his eyes remained fixed on Aria.

Always.

Mara swallowed hard, her voice trembling even more. “They said the curse is awakening again. And that the girl tied to it… will be the key to either salvation or destruction.”

Aria felt lightheaded. “That can’t be—”

“It is,” Lucian murmured.

She turned to him sharply. “You knew. You knew something. Lucian, what are you not telling me?”

He looked away.

Not out of shame.

But out of restraint.

“You weren’t supposed to find out like this,” he said tightly. “Not before I could prepare you.”

“Prepare me for what?” Aria demanded fiercely. “What am I? Why are they after me? What curse?”

Mara gasped and seized Aria's wrist. “The symbol—on your hand—”

Aria froze.

“My hand?”

She glanced down.

A faint shimmer pulsed at the base of her palm—barely discernible beneath her skin. A symbol. A shape that appeared to shift like ink in water. She stumbled back, stunned.

“What… what is this?”

Lucian's voice lowered—not gentle, but heavy with something weighty.

“That mark is why they will never stop hunting you,” he said. “It’s why I can’t take my eyes off you.”

Aria felt her breath catch. “Why does it feel like it’s burning?”

“Because it’s awakening,” Lucian replied. “And when it does… the curse tied to your bloodline will awaken as well.” The symbol flickered again—hot, bright—like a heartbeat made of light.

Mara stepped back in fear. “I’ve never seen anything like that—”

Aria clutched her hand. “Lucian, what curse? Why me?”

Lucian moved slowly toward her, his gaze fixed on hers with an intensity that made her chest tighten.

“Because you,” he whispered, “are the only one who can break it.”

Silence enveloped them.

But not a peaceful silence.

A heavy, suffocating one.

Aria opened her mouth—to argue, to scream, to ask everything at once—but Lucian stepped closer, lowering his voice.

“And because of that, Aria…”

His eyes darkened, not with anger but with something fierce and unwavering.

“…they will use everyone you care about to reach you.”

Her stomach dropped.

“My dad—?”

“Already being watched.”

“My friends—?”

“They won’t harm them—because I won’t allow it.”

Aria's pulse thundered in her ears. “Lucian… this is too much. I didn’t ask for any of this!”

“I know,” he murmured. “But I refuse to lose you.”

The words held her in place.

Not romantic.

Not tender.

Just raw.

Possessive.

Obsessed.

Protective in an unusual way that wasn't threatening.

More like a storm clinging to the one thing that keeps it from falling apart.

Aria took a shaky step back. “Lucian… you hardly know me.”

His jaw tightened. “That’s not true.”

Mara looked between them, feeling both confused and afraid. “You two… what are you?”

Lucian tore his gaze away from Aria and turned towards the broken windows. “We need to leave. They’ll trace her mark. This place isn’t safe anymore.”

Aria paused. “Wait—where are we going?”

Lucian faced her again, his expression filled with determination.

“To the last place they’d expect,” he said.

“A realm that only someone of your bloodline can access.”

Her throat constricted. “Why me?”

He stepped closer—not touching her, but near enough for her to feel his warmth.

“Because,” he said softly,

“You’re at the heart of the curse…

And the heart of everything they desire.”

Aria’s heart raced.

Lucian’s eyes softened just for her.

“And whether you believe it or not, Aria…”

His voice lowered to something almost fragile.

“…I’ve been looking for you for a long time.”

Aria was at a loss for words.

She didn’t even know how to breathe.

Mara whispered, “What does that mean…?”

Lucian remained silent.

Instead, he held Aria’s gaze with an intensity that made her tremble.