Chapter 9 Nory
NORY
Golden sunlight streams into my eyes, rousing me from a deep slumber.
Blinking against the offending light, I take in my familiar room.
Everything is just as I left it the night before.
My worn boots are resting against the wall while my cloak hangs from the lone peg beside the door.
The wrinkled fabric of my scarlet gown lies in a pool at the foot of my bed.
Fresh laundry remains in folded stacks that I have yet to put away.
The only unusual thing in this room is the male body spooned around me.
His soft skin rests me. The weight of his arm along my side and his soft breaths against my shoulder send a delicious shiver through me.
Eryx had removed his cloak and armor last night as we shared a warm bath to wash away the night’s chill.
The sight of his tall form, adorned with lean muscles, had stolen my breath.
There was nothing about him that was human.
Dark blood flowed in his gray veins. He was not human—but neither was he a monster.
At least he wasn’t to me. His primal nature and formidable form excite me.
I desire him above all else. Watching the bath water lap at his pale skin had ignited another inferno of lust inside of me.
It led me to seek him out and join our bodies together once more. We had come at the same moment amongst the cooling water before he lifted my trembling body from the tub. Depositing us both on the bed, he gathered me to him before we both fell asleep.
After our teeth-clenching rounds of lovemaking, it seems my revevant needs his sleep.
His eyes remain closed—his pale lips are parted slightly as he dreams. In the silence of the morning, I take him in, careful not to move and rouse him.
Sunlight dances across the sharp angles of his face, making his pale skin glow.
He doesn’t seem so foreboding in sleep. Instead, all I can see is Eryx… the male I care for.
That feels too simple a word to describe my feelings towards Eryx.
After last night, things have changed between us.
I can still feel him inside me. The phantom imprint of his body lingers along my skin.
The threads of our souls weave together in a new, permanent pattern that cannot be undone.
Most shockingly of all, I no longer feel alone.
Eryx is with me now, and I know we will never be parted.
Even as I think it, uneasiness rises within me like a wave.
These feelings he’s stirred inside me are dangerous—making me uncertain of the future for the first time in years.
Despite my heart's urging to yield to him completely, I can’t shake this feeling that our time together is rapidly dwindling.
The thought of not having him causes my heart to pound.
How has he managed to become so integral to me in such a short amount of time?
You would be fine if he left, a traitorous voice whispers. Life would be simple again, and you’d have enough money to do as you please. Alone.
I shake myself to silence that errant voice. These warring feelings have left me off-kilter. I don’t have to make any decisions—at least not right now. I hope that is.
A soft clicking sound makes my eyes snag at the clock on the wall.
The hands read well past eight in the morning.
With a deep sigh, I stretch my arms above my head.
Customers will be arriving soon to collect their garments.
No doubt Kindell will return to give thanks for her husband’s demise—surely he’s been found by now.
It’s likely to be quite the gossip today, and I’ll have to feign my ignorance of the whole ordeal.
The stirring beside makes me turn in his grasp. Eryx’s eyes blink open, and pale yellow light glows from within his sockets. A lazy grin curves his lips as his hand tightens along my bare hip.
“Good morning,” he purrs in his deep voice.
“Morning.” Warmth envelopes my cheeks as I feel his cock harden against me. “My customers will be arriving in an hour to collect their orders.”
Eryx nods, but makes no move to release me.
He does the opposite, dragging me into his chest. The quilt slips from my shoulders and bares my breasts to his hungry gaze.
Eryx’s thin fingers cup my breasts before gently rubbing my nipples, encouraging them into stiff peaks.
I moan at the touch as my body begins to heat.
“The world seeks to take you away from me this morning,” he murmurs. “How are you feeling?”
I force my heavy-lidded eyes open as he continues to work me.
“Perfect. More than perfect.”
“Happy?” he asks. I hear the unease in his voice.
Meeting his gaze with my own, I cup his cheek, laying bare the desire for him in my eyes, and I nod. There is no room for uncertainty between us. I watch as his body relaxes and leans down to capture my nipple in his mouth. Moaning against him, I cradle his head to me, urging him to taste me more.
