Chapter 28
Twenty-Eight
KYRON
Istep into the abandoned farmhouse we chose as our shelter for the night.
Greer, Terro, and I walked the perimeter of the property three times while Raelle, Ulric, and Ashavee checked the inside.
In any other circumstance, the extra precautions would have been overkill, but we’re just outside Pliris’ border.
The Allaji had no qualms about sending small groups to find us in another kingdom.
I don’t doubt that they would attack with full force with us this close to home.
The house hasn’t been lived in for ages.
Thick layers of dust cover the couch and rustic dining table.
Terro started a fire in the hearth with a large pot of water boiling.
I climb the stairs to the second floor, each step groaning under my weight.
The first room contains two single beds with Terro and Greer’s satchels on top of each.
I look into the room across the hall and find Ashavee sitting on the edge of the mattress, and Ulric applying the healing salve the Sara queen gave us to her wound.
I’m not surprised that he is so attentive to Ashavee. Ulric was always the one in our group of friends that I pictured falling in love first. Yes, he goes out of his way to receive attention, but he’s also the one who will bend over backward for someone else. Caring for people is what he does best.
“How are you holding up?” I ask, stopping in the door frame and sliding my hands in my pockets.
Ashavee glances at me and gives a half-hearted smile. “The pain is manageable. I’ll be ready to take on whatever we face tomorrow.”
Ulric nods for Ashavee to fix her tunic. Tossing the salve container in the air, he catches it and holds it out to me. “This stuff is a miracle. She’s almost as good as new.”
“Yeah, I’m feeling better because of it too. There are just some new terrifying scars to add to my collection,” I say, sliding it into my jacket pocket.
Ashavee fidgets with a loose thread on her sleeve, and so quietly I almost miss it, says, “I’m sorry about that.
” It’s a little unsettling to see her this way.
She always comes off as confident. Granted, the majority of the time I’ve spent with her she has been in her jaguar form, and felines have a natural arrogant quality about them.
“You’re sorry for what?” I ask.
She lifts her chin and says, “All of it, capturing Elle, invading your land, and especially enslaving the Cyffreds. Not every Allaji believes what’s happening is right. My people are better than this.”
Her statement stuns me. Over the past months, I’ve begun to lump the shifters all together. My hate for them has festered and expanded to include their entire kingdom. It’s unjust and ignorant of me. Ashavee is proof that there is good in Allaji.
“I know that. All it takes is one brave person to go against the grain and others will follow. You are that person, Ashavee.”
I’ve seen it happen firsthand. Micah tore our kingdom in half to build a new one where every person was treated equally.
Raelle broke free of the duty that bound her to walk into an army camp and gather soldiers to save her father.
They’re the rebels who were never satisfied with the way things were.
I turn to leave, but before I do, I pat the door frame twice and look back. “Just promise me that when the day comes, you’ll visit me with your new ruler. It would be nice to form an alliance with the Allaji.”
A genuine smile takes over her pretty face. “I can do that.”
“Behave yourself, Ulric,” I say, walking down the hall toward the last room.
“Worry about yourself, asshole.”
I chuckle and step into the room I guess is mine and Raelle’s.
Our bags are inside, and our blankets are laid out on the mattress.
The lace curtains are pulled back, and the window is open, letting the stale air out.
When I don’t find Raelle inside, I take the stairs two at a time and return to the ground floor.
Terro stands at the kitchen counter, wiping it clean.
“Have you seen Raelle?” I ask.
“She took off before we were done scouting the perimeter. Greer told her about the creek on the west side. Elle said something about not wanting to wait for hot water to clean up and headed out that way.”
I grumble my disapproval. With the checking and rechecking, I feel like the property is safe, but we’ve encountered too many problems on this trip.
The risk is too high to pretend like nothing can go wrong.
I run back upstairs, grab our satchels and a blanket from the bed, and head out of the house.
The mild, fresh air greets me as I hurry down the porch.
It’s warmer here than it was in the mountains.
Not a flurry of snow in sight. Tall grass surrounds the property, with pine trees scattered along the outer edge.
