Chapter 18
Masakage immediately vanished while Gisela and Xaydin rushed to Candara’s room.
When they entered, they found her in the middle of the room with what appeared to be a shield made of light. Gisela had never seen anything like it. Larger than most, it was circular with writing on it she couldn’t identify.
An extra-large troll stood in front of her and was doing his best to kill her.
Without thinking, Gisela turned into a troll and rushed the attacker.
Masakage appeared out of thin air and wrapped his arm around Candara’s waist and pulled her away while Xaydin created a sword that he threw to Gisela. She caught the weapon, then twirled about with it to confront the troll.
He smiled as soon as he saw her there.
For a second, she thought it might be Garyn even though Xaydin had pronounced him dead. But something in his eyes didn’t look quite right. Not that she had time to think about it. All she could do was react as she parried his sword strokes.
She lunged toward him.
As she did, Candara and Masakage hit him with glowing fireballs.
And just as she went for him again, he vanished.
“Are you kidding me!” Furious, she glanced around the ground, hoping to find him there as a roach or some other nasty bug she could stomp into oblivion.
But there was no sign of him.
She toed the straw, wanting to make sure.
Still nothing. Grinding her teeth, she met Xaydin’s equally peeved glare. “I understand why you hate shifters.” Because she seldom shifted, she expected the same courtesy from others.
Apparently, they were slippery buggers.
Without commenting, Xaydin turned to Candara. “Are you all right?”
Candara nodded. “He made me angry. No harm. But when we catch up to him…he’ll wish he’d killed me.”
As they left her room to return below, Rob met them in the main part of the inn.
“Forgive me, Cuz. I just received a message from your brother, the king.” He handed it over to Xaydin.
His brow turned dark as he scanned it. Whatever news it held, Gisela could tell it wasn’t welcomed.
“He’s ordering you to find me and bring me in?” Xaydin asked incredulously.
Rob nodded. “Normally, I’d obey. But if anything happens to you, there’s no telling what the populace will do.
Most of the trolls and ogres I know would rather have you as king.
I don’t think he realizes what a threat you actually are.
And he definitely doesn’t realize the revolt that will happen if you’re taken into custody. ”
“I should lead the coup just on principle.” Xaydin folded the letter and returned it to Rob. “We’ll get going.”
“You’re still wounded,” Rob reminded him.
“I’m healing. The last thing I want is to see you executed for failure to follow orders.” Xaydin scratched at his ear. “How much of that do you think is Zagrun and how much is Gregun?”
“Given that my father keeps Zagrun under his fist, I think you know.”
Xaydin nodded in agreement. Rob was right. Zagrun would never dare something like this. Rob’s father thought his position as advisor kept him from being targeted. But a shadow-king was still a monarch.
And it was obvious that he wanted Xaydin killed before he died.
Poor Rob to be caught in the middle of this fight.
“I never saw you.”
Xaydin grinned at Rob’s stern tone. “Understood. We’ll be on our way in a few minutes.”
There was a shadow in Rob’s eyes. A suspicious troll might think it had to do with treachery and in Rob’s case, it could be true. But for the moment, he decided to trust him.
He held his arm out toward his cousin.
Rob didn’t hesitate to take it and shake. “Ride with the gods. I’ll try and keep the others off your tail.”
Because if a coup happened, Rob and his family could easily lose their lives too.
A reckoning would remove Xaydin’s brother from the throne, and given Gregun’s part in the death of Xaydin’s father, he’d be the second troll they’d hang for treason. Then they’d go after all of Gregun’s kin.
Gregun knew that and so did Rob. He would respect his cousin’s desire to keep his father from losing his life, and protect his own family.
Would have been nice had Rob helped Xaydin’s father keep his, but he wouldn’t hold that against his cousin. Rob had been young back then. No doubt terrified of Gregun. After all, if he’d kill his brother, he was just as likely to kill his younger son.
Xaydin didn’t envy Rob his position. At least he’d never doubted his father’s loyalty or love.
He couldn’t imagine being terrified that his father might kill him.
As bad as his mother was, she would never stoop that low.
Without another word, Xaydin led Gisela and the others back upstairs.
They had barely reached the steps when Candara stopped walking. Cocking her head, she appeared to be listening. Xaydin knew her expression. She was having a vision about something.
