Chapter 12
His silence was as deliberate as his steps.
Each time my skin accidently brushed against his, heat seared though me, leaving behind ghostly imprints of his touch.
I had no idea where he was taking me, and he seemed determined to keep it that way.
“Where exactly are we going?” I asked, frowning.
No response. Not even a glance.
I dug my nails into my palms. “Is ignoring me some kind of new game for you?”
The corner of his mouth twitched—barely noticeable in the dim light—but he kept walking.
The passage narrowed, the ceiling dropping so low I had to double over, hands scraping against the rough walls as I navigated the jagged overhang. Dalkhan ducked smoothly beneath it, never missing a step. It was as though the mountain itself bent to accommodate him rather than the other way around.
For a breathless moment, the walls pressed in from all sides, scraping my shoulders before we emerged through a narrow gap.
Rushing water drowned out the hammering of my heart. I straightened, blinking as my eyes adjusted.
The cavern had opened into a breathtaking oasis hidden within the mountain.
A massive waterfall cascaded down from a wide break above, its mist catching the sunlight, scattering it into shimmering ribbons of gold.
The water below was impossibly clear, the surface rippling with the soft glint of diamonds where the light touched.
The air was cooler, carrying the scent of damp rock and wild herbs that somehow managed to grow in the crevices along the walls.
I dropped my head back, closing my eyes as the sunlight warmed my face. “How does this even exist?” I murmured.
Instead of answering, he stepped forward.
His fingers worked at his boots, tugging them off before wading into the water.
His muscles flexed as he moved, golden-brown skin slick with remnants of fire.
He wore nothing but loose pants, the fabric darkening as he moved deeper, moulding to the sharp cut of his hips.
I remained rooted at the edge.
His head turned, eyes capturing mine over his shoulder. “Afraid?”
I scowled. “Hardly.”
I lowered myself onto a rocky ledge, carefully removing my sandals before dipping my feet into the water. The cold was shocking against my heated skin.
I shouldn’t have been there. Not with him.
Dalkhan prowled closer through the water, coming to stop directly between my spread knees. His body eclipsed everything else—the waterfall, the sunlight, even the air in my lungs.
“Tell me about your home,” he asked, his deep voice resonating in the cavern. The echoes seemed to stroke my skin.
I leaned back onto the heels of my palms.
“There’s not much to tell. I come from a small village in Edla.” The memories stirred, sharp and painful. “I lived alone with my mother.”
The ache deepened, an invisible hand tightening around my heart.
Dalkhan’s brows drew together as he studied my face. Before I realised what was happening, he reached out, his thumb catching a tear I hadn’t known I’d shed and sweeping it from my cheek.
I cleared my throat roughly.
No. Not here. Not in front of him.
I forced my lips into a smile.
“So,” I said, aiming for a teasing tone, “how many women have you brought here?”
His smirk was lazy. “Many.”
A tinge of jealousy flared in my chest. My expression must’ve betrayed me because his eyes darkened with satisfaction. His large hand slid from the water to my calf, leaving a trail of cool droplets that quickly warmed beneath his touch. I fought the urge to arch as he traced patterns on my skin.
“Does that bother you?” he asked, clearly amused.
It did bother me, annoyingly so, but I wasn’t about to admit it.
“How old are you?” I blurted instead, grasping for any distraction from the dangerous path my thoughts were taking.
His fingers never ceased their torturous rhythm, now drawing circles on the sensitive skin behind my knee.
“I don’t know,” he admitted. “Time moves differently for us, when you’ve existed for as long as I have, the years begin to blur together.”
“But you’re like… old. Really old?”
He flashed a toothy grin, not his usual predatory smirk but something genuine and breathtaking.
I nearly melted on the spot.
“Yes,” he chuckled, the sound travelling through the water between us. “Old.”
His hands moved higher, kneading the muscles of my thighs with delicious pressure.
“My turn to ask a question.”
“Okay,” I managed. “Ask away.”
I knew full well I shouldn’t have even been speaking to him, let alone allowing his hands to wander over my body, but it was so terrifyingly easy to get lost in him.
“If I allowed you to leave,” he said, his expression suddenly serious, “to return home. Would you go?”
The question caught me completely off guard. My chest tightened at the genuine interest in his gaze.
“Yes and no,” I answered carefully, treading the dangerous line between truth and deception “Yes, for my mother’s sake, but otherwise…” I paused, weighing my words. “I wouldn’t leave.”
I was playing a deadly game. One wrong word could ruin everything.
