Chapter 26
Twenty-Six
Thorin- 21 years old
“ T ouch me.”
I peer up at Villiana as water cascades down her back, begging her to do what we’ve been dancing around for months.
Neither of us utters a single word—not a single sound is made. Not the barest intake of breath or racing of my heart. Only the thunderous sound of water hitting the stone floor can be heard.
The air is thick with uncertainty and need—it’s suffocating.
Vi takes a tentative step forward waiting for me to change my mind, but nothing could pull me away from her at this moment. Another step closes the small gap between us, leaving no space for the scared, awkward, beings who once stumbled over their words and swore off friendships.
As her violet gaze burns into my soul, I know those beings don’t exist anymore.
With a slow gentle caress, Vi pushes a soaked curl from my eye, dragging the tips of her fingers down my cheek stopping at the corner of my mouth. For a moment I think she’s going to walk away from me. Away from my scarred body and broken mind, but she doesn’t. Her pillowy lips crash against mine with fervor. All the tension that had been building up breaks with the passion with which she kisses me. Hot and slow, tongues dancing a waltz to the sound of our collective sighs.
Pushing up on my toes, I press myself against her soft body, needing to be closer to her. The way her hands skate down my body is gentle but needy. I’ve never had anyone touch me with such admiration. But when her fingers graze the inside of my thigh I lock up.
She stops without a second thought, pulling away to give me space. “We can stop. In here we aren’t at Bonecliff. You will never be forced to do something you don’t want to do.”
“I’m afraid,” I admit with a shaky voice. “I’m afraid to want to be touched by you. I’m afraid to want you because it will be the first time this type of touch won’t be evil.”
She studies me with seas of sorrow in her eyes. “Thorin, it’s okay to take control of your pleasure. It’s not evil or dirty—it’s empowering. But I will repeat myself, you do not have to do anything you are uncomfortable with.”
“Show me.”
Vi’s bare feet splash water as she pads forward, backing me against the cold shower wall. At first, she kisses my forehead, then lips, and down my jaw, to my neck. Kneeling before me, she kisses my stomach, never avoiding my scars. Sitting back on her heels, Vi looks up at me.
“I’m going to touch you now. Is that okay?”
My heart beats so fast that my vision seems to vibrate. This isn’t the first time I’ve ever been touched, but it sure as hell feels like it. Watching droplets collect on her long dark lashes while she patiently waits for my answer, hands resting on her own thighs, I beam down at my best friend, loving her in a way that I could never explain. In a way that makes the risk worth the reward—I will be punished a thousand times over to protect her.
“Yes.” The single word falls from my lips like a hymn.
My hair is something I’ve always felt proud of, whether it’s in twists, locs, braids, or down in all its coiled glory. My hair makes me feel beautiful. Powerful. This morning is no different as I tuck in the last strand of the woven crown I’ve crafted. If I’m going into battle I will present myself with authority with my head held high.
I can’t help but to think of my mother. Graceful and poised until you got between her and the ones she loved—that was until the snake showed up. Still, his actions will never taint the image of my mother.
She was never a queen, she was a goddess.
Last night changed the very fiber of my being. Having Villiana tight against me, hearts beating as one, made me realize even though there is no hope for me, I will never give up hope for Vi. My twin flame . Her blaze fans my weakened flicker, creating one glorious wildfire.
Last night reminded me I am my mother’s daughter.
A force to be reckoned with.
Raffi unlocks the door to my room and gawks at me like I have ten heads. “What the fuck are you all gussied up for?”
“You’re going to take me to Locren,” I replied calmly.
Sucking in his cheeks, he wriggles his fangs at me. “Today isn’t your morning, sweetheart.”
Even though I have to tilt my head up to see his face, I refuse to let his height intimidate me. “I’m very aware, but you’re going to take me regardless.”
Raffi braces his hairy arms against the door frame, leaning into the room. “That’s not how this works. I suggest you stuff your attitude back up your ass before I shove something else up there.”
