Chapter Two
Ryker
The corridor outside my chambers was empty, and I was thankful for it. My shoulder hurt more than I would admit, and I didn’t want an audience as I removed the dagger.
My dagger.
Cadence had driven it in with surprising precision, and despite the pain radiating from the wound, I couldn’t contain the grin that pulled up my lips.
Lethal and vicious. Those two words described my mate perfectly.
I leaned back against the door, wincing as fire shot down my arm. With both hands wrapped around the hilt, I tugged the blade free and barely stifled the grunt that wanted to escape me.
Fuck, that hurt.
My Temptress had certainly hit her mark.
Blood soaked through the fabric of my tunic in thick, wet pulses. A sheen of sweat coated my brow, and I leaned my head back as I reveled in the pain. It was a reminder of the passion burning beneath Cadence’s flesh.
A passion I very much looked forward to claiming, no matter how many times she made me bleed for it.
Boots clacked in the corridor, but I ignored the newcomer as I closed my eyes and inhaled the scent of her destruction.
“What the hell were you thinking, Ryker?” my brother demanded. “Nullifying cuf—” Riordan trailed off as he sucked in a sharp breath. “What happened to you?”
I glanced sideways to see Riordan frozen in the hallway. His gaze was locked on the crimson stain covering my shoulder before it dropped to the bloodied knife in my hand.
“Let me guess,” he said, pursing his lips. “A gift from Cadence?”
“She’s getting faster.”
Riordan studied me for a moment before a huge grin spread across his face. “She finally landed a blow, and with your own blade no less.” He let out a low whistle. “That’s got to hurt the pride.”
“Hurts less than your commentary.”
Riordan chuckled. “Testy and bleeding. Did she hit something vital or just your ego?”
“Why are you here?” I grit out between clenched teeth.
“I was coming to see if Cadence needed any help disposing of you.” His gaze darted back to my injured shoulder. “Guess I was too late.”
“Good. Now that’s settled, you can fuck off.”
Riordan’s grin dropped, and he sighed. “I can’t believe you used nullifying cuffs on her.”
“How is it any different from the collar I gave her?”
“The collar prevented her escape, but at least she had her magic. You’ve left her utterly defenseless in a den of vipers.”
“She has my protection. That is defense enough.”
“Maybe she doesn’t want your protection. Maybe she wants your trust. You can’t keep treating her like something you own, Ryker. She’s not a possession, she’s a person.”
“What she is, is mine,” I said, jabbing a finger in my chest. “You have no business interfering in my affairs, Little Brother.”
Riordan leaned back against the wall next to me and crossed his arms. “Since you seem to be denser than I gave you credit for, I’ll say this again: You need to trust Cadence enough to bring her into the fold. Think of the assassin? Her cooperation could help uncover who sent them.”
The mere mention of the fiend who tried to hurt my wife made me wish he were still alive so I could kill him myself.
Slowly. Painfully.
I could feel the weight of Riordan’s gaze, but I didn’t turn to look at him.
“Have you even bothered to ask her what she wants?”
I swallowed the snarl that threatened to rise. “She doesn’t know what she wants.”
“She seems pretty damn sure she doesn’t want this.” He motioned to the blood soaking the front of my tunic.
“What would you have me do? Let her go?” I said through gritted teeth.
Riordan tipped his head toward the ceiling as if he were searching for divine wisdom before he pinched the bridge of his nose. When he turned to face me, his lips were pressed into a thin line.
“I’d have you listen. Truly listen. I heard her back in the forest. She put her faith in you, and from where she’s standing, you let her down.”
This time, I didn’t bother to contain the snarl that worked its way up my throat. “I did that for her protection.”
“Maybe you need to stop thinking you know what’s best for her and allow her to decide.”
“She all but confirmed she would try to escape me again the moment an opportunity presented itself.”
“So, give her a reason to stay.” He shrugged.
“I will not beg.”
“Did I say beg? The gods know you’d be terrible at it. All I’m suggesting is that you stop treating her as if she’s your prisoner.”
I rubbed my shoulder, the pain a welcome distraction from the mess inside my head. “You like her.”
“Oh, I love her,” Riordan said with a grin. “She stabbed you and still walked away with her head held high. That’s queen material.”
I gave him a dry look.
“She’s fire, Ryker,” he said, tone softening. “And not the kind you douse. She’s the kind you sit beside or burn trying to tame.”
I looked away, jaw tight.
“Don’t let your pride ruin this.” Then, a steely resolve I had never seen in my brother before entered his eyes, and he straightened. “If you can’t make this work, Ryker, I’ll free her myself. I won’t let you break her. You’d never forgive yourself.”
He spoke the last part so quietly that I couldn’t tell if his words were meant for my ears or his.
“Get that cleaned up,” Riordan added, turning to walk away. “You’re dripping all over the damn floor.”
I waited until his footsteps faded, then looked down at the blood pooling beneath me. The crimson slowly spread, seeping into the cracks between the stones as if it belonged there — just another offering to this cursed place.
I flexed my fingers. The pain in my shoulder pulsed with each breath, but I welcomed it. It kept me grounded, made me sharp. I bent to pick up the knife and turned it over. My blood coated the blade.
That fact shouldn’t have excited me, but it did.
My conversation with Riordan replayed in my mind as I continued to rotate the dagger. I knew he’d made some valid points, but he didn’t know Cadence as I did.
She wouldn’t accept a truce between us. She’d vowed to bring about my demise, and she’d meant it.
Something happened while she was gone. I had seen the edge that glinted in her gaze when she first peered up at me in the forest.
Something had shifted. I just didn’t know what.
Turning, I made my way down the hall, each step leaving a smear of blood in my wake. When I reached the healers’ quarters, I pushed the door open without knocking. Odette’s eyes widened as I walked in.
“Your Majesty,” she said, but I cut her off before she could ask me what happened.
“My shoulder.” I sank into the nearest chair with a wince, pointing at the bloody wound. “Now.”
As Odette rushed to grab her supplies, I had to wonder if enticing Cadence’s fire, coaxing it to the surface, was exactly what was needed to destroy the distance she was fighting to maintain.