Chapter 10
“You don’t need to come,” Asta said sternly as Kaid trailed her and Gyrial to the stables. “I have Gyrial.”
“But what if she’s dangerous?” Kaid asked, struggling to keep up with the pair of warriors.
Asta stopped walking and spoke in a deadpan tone, throwing a thumb over her shoulder. “I have Gyrial.”
Kaid knew the major could handle whatever trouble they may encounter, but he still felt uneasy letting just the two of them go.
“You said it yourself. If she sees you, she’ll recognize you, ‘Bright Eyes,’” Asta mocked. “So if you insist on coming, stay out of sight and keep an eye on our surroundings.”
Kaid had tried to talk Asta out of it, but she insisted on learning more about the white-eyed courtesan.
The second he had told Asta about her, he had regretted his decision.
He knew she wouldn’t let it go, but he also knew it would possibly be dangerous to confront the courtesan, so he had gone behind her back and involved Gyrial.
Now that he witnessed how the two of them interacted with each other, he was regretting his decision.
The group mounted their horses and took off for the village, cloaks billowing out behind them.
When they arrived in town, they pulled their hoods up and Kaid split off, walking down the opposite side of the street.
It was particularly windy tonight and he had to keep adjusting his hood while he waited.
Upon their arrival to the alley holding the brothel, Kaid’s teeth ground together as he watched Asta and Gyrial move closer to each other. Not that it took much effort seeing as they were nearly glued to each other the whole night so far.
Asta reached down and interlocked her fingers with Gyrial’s, causing Kaid’s stomach to churn, the rumble of an odd feeling he had never experienced before burrowing deep within his chest. He knew the parts they had to play to get the courtesan’s attention, but he certainly didn’t anticipate how uncomfortable it would be to see them act it out.
Kaid stood across the alley, watching the pair as Gyrial backed Asta into the side of a building and began whispering into her ear. Asta’s genuine laughter was a punch to Kaid’s gut.
He had come up with the idea to lure the courtesan out with a bait couple and then corner her for questioning. But in his original plan, he was one half of that couple.
Somehow, the plan evolved into this. Evolved into him watching Gyrial lean in closer to Asta, their hoods concealing what was happening between them. Evolved into him watching Asta’s hand slide up Gyrial’s back while the soldier pressed his hips closer to hers.
Thank the gods for what Kaid saw next, because the skin on his face couldn’t heat anymore without melting off completely.
A woman with luxurious raven hair was gliding down the alley directly toward Gyrial and Asta.
Kaid crossed the street and leaned against the corner of the building, picking at his fingers to remain inconspicuous.
“Do you two share, or are you territorial?” A satin voice rolled down the alley.
To Kaid’s relief, Gyrial finally pried his head away from the princess so he could look at the courtesan. Kaid inspected what he could see of Asta’s face beneath her hood and only found swollen lips. He would curse himself until the end of time for being talked out of his own plan.
Gyrial’s thickly accented voice—the Spellid mountain dialect—echoed through the alley toward the woman, who was merely three feet away from them now. “We only share if she approves.” He nodded a head toward Asta. “What do you think, my love? Can she play?”
Asta walked a circle around the courtesan, the former assessing the woman like a slab of meat from the butcher while the latter was nearly devouring Gyrial with her gaze.
“Hmm. She could do,” Asta smiled. “Do you have anywhere for us to go besides the brothel? I’d like to have you all to ourselves, away from all of this.
” She clung to Gyrial’s side and her arms wrapped around him, eyes trailing up the surrounding walls with feigned disgust.
They played the part well—too well. They surely had to be together based on the tension he was witnessing between them. But how had Kaid missed that? He always had an impeccable knack for reading situations and hadn’t picked up on their relationship at all.
The woman walked to the other side of Gyrial and draped her body across him, laying a hand on his chest. “Oh, I know just the place.” Her hand brushed over Asta’s, which was resting on Gyrial’s abdomen, then traveled farther down, thankfully bypassing his manhood and caressing his thigh.
Gyrial stepped back from the women and placed a hand on each of their hips, pulling them closer to him. “Show us then, beautiful.”
This was it. This was the moment when they would get the courtesan alone and finally figure out if she had anything to do with the missing villagers.
