THE DEMON KING WHO WAITED FOR HER
CHAPTER TWENTY FOUR
What Death Could Not Steal
The sound of the drums softened as the crowd rose to their feet.
Linah stood at the entrance of the aisle, her heart trembling, her breath uneven. For a moment, the world felt too heavy — memories, fear, love, and loss pressing in all at once.
Then a familiar hand reached for hers.
Her father.
His grip was warm, grounding, real. His eyes shimmered with tears he did not bother to hide.
"My child," he whispered, his voice breaking, "for one year we mourned you as the lost. Today, I walk you as the found."
Linah's tears spilled freely as she held his arm. Step by step, they walked down the aisle together. With every movement forward, she felt herself shedding the weight of her past pain.
Mako stood waiting.
Not as the Demon King.
Not as a ruler feared by realms.
But as a man in love.
When Linah's father reached him, he stopped and looked Mako straight in the eyes — searching, measuring, remembering the fear he once carried for his daughter.
"I place her in your hands," he said slowly. "Not because you are powerful… but because she chose you. Protect her. Honour her. Never let her walk alone again."
Mako bowed his head deeply.
"I swear it," he said. "In this life and the next."
Linah was handed over — not as possession, but as promise.
The vows were spoken beneath blessings older than memory.
When Mako slid the ring onto Linah's finger, his hands trembled slightly.
When Linah placed hers on his, she smiled through tears.
"Even death could not keep me from you," she whispered.
Mako leaned closer.
"And nothing ever will."
When they kissed, it was not rushed. It was slow and sacred — a sealing of love that had waited across lifetimes.
The crowd erupted in joy.
But for Linah and Mako, the world faded away.
That night, silence wrapped around them like a blessing.
In the quiet of their chamber, Mako held Linah's face gently, studying her as though afraid she might vanish again.
"In our past life," he said softly, "this night was stolen from us."
Linah rested her forehead against his chest, listening to the steady beat of his heart.
"Then let this one belong to us," she replied.
They moved closer, slowly, without haste — not driven by desire alone, but by reverence. Every touch was reassurance. Every breath was a promise.
Mako pulled her into his arms as if shielding her from fate itself.
"I lost you once," he whispered. "I will never let the world take you again."
Linah smiled, her eyes closing as she rested against him.
"This time, we live," she said. "Together."
The candle burned low.
Outside, the night watched quietly.
And for the first time across lifetimes, love was not interrupted by death.
What surprised Linah was how different this moment felt from the dreams she once had of Mako. In those dreams, she was fearless. Now, standing before him as his wife, she felt shy, vulnerable, and deeply aware of his presence.
She asked him softly to turn off the lights.
Mako laughed gently when he noticed her shyness, finding it endearing. He reached for her hand, intertwining their fingers. Their foreheads touched, their lips brushing in a slow, tender kiss.
As the kiss deepened, Linah's shyness melted away. She poured all her emotions into that moment — love, trust, and a longing she could no longer hide.
"I love you, my Linah," Mako whispered. "Every time I look at you, I am reminded of why I waited. You are mine — by spirit and by law."
Linah's thoughts scattered under the warmth of his words. She could no longer deny how deeply she loved the man before her. She held onto him tightly, afraid only of a world that had once taken him away from her.
Mako held her close, his voice soft against her ear. Linah ignored everything else, choosing only the comfort of his embrace and the certainty of his love.
"My love," she whispered, her voice filled with hope, "I want our future to be proof that love survives even death."
Mako's heart overflowed as he held the woman he had waited centuries to meet again — the woman who once died on their wedding night, now safe in his arms, beyond the reach of their enemies.
This night was theirs.
END OF CHAPTER TWENTY FOUR