Chapter 2
Gisela came awake slowly to a delicious smell. For one heartbeat, she thought she was at her imaginary childhood home, and warmth flooded her.
Until she remembered the truth.
What she was and where she’d been sent.
Then, her thoughts went to the men.
Shit!
Sitting up, she started to panic until she saw that she was still fully dressed.
More than that, she was alone in the room. What had happened to X and Masakage? She looked to their corner and saw that all their items had been picked up. There wasn’t a single trace of them.
Not even a stray thread.
She should be elated to find herself alone. Instead, she was oddly disappointed.
Which made no sense. She should be grateful that they’d kept their side of the bargain. They’d allowed her to sleep in peace and without being molested.
Men of their words…
She wouldn’t have believed it possible. Yet here she was. Safe.
Unmolested.
And what a sad indictment of her life that “safe” made her uncomfortable. She was so used to living on high alert, ready to be attacked, that she couldn’t relax enough to enjoy a moment of tranquility.
I’m so broken.
And she had a task to see to. Gathering her things, she made ready to leave.
Just as she reached the door, it opened.
Gisela stepped back, preparing herself to fight.
Until she saw X who paused as he met her gaze. “Relax, my lady. I come in peace.”
It was only then that she realized she’d drawn her sword. “Sorry.” She quickly sheathed it. “Old habits.”
“Understood.” He held the platter in his hands out toward her. “I brought you something to eat.”
“Oh. I thought the two of you had left already.”
“We were about to, but I wanted to make sure you had something to tide you over as those below won’t feed you.” He made an uncomfortable face. “Might feed on you…but they won’t allow you to break your fast.”
How kind of him to care. “Thank you.” She really meant that, too. It wasn’t the automatic response that people gave out of habit.
Inclining his head, he carried the platter to a small table beside the bed and set it down.
Without another word, he headed toward the hallway.
“X?”
He paused in the doorway to look back at her. “Yes?”
“What does X really stand for?”
He hesitated. At first, she didn’t think he’d respond, but after a hefty pause he gave her a wry grin. “Xaydin.”
Then, he closed the door.
That name hit her like a fist.
Xaydin? Had she heard that correctly?
He was the one after her ataswere?
“Oh my God…” She couldn’t breathe as everything played through her head.
Her X was the troll prince who’d sworn himself to killing all ataswere…
Xaydin Kazakh the Oathbreaker.
How in the name of everything holy could that be the man of legend? Then again, it made sense why everyone was so afraid of a human.
Only he wasn’t supposed to be human.
“You don’t look like a troll.” At all. Nothing other than his huge, muscled body and even that looked more human than troll.
Or at least what she knew of them.
But what if it was him? That meant he was on his way to kill the same ataswere she was supposed to protect.
And he knew what her mission was! How could she have been so stupid as to even mention it? She should have stopped talking. Or never talked at all.
I’m an absolute idiot!
No, she’d been alone on the road for too long and had welcomed the company, even though she knew better.
Furious at herself and them, she left the room immediately to chase after one of the most lethal creatures in the Thirteen Kingdoms.
Maybe the most lethal of all.
Which explained why her knees were weak. Something that infuriated her even more because she hated fear. Most of all, she hated this feeling of vulnerability. I’m better than this.
She was a trained assassin who’d killed dozens of men.
But they weren’t the ones who were renowned for brutality. Ones who hunted other warriors who had thousands of years of experience. That took an unbelievable skill.
An unparalleled degree of stupidity.
Don’t let your fear lead you…
It reminded her of the first time she’d been sent by the queen to kill someone. Her hands had trembled and her entire body had ached. Her heart had throbbed in her ears. Every part of her being had been out of sorts to the point that she felt like she was in an unknown vessel.
And as she looked down on herself taking that life, it’d felt as if she were someplace else. As if she saw a stranger who was taking actions she had no control over.
I’m not that child anymore.
True.
She’d come a long way since then. Been through so much more.