Butterflies with pastel wings flutter from one wildflower to the next, and birds sing in the trees.
I can understand why Raelle wants to be out here after the time we’ve spent in freezing terrain.
I jog around the corner of the house, and all worry drains from me.
Greer is perched on a stump, flipping a dagger between her fingers.
She looks bored, but I know she’s keeping her eyes and ears open for anything suspicious.
Her head turns in my direction as I approach, and I can’t fight the grin that spreads across my face.
I should have known she would look out for Raelle.
“Your parah is out of her mind. That water has to be freezing,” she says.
She isn’t wrong. The sun isn’t hot enough to warm up the water this time of the year. Still, Raelle’s clothes hang from a branch, and I can make out a slight movement just beyond one of the thick tree trunks.
“I’ve come prepared,” I say, gesturing to the blanket draped over my arm.
Greer stands and brushes off the back of her breeches. “At least one of you has some sense. She’s been diving into iced lakes, climbing rocks that practically touch the sky, and fighting bears. I think she’s lost all self-preservation.”
During our journey today, Raelle told me about everything that happened. I wasn’t pleased about the danger she’d put herself into. She’s been known to abandon all rationale for the sake of the greater good. I’m just happy that she didn’t do it alone.
Greer walks past me, and I stop her with a hand on her arm. “Thank you for watching out for her.”
“She’s my queen. It’s my job.”
“All the same, thank you,” I say, and she nods before walking away.
I follow the winding path to the creek and find Raelle waist deep in water with her back to me.
Her skin glows in the rays of the setting sun, like soft liquid gold.
I’m captivated when she shakes out her brown hair, the waves sparkling with specks of red and the ends dipping into the clear water.
The flex of muscles along her slender back, the dimples at the base of her spine, and the smattering of freckles across her shoulders—all of her is beautiful.
Placing our bags and the blanket on the ground, I lean against the nearest tree.
I cross my arms over my chest and watch as she disappears below the surface.
Her body is a blur, stroking and kicking with the current until she can no longer hold her breath.
She stands, the water deeper, reaching her just below her breasts.
With eyes closed, her hands slick her hair back from her face.
I’m jealous of every bead of water gliding over her curves.
They travel the lines I want to drag my tongue over and trace with my fingers.
They touch the places I’ve claimed as mine.
Mine to please. Mine to worship. I’ll never understand why the Statera found me worthy of her. Never.
Raelle opens her eyes, and they skim the shoreline until falling upon me.
With a yelp, she dips into the water until it reaches her shoulders.
She presses her hand to her chest while she catches her breath.
When she realizes it is me, the corners of her mouth bow into a smile.
“I never took you as the voyeuristic type, my king.”
She keeps her body hidden, and I find the display of modesty extremely charming. There isn’t an inch of this woman that I haven’t seared into my memory. I know every beauty mark, every dimple, every scar, even the new, angry pink one that runs along her cheekbone to just beyond her ear.
“Depends on what has caught my attention,” I say.
“And did you like what you saw?”
“You know I did, princess.”
I push away from the tree and stand at the edge of the creek. The playful glint in her eyes does things to me. It lures me in, entangles me in her silken web. I’m her willing victim, ready to let her slowly devour me as she pleases.
Looking down at her form, she raises until the water laps at the pink tips of her breasts. Her gaze travels up to mine, studying me through long wet lashes. “It’s a shame your kink only requires you to look.”
Fuck, the seductive tone of her voice and the wicked smirk pulling at her lips. I have waged wars and fallen to my knees for this woman. And I’d do it all again just to see that smile.
I remove my jacket and pull my tunic over my head.
She watches with amusement as I struggle with my boots and discard my pants.
Like a starving man, I wade through the cold water, determined to reach the thing I crave most. I pull her into my arms, and she wraps her body around mine.
So soft, like every curve is molded to fit me.
My palm slides up her back, over the raised scars and bumps of her spine.
Her fingers tangle in the hair at the back of my neck as she stares down at me. Those warm brown eyes bore into my soul, seeing the dark places that are just as much hers as they are mine. She owns me, rules me, can ruin me with just one look.