15. Chapter Fifteen
15
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
ELODIE
A crash of wood jarred my thoughts and I couldn’t tell what was real or just another part of my dream. Still flushed with heat, I could no longer feel the flames that had violently assaulted me.
Strong hands gripped my arms, pulling me from the tangled mess of blankets that were wrapped around my body, the scent of cedar and something deliciously sweet, sinking into my lungs.
Slowly, the fog that dreams inhabit began to clear. My body becoming my own enough to realise I was pressed against a hard, warm body that hadn’t been in my bed when I’d fallen asleep. A large hand cradled my face, holding me against a heart that was beating just slightly slower than my own. Soothing words spoke gently in a deep voice, and a thumb brushed against my cheek as magik passed over my skin.
I inhaled deeply, breathing in the intoxicating scent, feeling energy flow through me as my racing heart steadied with every passing moment.
I knew who this was. I just didn’t know why he was here, holding me.
Pain radiated from my throat, raw and burning. I lifted my hand weakly towards it, my screams must have been real. I could feel the heaviness of the nightmare still pulling at me, trying to drag me back.
“Open your eyes, Goldie. Don’t fall back in.” His voice commanded gently, though the grip on my face betrayed his urgency.
Obeying, my eyelids fluttered open to meet the stormy-grey gaze staring down at me fiercely.
“Good girl.” Our eyes met and he sighed in relief at whatever he found in them, rough fingers smoothing the hair from my face.
Kaius leaned closer, resting his forehead on mine and waves of dark hair fell forward, his beard brushing against my cheek. A new heat—one that had nothing to do with being burned alive—flooded through me.
I don’t know how long we stayed like that, pressed together with both our heartbeats slowing, almost in sync with one another’s. It could have been seconds or it could have been hours. I was completely enclosed in his arms, our breath mingling softly together.
I should want to push him away, flee from the cage he had me in, but I didn’t. Instead, my hand fisted into the soft top that clung to his body, holding him there. Keeping him with me.
The soothing repetition of his heartbeat pushed at the tendrils of dream that still reached for me, and as a soft clink of metal sounded somewhere near the door, his body tensed as he held me closer. Long eyelashes grazed my forehead as his eyes flew open, face skewed in anger as he took in the guard who had stepped into the doorway.
“Why didn’t you help her?” Kaius snarled, hands flexing against me as I was pressed into the hard planes of his body, tiny flickers of energy pulsing at every point our skin touched.
“We... we were told not to enter the room, my Lord!” The guard stuttered, his face paling as what I was sure was a growl rumbled from Kaius’ chest.
On instinct, I rested my hand flat against him, the growl softening to a purr under my fingertips.
What is going on right now? My Lord?
Stop questioning things, it’s nice being held like this.
“Get out,” he spat through gritted teeth. “And tell the Commander that I require a change of guard.”
Impossibly, the guard’s face paled even further, and he gulped a few times like he was about to say something before he thought better of it, meekly nodding before turning away.
Kaius moved his hand from my face, reaching towards the open door and small wisps of energy radiated from his fingertips as it swung closed softly, the latch clicking shut.
A frown pressed down his brow as he faced me, and I moved my hand to his cheek, enjoying the softness of his beard against my palm before his much larger one came to rest on mine. Turning his face into it, he drew in a long breath that ended on a heavy sigh before pulling back. Adjusting me so I was sitting back on the bed. I couldn’t help but stare at his inked hands as they encompassed mine.
Why do I not want to pull away?
“What happened?” he asked gently, and I looked up to find his eyes searching mine, anger melting away as he did.
Something told me he knew exactly what had happened, but he needed me to tell him myself. Out of habit, my free hand reached for the necklace that was no longer around my neck, fingers scrabbling for the chain before I remembered it wasn’t there. Kaius tracked my movements, another frown creasing his forehead momentarily before smoothing itself away.
Swallowing heavily through my raw throat, I croaked, “It was just a dream.”
I was unsure if I should trust him with what was going on in my mind because as much as I wanted him to wrap his arms around me, he was a stranger. A stranger that had kidnapped me and even if right now I wasn’t sitting in a dungeon chained to a wall, I was a prisoner nonetheless.
“How did you know?” It hurt to speak, pain radiating with each syllable spoken.
How long had I been screaming?
“I was walking down the corridor, and I heard you.”
I was deep in the palace; why would he have been anywhere near my room?
“What was the dream about?” he questioned, a look of genuine concern transforming his face to a raw need to help me, as though he had been scraped down to the bone like I had been.
“I don’t remember,” I answered automatically. l was lying.
I remembered every terrifying, painful second.
If I thought about it too long, focused enough, I would feel the flames still burning their way up my body. Hear the screams of the people l loved harmonising with my own.
Grey eyes delved into mine with a raging sadness, their stormy depths swirling with emotion and I knew he could sense my lies like I could his.
Tonight, neither of us were offering up our secrets.
