CHAPTER Seventeen— What He Could Not Say
Kira did not remember when his feet started moving.
He only knew that by the time he became aware of his surroundings, he was standing in a quiet corridor far from the main halls of Nightfall Palace. The torchlight flickered against the stone walls, casting long shadows that stretched and twisted like his thoughts.
Helena's door stood before him.
He had not planned to come here.
He had not allowed himself to think.
Yet here he was.
His hand hovered in the air, uncertain. For the first time in years, Prince Kira of Nightfall hesitated.
Inside his chest, something restless churned anger he could not place, regret he refused to name, and a guilt that pressed heavily against his ribs. The image of Helena standing beside Damon replayed in his mind, unbidden and unwanted. He clenched his jaw, forcing the thought away.
This was wrong.
All of it was wrong.
The sound of footsteps echoed down the corridor. Kira straightened instinctively, stepping back just as Helena appeared, her hands folded nervously before her as she approached her door.
She froze when she saw him.
"My—My Highness?" she said softly, surprise written across her face. "Did I… do something wrong?"
The question struck deeper than he expected.
Kira exhaled slowly, the tension in his shoulders loosening just a fraction. "No," he said at last, his voice low and controlled. "You didn't."
Helena hesitated, clearly unsure whether she should bow, flee, or speak. "Then… why are you here?"
For a moment, he could not answer.
Because I lost control.
Because I crossed a line.
Because I don't know what you are doing to me.
None of those were things he could say aloud.
"I came," he began carefully, "to apologize."
Her eyes widened slightly.
"For the way I treated you," he continued. "For placing you under burdens that were never yours to carry. And for… overstepping my authority."
She swallowed. "You're talking about… that night?"
"Yes."
The word came out sharper than intended. Kira closed his eyes briefly, steadying himself. "What happened should never have happened. I acted without thinking. Without restraint. And that was unfair to you."
Silence stretched between them.
Helena looked down at her hands. "I didn't understand it," she admitted quietly. "I still don't."
"You're not meant to," Kira replied. "That confusion is mine to bear, not yours."
He shifted his weight, deliberately putting distance between them as if space itself could restore the boundaries he had broken.
"I saw you earlier," he added after a pause. "With Damon."
Her head lifted at once. "He was just talking to me. He didn't do anything wrong."
"I know," Kira said. And he did. That knowledge made his earlier anger feel even more shameful. "This conversation is not about him."
He met her gaze then, truly looked at her, and forced himself to speak with honesty—measured, restrained honesty.
"You have every right to your time, your words, your peace," he said. "I should never have made you feel otherwise."
Helena studied him, as if trying to reconcile the man before her with the cold prince the palace feared. "Then why do you look so… upset?" she asked softly.
Kira's jaw tightened.
"Because I am human," he said simply. "And humans make mistakes."
It was the closest he would come to admitting the storm inside him.
After a moment, he stepped back. "This will not happen again," he said firmly. "You will be treated with the respect your position deserves."
She nodded slowly. "Thank you, Your Highness."
He inclined his head, already turning away. Staying longer would only invite words he could not afford to speak.
As he walked down the corridor, the weight in his chest did not lift.
Apologies did not erase feelings.
They only acknowledged the damage they left behind.
And somewhere in the quiet of Nightfall Palace, Prince Kira realized something terrifying
Control was slipping from his grasp.