An advantage of my pixie height is being this low to the ground, giving me better access to things like his balls, which my knee slams into. Raffi crumples into himself on the floor, groaning in pain. “Once you finish bitching down there, you are going to take me Locren, and you’re going to do it now. ” The action feels so freeing. I stopped fighting back for much so long, I almost forgot how much power I actually hold. But no longer will I let the dregs of the realms dilute who I am.
Spindly legs breakthrough his back, shifting him into his ugly spider form. I expected to double in size, but it’s comical how small his body is. Raffi rears back into an aggressive stance, venom collecting on his fangs.
Completely unenthused my arms cross and brow raises. “I’ve seen old men with bigger nutsacks than your abdomen.” It takes everything in me not to hold back the snort when he backs aways as if I’ve burned him. “Plus, I’ll tell the big man that you’ve been talking about how you’d love to fuck Villiana. We all know how he feels about his trophy.” Raffi becomes deathly still, as if he is a petrified stone, utterly stunned by my brazenness. If he had eyelids, all eight of his beedy-black-eyes would blink in succession.
Backing out of the doorway, Raffi lets me step into the hall. Today I lead the way. My strides are long and deliberate, only stopping for ten eyes to open the gates and doors.
The kiss of the sun on my face feeds the flames inside me. The cool autumn air fills my lungs with life. The crunch of dirt beneath my feet grounds me. My march through the gardens prepares me for war.
“Elliot informed me that you were very adamant about speaking with me?” Locren leans back in his tall leather seat, legs crossed, with an unbothered look on his face.
“I’m not drugging Villiana anymore. I will accept whatever consequences there are, but I will not be complicit for another moment.” My voice stays strong and assertive, but not cocky.
Bracing his forearms against his desk, I watch as evergreen scales pop up all over his hands and arms. “Is that so, pet?” His nose shortens until it’s nothing but two slits in his face. “You are aware she’ll be drugged regardless?”
Biting the inside of my cheek, I try to remain calm. “Yes.”
Locren's eyes scan over me with a calculating gaze. "Interessstinnng," he hisses, uncrossing his arms and wrapping his fingers over the edge of his desk in a deathly grip. Gleefully, I observe the exact moment he realizes how thoroughly he’s fucked himself. His anger boils higher every passing second, barely containing his shift.
He wanted me to be friends with Vi and get intel. I've followed through—though he doesn't need to know that he only squeezed the most unreliable information from me. But in doing so, he's made me more valuable than intended. Getting rid of me isn't an option. Not only would it look suspicious, but he'd lose direct access to his precious trophy. I waltzed into this room knowing my worth and I intend to flex it.
Locren’s fangs drop before he glowers at me with his crimson eyes. “Youu will taake her plaaacccee at all functionssss. But yoou sshhhould be uuusseed to beeing a meeaat puppet.”
For her, I’ll give him my flesh again. I don’t need to be compelled. “Absolutely.”
My agreeability does him in, forcing his body to fully shift. His giant tail whips the gilded desk against the wall before wrapping tightly around me. “You think you’re so sly, Rana Thorin Naar, but I can still hurt you in ways you could never dream of. If you ever speak a word of the truth to Villiana I will bring you both to a testing center and make you watch as she is tortured. You will watch me fuck her tight little cunt and ass until it bleeds. And then I will go back to the place you once called home and do the same to your mother. She may not remember you, but you sure as hell remember her.” His voice booms throughout the innermost parts of my mind, bleeding into my entire being.
He doesn’t give me the chance to come out with a response, coiling higher and tighter around my body , bringing me to the cusp of unconsciousness. I do everything I can to slow my breathing and center myself.
I expected a flamboyant reaction. Locren’s temper is volatile and his pride is blinding. Together they make him weak, eviscerating all the critical thinking skills he possesses—which I fully intend to take advantage of.
Locren can try to silence me all he wants, but it’s not my words that are going to kill him at the end of the day. It’s the inferno of rage I will rain upon him and this entire organization.
Bodies to ash. Bones to dust. Your souls will wither. The fire will do as it must.