Raking a hand through his dark hair, he sighed heavily before slowly getting up from my bed. The absence of his warm body next to mine affected me more than it should, and I fisted my hands in the tangled blankets to stop myself from reaching for him. I watched him, greedily studying the tattoos that decorated every inch of exposed skin as he crossed to the table. Pouring out some of the water from the pitcher into a cup, he held his hand over the top, a soft glow surrounded it before he came back to the bed.
This time he didn’t sit, instead holding it out for me to take, and magik leapt through his fingertips as they grazed against mine.
The cup was warm in my hand, but his body had been warmer.
I stared into the clear liquid. I didn’t think he would poison me— what would be the point of getting rid of me just yet? I ran my finger over the rim knowing I was still somewhat taking a risk before I tentatively took a sip. It was hot and sweet with a herbal taste that was familiar. I swallowed some more, sighing as it soothed my aching throat.
“Did you really think I would poison you?” He chuckled softly from too far away.
“Can never be too careful these days,” I replied, my throat working hard despite the tonic. “One minute you’re in bed asleep with your dog, next minute you’ve been kidnapped.”
It was a cheap shot but it was the truth, and the thought of Titan made me both angry and heartbroken in equal measure, so I pushed it firmly away. Now wasn’t the time. He winced at my words but didn’t deny them. I liked that he didn’t try to deny me my truth.
“This tastes familiar.” Like something Nanna made for me when I was younger, I said changing the subject, for whose benefit I wasn’t sure—maybe it was for both of us.
His head tilted slightly to the side. “Is it working?”
I nodded taking another sip, it tasted like home and as the burn of tears threatened to spill, I blinked them away.
Kaius stood in silence and watched as I finished the whole cup. Having his entire focus on me was something I found I liked. Once empty he took it from me, setting it on the table.
Our eyes met and a vice seized my heart, freezing me in its intensity. Kaius’ body tightened, every muscle locking as his hands fisted by his side. It lasted no more than a few seconds before I could suck in a deep breath and both our bodies relaxed, relief flashing across his face. Kaius reached up to run a hand through his hair, his top riding up his tattooed stomach giving me a flash of the deep V-shaped muscle carved there. My eyes flicked back to his face, but it was an effort to keep them there.
“I’ll leave you to get back to sleep. A new guard should be posted outside already. If you need anything,” he said reluctantly, turning slightly in the direction of the door but not making a move to step away.
And maybe it was because I was still raw from the nightmare, and I didn’t want to sleep alone after everything I’d been through over the last day.
Maybe it was because I knew I had to figure out a way home, and playing nice with Kaius seemed to be going well for now. It wasn’t exactly hard to do, since he didn’t seem like an outright monster and I would take full advantage of any kindness I was offered.
Maybe I just didn’t want him to leave.
“No, wait. Stay. Just... just until I fall asleep.” The words left me before I decided my reason behind them, and I didn’t care to figure it out right now.
I hated the vulnerability I was showing, but I couldn’t deny I was terrified of what waited for me when I closed my eyes. Him being here might help somehow.
I wanted him to stay.
“I’ll stay,” he whispered without hesitation, and I let out a ragged sigh of relief as he faced back to me, but I was too tired in this moment to analyse the emotion in his eyes.
Head drooping with fatigue, I laid down and let my eyes close. Kaius’ soft steps approached the bed and he pulled the tangled blanket back over me, mattress dipping as he sat on the edge.
“He called you ‘my Lord’, that guard before.” I kept my eyes closed though I was sure a growl came from his direction at the mention of the guard.
“He did.”
“Why?”
“Because I am his Lord.”
What is a Lord doing kidnapping me then breaking into my room to soothe my nightmares?
“Am I supposed to call you my Lord?” I asked, opening my eyes and raising an eyebrow in his direction.
“Would you?”
“No, I wouldn’t,” I replied, trying hard to stifle a yawn as my lids pressed closed again.
He huffed out a quiet laugh. “I didn’t think so.”
I could feel his gaze lingering on my face.
“Stop staring at me or I’ll punch you, too,” I mumbled.
He laughed softly and my stomach done a lap of somersaults at the sound.
“Goddess themselves, I wish I’d had more time to soak in that moment. No one except me has taken a swing like that at Bastian for a very long time.”
“He deserved it.” I was being pulled too swiftly into sleep to say much more.
“He did.”
The bed shifted slightly as Kaius moved closer, his fingers sweeping gently over my hand before I curled my own around his, feeling the soft hum of my magik as our fingers joined.
“We didn’t even ask your name,” he murmured to himself, sweeping hair away from my face with a featherlight touch.
“Elodie,” I whispered, unsure if he heard me as I felt myself slipping away into sleep. “My name is Elodie.”
“It’s nice to meet you, Elodie.”
“I know.”
I could hear the smile in his answering chuckle, and I allowed myself a smile too, the warmth of him next to me settled into my body as I closed my eyes.
And right then, I wasn’t afraid of what was waiting for me.