After a few devastating licks of his tongue, he releases my nipple with a pop. Arousal spreads down my inner thighs, desperate for relief. Eryx inhales deeply, a wicked smile on his mouth.
“In all the damned centuries I’ve prowled this world, I’ve never felt like this before.
Blood fulfilled me—it was the only thing I ever craved—but now I could live off your taste alone.
Until the world around us crumbles into dust.” Flames roar to life in his eyes.
“You are a madness—burrowing under my skin and into my dead heart.”
The organ remains still, never pounding in the same rhythm mine does.
With a growl, his lips capture mine in a searing kiss.
Pushing me back onto the mused sheets, he falls between my spread thighs.
I moan as his mouth leaves me to kiss a trail of fire down my throat.
My hips lift to rub my wetness along his hard cock.
The ridges tease my clit and make more arousal leak from me.
“You are my madness, too.” My breathy confession comes as he latches onto my breast again. “With you, I can be who I truly am.”
His mouth leaves my breath to kiss down my stomach. Eryx’s wet tongue dips into my navel, and my breathing turns into ragged pants as he kisses across my hip bones.
“All it took was spilling some blood for you to assure you of my devotion. With me, you’ll always be protected—guarded like the treasure you are,” he growls against my trembling skin.
“I’ll slaughter every male in this town if you will it—anything to get my cock back into this tight pussy of yours. ”
Rising up, he takes his cock into his hand. A shimmering drop of wetness beads at the tip as he lines it up with my entrance. Rubbing himself between my folds, my eyes blur at the sensation. I open my mouth to tell him to take me—to claim me in the light as thoroughly as he did in the dark.
Before I can, there’s a sharp knock at the door.
My pleasure shatters like a dropped glass.
Eryx holds himself still atop me, head whipping towards the sound.
Beyond my pounding heart beat, I can just make out a sound coming from beyond the door—voices—a handful of them overlapping in hushed conversation.
This can’t be good.
Ice coats my veins as my mind immediately drifts to the worst outcome. My plots have been uncovered, and the men of this town have come to take me away to pay for my crimes. Rational finally creeps in as I realize they would’ve broken down the door right by now to haul me off.
Still, I have no appointments this early—whoever is at my door is not here to see a seamstress.
The bed creaks as Eryx rolls off of me and onto the floor. His eyes blaze towards the front room.
“Stay here. I’ll deal with whoever’s out there.”
While I appreciate the sentiment, I’m not in the mood to clean blood off my porch.
Besides, this could have a reasonable explanation, and I don’t want him in danger over something I can quickly dispel on my own.
Rising from the bed, I catch my breath at the soreness between my legs.
I don’t have time to register the stiffness as I reach out and snag Eryx's arm.
“Let me handle it,” I say, shaking my head when he opens his mouth to argue. “Stay hidden back here. Hopefully it won’t come to this, but if things do take a turn—”
“I won’t hesitate to protect you.”
“I know.”
Pushing up on my toes, I capture his lips.
No longer being alone has made me bolder.
Whatever waits on that other side of the door will not harm me—Eryx will keep me safe.
He deepens our kiss. Our tongues glide together, but before we can get carried away, another barrage of knocks echoes through the house.
I sigh, pulling back. Eryx’s gaze is still wary as he glares towards the door.
“I’ll be fine.”
At least, I hope I will.
Quickly, I rifle through my clean clothes and find a simple cotton dress.
The green material is thick enough that I forgo a corset and stuff my feet into a pair of soft slippers.
Braiding my hair back, I secure it with a ribbon.
Staring into the mirror, I’m shocked at the face I see staring back.
She doesn’t look like me—her green eyes glow brightly, and there is a permanent flush to her cheeks.
I shake myself and turn away from my appearance.
With one more nod towards Eryx, I watch him slink into the shadows of my room.
Hustling through the house, I side-step stacks of repaired hems and pants until my hand wraps around the old brass knob.
Taking a deep breath, I twist the handle and meet what awaits me on the side.
Gathered on my stoop is a group of ten women—Kindell leads them at the front, dressed in her mourning weeds. Her eyes are clear, no sign of a single tear being shed. I open my mouth, but before I can ask a question, Kindell rushes forward.
