Married To The Mad Vampire Lord - Chapter 526

Chapter 526: “Do you remember?”
“Don’t welcome him into our home again. He’s a manipulator and a liar,” Rohan said quietly, his voice firm but low, as if warning her not to let Ereves back into their lives after everything the bastard had caused them. “He has done many unforgivable things that I can never forgive, or forget, in this lifetime. He is no different from my mother.”

Rohan told her about the part his mother had played in shaping him into a man who grew up uncaring. He told her how he had even killed her and the king, and shared every thread of his life that connected to hers. It was as if nothing had changed, he had always been able to speak to her about things he couldn’t talk to anyone about. Just as he had once welcomed her into the raw truths of his past, he was doing it again, peeling back every bitter and painful moment.

Now that he was talking to her, he realized there was no reason to hide or shield her from the truth of their lives, or the life she had before she forgot them. Filling her up with everything would help her understand things better and give her the chance of recovering them.

When he fell silent hours later after telling her everything, Belle stared at him, unblinking, her hazel eyes wide and shimmering with unshed tears. “…all of this happened in your life and our life.” The words were more a stunned declaration than a question. Everything he said felt unreal; she could not grasp any of it. Rohan’s life, the things he had done, her own life, how it had ended, they all seemed distant, like fragments of someone else’s story she was listening to, but somehow she felt deeply connected in a way that she couldn’t place a finger on.

She hadn’t only been revived from death; she had once been a reaper of souls, the one who had brought back his own soul and stopped it from crossing over.

Rohan gave her some silent moments to digest his words while he quietly kept running his fingers through her hair. When her eyes finally returned to his, he asked, “Does anything ring a bell? Do you remember?”

Belle could see the hopeful look in his eyes, but she shook her head. “Does it matter to you much whether I remember everything or not?” she asked, feeling the possibility that she might never regain all those memories. Even the pain that usually came with forcing her mind to remember had stopped. It was as if her past memories were completely gone, and only the new ones she was making existed. Apart from the lingering sense of having lived such a life, there were no concrete memories.

It scared her to think that just because she couldn’t remember them, Rohan might actually begin to believe she wasn’t the same woman who had lived all those hardships with him, or the woman he considered his wife and would go to any length to get back. As much as she wanted, more than anything, to remember, she couldn’t force something that wasn’t there to come back. After listening to everything he had said, she realized the depth of his connection to her.

Rohan shifted to lie on his side so he could not only look at her properly but also hold her closer as he spoke. Though the movement made his back sting, he ignored it.

“You know what, sweetheart? There was a time when we had a witch perform a spell to send the soul we thought was attached to your body into the land of the dead. She warned us that your memories might be gone. Though I didn’t want you forgetting me and everything we had gone through together, I still accepted then that if such a thing happened, as long as you were alive and well, we would make new memories. It’s no different now, Isa. As long as you won’t push me away, I am willing to make new memories with you, to start afresh here with our family and to help you fill in the many missing memories as much as I can.” He spoke quietly, moving his head closer to press his lips against her forehead.

“Will you promise not to push me away and give me a chance to make new memories with you?” he asked, looking down at her eyes.

Belle felt her heart waver under the intensity of his gaze. She nodded, watching a smile bloom across his face.

Rohan continued, not forgetting that he hadn’t yet told her where he had gone earlier. “You asked me where I went, Isa. But you know how I told you we planned to move here and start afresh with our family?” He asked, and she nodded.

“Well, we didn’t get to bring our things and all our fortunes before the war broke out, and now the castle has been conquered and is no longer ours.”

A look of understanding settled on Belle’s face as she quietly asked, “Do you mean we don’t have anything anymore?” Realizing her question might seem like she cared about wealth and possessions, she quickly added, “It doesn’t matter what we lost, Rohan. The fact that everyone is safe and healthy is what matters. We can find ways to manage. We have many farm animals and can start a farmhouse. I read about it, and I think many earn from it. We can sell eggs and milk to the next village across the mountainside.

“Don’t let it bother you. Once the winter passes, we can plant crops and do many things. I also know how to sew and knit; I will make our attires and…” Belle realized she was blabbering, speaking fast, all the while Rohan watched her tenderly, his eyes shining like a moonless night sky. She trailed off self-consciously, her cheeks coloring.

When he didn’t say anything and kept staring at her with those unblinking eyes, Belle finally parted her lips to ask, “Is… there something on my face?”

He shook his head, still not looking away.

“Then why are you staring at me like that?” Belle asked, self-conscious and fighting the urge to cover her face with her palm.

“Because I love you, and I love staring at you,” he said suddenly, making her heart lurch before it began to race faster.

Belle, suddenly shy and unsure what to say as their conversation seemed to take a turn in a new, unexpected direction, could only stare back at him, wondering what this breathtakingly handsome man loved about her, or why he would keep staring like that.

“Do you know why I love you, Isa?” Rohan whispered as if reading her thoughts, leaning close until their lips were just a breath apart. He let his fingers trace the curve of her jaw, tilting her face slightly to meet his gaze.

“I love you because of you. Not for only what you do or how you make me feel, not even for how you care for others and put everyone first before yourself… but for who you are. Your heart, your spirit, the fire that lives in you, everything that makes you, you. I love the way you look at the world, the way you move, the way you speak, the way your mind and soul shines even in darkness. I love every part of you, Isa. I love you simply because you exist.”

He pressed his forehead gently against hers, letting his words sink in. “I love you. I have loved you through everything, and I will continue to love you, not for what you give me, but for the one person you are, the only person I ever want, you. So never doubt my love for you even for a second, little bunny.”