Born To Rule

Chapter Sixteen

Once Balis was on his feet and looking like his irritatingly handsome self again, we helped the prisoners. He and Kresh, the Dogu who attempted to heal him, searched other sections of the camp for remaining captors, while I worked my way to the north side to retrieve Eiresh.

I swore actual relief washed over the animal when I approached. The unfamiliar sting of tears welled in my eyes, and I surveyed him until I was convinced he was safe and unharmed. Full of gratitude for his safety, I held his head against my body for a moment, and he let me. I liked to think he needed it as much as I did.

Dawn’s blue haze had morphed into a blanket of gold by the time I led Eiresh back to the village center. In total, we discovered three more prisoner tents scattered throughout the camp, each holding fifteen to thirty Dogu. Kresh was directing the last of the prisoners to the dais plaza for a census, and Balis was nowhere to be seen, so I leaned against the wheel of a wooden cart and took my first deep breath since waking up yesterday morning.

Kresh joined me, securing his long machete-like blade at his side. “Glad that’s over,” he said.

I nodded in agreement, though I wasn’t quite so sure. The scroll in my pocket and the questions it raised burned through my thoughts like wildfire. I heard Eurok and Sidelle speak about poachers, of the devastation they’ve caused across the province. But now, having witnessed that destruction for myself, it felt imperative that it be stopped. And the vicious part of me wanted to see it done.

With a stray strip of canvas in hand, I wiped the blood from my dagger. “Will you stay?” I asked.

I hoped he’d say no, even when I understood they had very little choice. Where else could they go? Greggor, the man I killed for the king, smuggled mana-wielding refugees from their own kingdoms here. This was supposed to be a haven—yet they were slaughtered.

“This is home,” he said. “We will make it feel that way again with the clans’ help.”

I nodded.

Balis appeared from behind a tent across from us, a stray gust of wind tousling his hair. It was hard to ignore my involuntary reaction at the sight of him, like every square inch of my body bristled with a need to be touched by him. I never tried to hide when I wanted someone, but this draw was different. Stronger. No, I can’t be this stupid.

This was exactly why the captain sent him after me instead of coming himself. Eurok counted on me to fall for his maddening good looks and flirty smile. If I wasn’t so guilty of using flesh as a weapon myself, I might have resented him for it.

Kresh’s gaze narrowed on my hands. “Where did you get that?”

“This?” I held up my dagger as Balis reached us. “I’ve had it since I was young. Why?”

“It’s just like theirs.”

He pointed to the heap of dead poachers, and their golden-hilt swords piled beside them. The identical swirling pattern of amber, emerald, and quartz jewels on each hilt suggested they belonged as a set.

“There’s something strange about them.” A sense of unease laced his statement.

“How so?” Balis asked.

“When cut, mana fled our bodies—unable to wield or heal. They restrained those of us who were unharmed, but the shackles somehow interfered with our mana as well.”

Balis dipped his chin. “Lead?”

Kresh shook his head. “No. Lead doesn’t respond to mana, but it doesn’t have an effect, either. These were almost like a lock, both on our physical bodies and our spirit.” With another dejected shake of his head, he said, “I’ve never seen anything like it.”

“What does it mean?” I asked, looking between the two.

Kresh folded his massive, dark arms over his chest. “I’m not sure.”

“Well, what do you say we ask our new friend?” I raised a mischievous brow and motioned for them to follow.

We rounded the corner, and both males let out a chorus of laughter. The man hung from a tree limb by his feet like a gangly weasel caught in a snare, swinging and spinning as he bellowed and complained.

Balis chuckled dryly. “Ah, so you didn’t kill him after all.”

“A villager flushed the wound and stitched him up enough for me to get some questions out of him.” I shrugged. “Looks to me those stitches are working loose, though.” With a pointed gesture, I drew attention to the fresh red trail that trickled down his naked torso and pooled on the ground.

“Let me down, you bitch!” His complexion darkened to an impressive shade of purple.

“That’s not very nice.” Balis sent a pulse through the air, knocking the dangling man about.

I cut the rope at the base of the tree, and the poor bastard crumpled in a heap. When I knelt beside him, I balanced my dagger precariously on his temple. He froze.

“We’ve got a few questions for you. Starting with, where did you get those pretty new swords of yours?”

“Just kill me.” He spat on the ground at my knee.

“You know, the thing about us humans, we’re always in such a rush,“ I purred, adding pressure to my blade’s edge.

Balis and Kresh snickered.

I pushed myself up, then slammed my boot to his chest, shoving him onto his back. “But I’ve got time for a little fun.” I angled my dagger at his cock, and he went rigid.

“W-what are you doing?” he stammered.

“Who hired you?”

“I-I don’t know.”

My knife’s tip pressed against his trousers, and he whimpered.

“I found your scroll. You know something.”

“I’m telling you,” his voice pitched higher, “I have no idea.”

My tongue tsked against my teeth as I pushed harder. The blade pierced into his tender flesh. His terrified wail echoed off the stone buildings and sent birds fleeing from the treetops.

“Okay. Okay!”

Scum, like him, always crumpled when their manhood was threatened. It wasn’t my preferred place to aim a weapon, but it had been a long night. Like I said, impatient humans and all.