Kaid trailed a good distance behind the three of them as the woman directed where to go. They were walking down the path he knew led down to the shoreline, but they were still quite close to town.
Gyrial’s hand slipped from the women’s hips and landed on each of their buttocks.
He’s playing a part. He has to make it believable. Kaid tried to reason with himself, but nothing could stop the boiling in his blood, the heat that infiltrated his entire being.
He noticed Gyrial and Asta slow their pace, so Kaid tucked behind a tree, suspecting that this was the moment.
The woman stopped and gestured around them. “This isn’t where I was thinking, but if you can’t wait any longer, then by all means, let’s begin.”
In one swift movement, Gyrial lunged forward and had the woman pressed against a tree with a forearm across her neck. It was faster than Kaid had ever seen any human move. Gyrial’s teeth were bared, something barbaric radiating in his golden eyes.
“What do you do with them?” The warrior snarled.
Asta was beside him, a dagger in each hand, and Kaid came out from behind the tree with a dagger of his own just in case.
The woman coughed against Gyrial’s grip. “Who?”
Gyrial pressed harder, his other hand holding a dagger to her abdomen. “Do not play games with us, female. What are you doing with the villagers?”
A tear slipped down the woman’s face, the whites surrounding her pearly irises turning bloodshot. She let out a sound that resembled a sob mixed with a gasp and spoke with a raspy voice. “I’m a courtesan. Please. I’m just a courtesan.”
Asta looked over her shoulder toward Kaid, but he couldn’t see her eyes under her hood. He wondered if she, too, was having doubts that this woman was guilty.
Kaid approached the three of them, holding his dagger pointed at the woman. A strong gale from the nearby shore burst through the air, pushing his hood back and revealing his identity.
He reached to tug the fabric back up but was distracted when the woman opened her mouth and started singing.
All is well, my humans. Come with me, and I will show you peace. Come with me, and I will guide you to a dream land. Come with me, and you will meet the gods and goddesses.
Her serenade sent goosebumps down Kaid’s neck and arms, but the thing that set off every alarm in his mind was that Gyrial had lowered his arm and weapon, and so had Asta.
They stared blankly at the woman as she continued her song, holding her hands out and removing the daggers from their grasps, tossing them deep into the forest. What the hell was she doing? What was wrong with Asta and Gyrial?
Her eyes began to glow, like white paper lanterns cast into a night sky, and a second set of canine teeth appeared in her grin, sharp and long.
He didn’t know what she was, but Kaid knew she was not human.
He used the only thing he knew—brute force.
He walked up to the woman and punched her directly in the face, causing her to fall backward into the tree she had been pinned against.
Instantly, Gyrial and Asta shook from whatever spell they had been under. The major once again pinned the woman to the tree and an animalistic growl escaped his throat. Why hadn’t Kaid fallen victim to the woman’s song as his company had? No matter the answer, he was grateful for it.
“Oh, Bright Eyes, I’m delighted you’re here.
If you changed your mind about wanting company, you only needed to ask,” the woman mused.
Kaid noticed a drop of blood leaking from her nose, likely from his punch.
Her tongue darted up and licked it away, then a wicked laugh erupted from her. “You’re all in over your heads.”
“I’ve had enough. What are you? A witch?” Asta rushed over and grabbed Kaid’s dagger from his hand before returning to the woman, lifting the blade, and plunging it directly into the woman’s shoulder before removing it swiftly, blood smattering the ground.
Kaid flinched. He knew Asta was ruthless with her words, but he had no idea she was so merciless with her blades as well. Though, he did feel a bit ridiculous that he hadn’t been the one to impale the courtesan with the steel. He had completely forgotten that it was in his hand when he punched her.
The light flickered out of the woman’s eyes and she shrieked. “I’ll tell you! I’ll tell you if you spare me!” She pleaded.
Asta looked between Gyrial and Kaid before nodding her head. Kaid flanked her side, just in case the woman decided to use her enchanting song once more, since he apparently was unaffected by her spell for reasons Kaid would rather not question until they were safe.
Again, Gyrial moved with an unnatural speed and switched out his forearm against the woman’s throat for the dagger that had been in Asta’s grip seconds ago.
“Speak,” Asta demanded in a voice colder than the gale coming off the ocean.