“My turn,” I said quickly, desperate to shift focus. “Can you tell me the story of Azmik?”
His smile was slow as he backed away, walking deeper into the water.
“I will tell you.” He lifted a dripping hand in invitation, water trickling between his fingers. “But only if you get in properly.”
I rolled my eyes, but curiosity won over caution. Kaseer had told me about Azmik, but I wanted—needed—to hear it from him.
“Fine.” I slid into the water with a sharp gasp as the cold water enveloped me.
Dalkhan wrapped his arms around my waist, pulling me against him. His body heat seeped through my soaked clothes. Without thinking, I wrapped my legs around his waist as he waded deeper, looping my arms around his neck for stability.
“That’s better,” he murmured, his hands settling possessively on my hips. “Much better.”
Sunlight fractured across the water’s surface, highlighting his features in gold.
“You’re staring,” he observed.
“So are you,” I countered, feeling bolder. I adjusted deliberately in his hold, his pupils dilating in response.
“You know you don’t have to hold me,” I pointed out, arching an eyebrow.
“Okay then.”
He released me, and I immediately began to sink. With his towering height, the water hardly reached his chest, but if I were to touch the bottom, I would be completely submerged.
I clutched at him frantically, my arms locking around his neck.
He laughed, his powerful arms returning to support me.
“You were saying,” he teased.
I narrowed my eyes.
“Tell me about Azmik,” I reminded him firmly, struggling to keep my thoughts coherent as he traced circles against the small of my back.
“It was centuries ago,” he began, his voice rising over the rushing water as he moved us closer to the cascading falls. “Before the Veil was created.”
He adjusted his grip, holding me more securely. The hard planes of his body pressed intimately against my softer curves.
“I was mounting my stallion and when I’d looked down, he was lying there, crushed beneath a hoof.”
“What did you feel?” I asked. “When you saw him dying?”
Surprise flashed across his features.
“Nothing, at first,” he admitted.
“But something changed?”
He nodded slowly, his thumb absently tracing the line of my collarbone “He was dying—writhing in agony. I was going to end him, save him from his misery with a quick death. A mercy killing.”
His eyes grew distant, but his hands remained achingly present on my body.
“But as I knelt beside him, Azmik struck me with what little strength he had left. His fangs bared, venom dripping. Even crushed, his will to live burned brighter than the pain consuming him.”
I’d liked Azmik before, but now I adored him.
“Did it hurt?” I asked. “The bite?”
A slow smile spread across his face. “Worried about me, little flame?”
I scoffed, but my cheeks heated. “Hardly. Just wondering if his venom affects your kind the same way it affects mortals.”
“It burned,” he admitted. “But it did not harm me. Pain and harm are different things entirely.”
He paused, studying my face with that unnerving intensity.
“I was… amused by him,” he continued. “He clung to life like he had all the time in the world. Like death was just another enemy to fight.”
“I respected his defiance. His refusal to accept his fate.”
“You admired his stubbornness,” I clarified. “How surprising.”
His eyes narrowed. “Meaning?”
“Only that you seem to have a type,” I teased, trailing a finger through his beard.
He caught my wrist, bringing my palm to his lips.
“Perhaps I do,” he murmured against my skin. Sparks raced up my arm at the simple gesture.
“What happened next?” I asked, embarrassingly breathless.
“Instead of incinerating him, I pulsed my flames into him, attempting to heal flesh with fire. I didn’t know if it would work, but somehow it did.”
His face beamed with pride. “He’s been with me ever since.”
Without warning, he moved us directly beneath the falls, the cool water rushing over our heads, drenching us. Our hair plastered to our skin, water streaming between our bodies. If not for Dalkhan’s heat, I would’ve frozen to the bone.
“A warning would have been nice,” I sputtered, blinking water from my eyes.
“Where’s the fun in that?” His hand slid higher up my back, drawing me closer until we were heart to thundering heart.
“What are you doing?” I asked, my voice far too unsteady.
Dalkhan brushed his lips against the shell of my ear. “What does it feel like I’m doing?” His teeth grazed my earlobe. “I’m enjoying what’s mine.”
A rush of heat curled through me. “Yours?”
He hummed low in his throat, his body pressing firmer against mine.
“You walked into my kingdom—into my hands, and now you think you belong to no one?” He moved one hand to my chin, lifting it up with firm pressure. “Say it.”
My breath stuttered, caught somewhere between my lungs and throat.
“Say. It.”
“No.” I bit my lower lip. His eyes tracked the movement.