Enveloping me in a tight, perfume-scented hug, she rocks me back and forth.
“Thank you—it doesn’t feel like enough, but thank you, Nory.”
Together we stumble into my front room, and the other women follow, shutting my door behind them with a thud.
Kindell releases me, and I can take stock of the women now inside my home.
A few of them I’ve met over the years to repair their clothes or make alterations for their husbands.
There is a variety of ages at play here, too: an aging farmer’s wife with deep wrinkles along her eyes and mouth, dressed in a frayed frock, to a young merchant's bride with a sparkling wedding band and gaunt face.
All of the women look at me with hope in their eyes.
“What’s going on?” I ask, even as I know the answer.
It’s plain as day to see why they’ve all come here. I feel Eryx’s presence in the back room, ready to pounce if necessary. Kindell takes my hand and squeezes it, clearly a spokesperson for this mismatched group.
“Word of my husband's untimely demise came early this morning.”
Her words are clipped with no sign of emotion. Not that I can blame her. The memory of her husband’s hands along my body and his lecherous words makes bile churn in my stomach. An awful man—he is where he deserves to be now.
That’s why I don’t even attempt to offer condolences; none of the women seems to mind. The hope in their gazes only intensifies.
“Everyone in this town has been on edge since the livestock started dying. Now with three deaths in the span of three days—a few of the men in town think there’s some sort of killer on the loose.
” Icy fingernails rake down my spine, but Kindell merely grins.
“Of course, I told them all it was nonsense—that my husband had been foolish to travel alone and I had warned him not to that night in front of many of his friends. Still, they didn’t believe me and seemed intent on launching some sort of investigation. ”
Kindell gestures towards the women around here.
“These are all of their wives who attest they are each as cruel as my husband was—and would be happy to see them meet a fate similar to his.”
That’s what this is—a warning and a solution. These women want me to liberate them the same way I had Isabelle and Kindell. This is also their way of telling me that if I don’t take care of these men, they will eventually uncover my crimes and come after me.
If I were smart, I’d leave today. I have enough money to travel—Eryx could guide me at least to a nearby port and start over somewhere far away. If the men of this village are already onto me, killing any more would be foolish.
Kindell must sense my hesitation. Her eyes grow serious as the silence stretches.
“Please, Nory, help them like you helped me. They have plenty of money to pay you,” she urges. “With fewer men around to ask questions, there is less of a chance you will ever be discovered for helping us. All these women will keep your secret.”
I bite my lip, conflicting feelings warring inside me.
The farmer’s wife looks at me—her voice is meek and unassuming.
“Help us, please. These men are loyal to each other—they’ll pay someone to hunt you down if you try to flee. You’ll never be safe from them unless you kill them.”
I sigh. As much as I hate to admit it, she’s right. These men combined have enough coin to pay one of the sell-swords that frequent the tavern to track me for the rest of my days. I won’t live in constant fear—checking over my shoulder, waiting to be found out.
While I have Eryx now, will he always be there for me? A part of me still can’t shake that he’s keeping something from me and that our time together is coming to an end. Without him, I would have no protection should anyone come seeking retribution.
However, more than that, as I stare into the haunted faces of the women around me, I know I have to aid them. I’m the only hope they’ve got.
“Fine. I’ll help you all.”
A soft cheer goes up as the women around me visibly relax.
One by one, they each hand over heavy sacks of gold coins—the farmer’s wife extends a bag of grain and a few copper pieces, and I take them along with the other payments, easing her worry over the meager sum.
After collecting their payments, each one provides me with a description of their husbands and where they typically frequent.
Once the last woman leaves with her thanks still echoing in the air, I rise from my work table.
I don’t need to confirm with Eryx that he will help me.
He offered to slaughter all the men in this town this morning, and the more I think about it, the more I realize that won’t be too far off from what we are doing.
This will be quite the undertaking. Excitement pulses in my veins, and even though it is wrong, I can’t help but be eager to see Eryx in action again. Who knew I had such bloodlust of my own? He and I truly make the perfect team.
Tonight, we will be unleashed on the Snowlands again. I can hardly wait. Throughout the morning, I find myself counting down the minutes until the sun finally sets.