I withdrew, hoisted him upright, then indicated for Balis and Kresh to position him against the tree. Crouched in front of him, I cocked my head at the terrified man, dagger poised and ready to strike.

“Start talking,” I demanded.

“The guy was rich—walked with a limp. He gave the order. I just organized the crew.”

“What does he want?”

“I don’t know.”

I whipped the blade to the side, nicking the thin skin above his cheekbone. “Why are you poaching Vylandrians?”

“You better tell her before she carves out your eye,” Balis warned.

The man’s whole body trembled as I gave him a wink and a wicked smile.

“He wants live mags.”

“What kind?” I asked.

“Any—all. Told us to start small, work our way up. We poached lesser fairies first, then–”

“Work up to what?” A hardened edge overtook Balis’ tone.

The man’s watery gaze filled with terror, as if he feared his next word would be his last. “Druids.”

For a moment, I entertained the thought of fulfilling his expectations. But I found, somewhere in the lines of fear on his face, the control to step away. He didn’t deserve to live, but it wasn’t my suffering he and this band of lowlifes caused.

He hiccupped on a sob. “That’s all I know, I swear.”

“Hmm.” My lip curled at his pathetic state. “I believe you.”

I turned and left with Balis falling into step behind me.

“You’re leaving?” His cries morphed into a panicked shout. “That’s it? I’m free to go?”

“Nope,” I called over my shoulder. I gave Eiresh a loving scratch on his long nose, then climbed into the saddle.

“You’re gonna kill me?”

“Nope. You’re not mine to kill.” I jerked my chin toward the village. “You’re theirs.”

I clicked my tongue and urged Eiresh on.

The man’s frantic screams pitched higher as Kresh dragged him toward his fate. A small gust of wind tickled and tugged at my hair, and I didn’t have to look back to know Balis transformed, following my retreat.

We maintained a steady pace until we broke through the treeline, finding the trade road. Eiresh’s hoofbeats crunched a steady rhythm against the gravel as Balis shifted again.

“So, are you going to tell me who you really are?”

The question caught me off guard, and I arched my brow. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Eurok claimed you’re believed to be a princess, but you neither speak like one–”

“Because I’m not.”

“Nor act like one. And you can wield man–”

“Don’t say it.”

“Mira.”

“Don’t!” My grip tightened on the reins. “I haven’t lied to you. I’m a bounty hunter from Calrund who was mistaken for someone else. And now I’m trying to leave before I get myself or anyone else killed.”

“You veiled across a twenty-yard gap in less than a second. If your goal is not to get anyone killed, you ought to stay and learn how to control that power.”

“I don’t have power,” I said through my teeth. “Besides, you were nearly dead. You don’t know what you saw.”

“Except Kresh saw it too.”

His insistent stare was disarming. And infuriating. How could someone so irritating be so damn attractive? If it weren’t for the sturdy muscles cording his arms and the stubble on his chin, he might’ve looked like a child throwing a tantrum. Instead, he was a powerhouse of a male teetering on the edge of his patience.

I stopped Eiresh and tugged the reins so I could face Balis properly. “Just because you helped me get my horse back doesn’t mean I owe you anything,” I said. “Least of all, an explanation.”

“You’re running scared, Mira.”

The unapologetic way he said my name, the sound of it on his lips, made me take pause. It begged me to release the damper on my emotions, to let the truth bubbling below like a geyser finally release.

”I am scared.“ My words broke through the tightness in my throat. “Since I’ve stepped foot in this godsforsaken province, I’ve heard phantom voices coming from stone men, been rendered unconscious, pinned to a tree by a demon spider–”

Balis moved a step closer.

“I’ve had strange dreams every night, been hunted by a hot, shape-shifting warrior—and saw the butchered bodies of an entire village of innocent dragon worshipers.” I bit down on my tongue as that tightness threatened to turn into a sob.

Balis had closed the distance between us, grabbing the reins like he had that first day we met, and looked up at me. Despite my admission of fear and what I’d gone through, the determination in his deep green eyes was unwavering.

“You think I’m hot?”

I kicked at him, a quip of laughter escaping my thick throat, but he dodged it with ease.

“You’re insufferable,” I hissed, fighting my mirth.

He laughed along with me until his features hardened—serious again. “You’ve been through a lot. I get it. But if you think those are reasons you should leave, you’ve got it all wrong.”

I rolled my eyes.

“No, really. Listen,” he pressed his lips, considering, “gimme one day.”

“For what?”

“To prove this place isn’t all bad. If you slowed down, got to know us, and gave yourself a minute to think clearly, you might even want to give us a chance.”

He pinned me with a gaze that robbed me of words, and my attention fixed on the treeline. The smarter choice would be to keep riding, leave just as I planned from the start. I’d been fighting an endless internal struggle since entering this province. That intuitive whisper promising Sidelle’s intentions were pure, that urge to protect Eurok while he was no more than a stranger. And now, with Balis, this attraction between us was becoming impossible to ignore. Despite everything, I looked back into those jade eyes and knew. I already wantedto stay.

I sighed a deep, relenting breath. “Just one.”

His bright, answering grin was like a sledgehammer to my already crumbling resolve.