This shouldn’t be a problem, and her stomach shouldn’t be tied into a tangle of nerves.
Yet here she was.
She went down the stairs and into the inn that was now crowded with trolls, ogres and giants, eating their morning meals. Others who glanced at her with open disdain and hatred.
They weren’t the ones who mattered. She was after the half-troll, wearing black armor and his wizard companion…
Xaydin knew the instant Gisela left the inn and headed for where they were packing their gear on their horses.
A rarity for Masakage who didn’t need a horse to travel or even supplies that he normally conjured when he desired them.
Only the fact he was heading into Kernan where he wouldn’t be able to use his magic to portal there made this a necessity.
As for Xaydin…
The Oathkeepers didn’t have the same dietary requirements he did.
He had to load a few days’ worth of supplies or make his meal from their roasted, desiccated bodies.
And as much as he might be tempted to eat one to prove a point, they were so nauseating in appearance that he’d rather chew his own boots than skin one of them for nourishment.
He exchanged an amused glance with Masakage as his brother also saw her approaching.
With a determined stride, she cut across the street and didn’t stop until she was beside him. “You’re the Oathbreaker.”
“That’s one of my titles.”
She gaped with an astonished expression. “You don’t deny it?”
“It’s the truth. Why should I?”
“Because you know I’m going to protect the one you’re after.”
He scoffed at her bravado. “You think that. But my experience says you’re wasting your time.”
Fury flared in her eyes as she stared up at him. “You’re mocking me?”
“I would never do that. Besides, I admire your spirit and drive. And given that this is going to be a thing with us, I offer you a bargain.”
Gisela froze at those words as all manner of thoughts went through her head at what he could mean. Some of them weren’t so bad.
Others were terrifying.
“Explain this bargain.”
“Yes,” Masakage said with an interested grin. “Explain your thoughts, brother.”
Xaydin smirked at him. “Stay out of it, mouse.” Then, he turned his attention to her.
“Since I don’t want to have to keep watching my back for you, I’ll escort you to the ataswere I seek.
If you can stop me from killing him, then, he’ll live.
Otherwise, I’ll send his head to Dash and let Dash have at your queen. ”
His nonchalance made the hair on the back of her neck stand up. “Is this a trick?”
“Absolutely not. I’m not your queen. I don’t play tricks.”
Masakage approached her. “He really doesn’t. Not even when we were kids. He just sits around, brooding.”
Xaydin shoved at him. “Don’t you have someplace to be?”
“I do. Are we taking the ferry to the island?”
A scowl furrowed Xaydin’s brow. “I didn’t give you an invitation.”
“You did not. My curiosity is such that I can’t leave now. This is going to be spectacular. My errand can wait.” Masakage smiled. “But yours…this I wouldn’t miss for all the kingdoms.”
Xaydin growled. “I hate you.”
“Hate you less.”
Their interaction baffled her. Of course, she knew very little about such things as she’d never spent any time around her siblings.
Maybe it was normal?
Not that it mattered. She was on a quest, and no one would stop her.
Xaydin jerked his chin toward the inn she’d just left. “Go get your things. Tell me which horse is yours and I’ll saddle it while we wait for you.”
There was only one problem with that. “I don’t have a horse.”
He arched a brow. “Foot or magic?”
She knew he was asking how she’d gotten here. That was something she definitely couldn’t answer. At least not truthfully, because it was shameful to her. And it was something she never spoke about to anyone.
So she answered with the closest to truth that she could. “Foot.”
“I’ll get you a horse. Go collect your things.”
Not sure if he would or if this was a trick, she returned to their shared room and quickly gathered her travel pack. She had to move fast before they left her.
If he really intended to take her to the ataswere, then she couldn’t let this chance pass.
While she knew this was going to be a fight to see who won their way, she was determined to be the victor. No one would stop her from her task.
Because if she returned home without the ataswere, Meara would have her killed.
This wasn’t just a mission for her.
It was everything.