“What’s going on?” he asked Masakage.
Masakage didn’t answer. Instead, he swapped a scowl with their sister. “What are they saying?”
“Your enemies have changed.” Candara turned a slow circle as if she were searching for something. She looked at Xaydin. “We need to go. Now!”
No one questioned her order. They quickly gathered their things and headed for the stable.
Gisela had tried to carry Xaydin’s saddlebags, but he wouldn’t allow it as he draped them over his shoulder. “Your pride is going to get the better of you.”
“So be it. My father would come back from the grave if I betrayed the ethics he taught me.” And with that, he took hers as well.
“I can do for myself.”
He tsked at her. “This isn’t because I think you’re weaker or that you lack the ability to defend yourself. It’s courtesy, princess. Plain and simple. Done because I care about you and respect you, not because I’m trying to belittle you.”
Those words made her feel awful that she’d misjudged him. “I’m sorry, X. I’m not used to having anyone look after me.”
“I know.” He put his arm around her and gave a light squeeze. “You’re not alone now, Gisela. Let someone fight beside you.”
“I’m trying.”
Xaydin leaned down to kiss the top of her head before he released her. He more than understood and wasn’t offended by the fact that she had a hard time accepting his help. It was just as difficult for him to do the same. Too many years of being alone had a way of doing that.
Mistrust. Anger. Those were mother’s milk to him. Which allowed him to understand why she could be equally as prickly. With anyone else, he’d be angry.
With her…
He was charmed.
There’s something profoundly wrong with me.
He’d never argue that. It was something all the Outlaws had notated long ago.
Once they were in the stables, he handed Gisela her saddlebags from his shoulder while he saddled his horse.
Or at least tried to.
Masakage used his powers to put the saddles and their saddlebags on for them.
“Show off,” Xaydin chided.
He just smiled. “You’d do it if you weren’t so used to hiding your powers.”
Xaydin would have argued had it not been true. But he accepted the fact that when it came to those powers, he just didn’t think to use them.
Candara shook her head at the two of them as she mounted and took her reins. Then she glanced over to Gisela. “You poor thing to be forced to travel alone with them.”
Gisela swung herself up into the saddle, then situated herself. “They weren’t so bad.”
“Still, my apologies that they weren’t fully home trained. We did try. Sadly, it didn’t take.”
“Should we be offended?” Masakage asked Xaydin.
“Probably.” He swung himself onto the back of his horse. “You more so than me.”
“How do you figure?”
“I enjoy being a ruffian. You like prancing around a lot more.”
Masakage rolled his eyes. “Be glad you’re wounded.”
“Trust me, I am. I’ll happily be wounded so long as someone kisses my boo boos.” And with that, he kicked his horse forward.
Shocked, Gisela felt her jaw go slack. And by Masakage’s expression, she could tell he was equally as surprised.
Heat flooded her cheeks before she averted her gaze and followed after Xaydin. She rode up to his side and passed him an irritated glare.
“I can’t believe you just said that.”
His smile was unrepentant. “If it makes you feel better, neither can they.”
She intensified her glare. Not that it did any good. They both knew she was more mortified than angry. On the one hand, she should be thrilled that he was willing to make their relationship known. It meant that she was more to him than a simple one-time thing.
But on the other hand, she wasn’t used to being part of a couple. Part of a team. The attention made her extremely uncomfortable.
She told herself that she didn’t care what they thought of her. She’d never cared about that in her life. But they were Xaydin’s family. It made them very different.
What if they hate me?
She’d been ordered to kill Xaydin. Why would they like her?
Candara rode up beside her and reached out to touch her arm. “Don’t fret, Gisela. We’re glad to see Xaydin happy. How something begins is nowhere near as important as how it ends.”
She knew his sister meant to comfort her with those words, but they had the opposite effect.
Nothing ever ended well. That was the stuff of nightmares.
And how this would end, she had no idea. She wasn’t stupid enough to think for one moment that they could be together. He was a tracker who hunted and killed ataswere. She was an assassin for a queen who wanted him and all his friends dead.
No, there was no future here.
But the thought of returning home and resuming her old life was abhorrent to her.
Do I have the courage to walk away?
Xaydin had been right. She didn’t have to go home. There was nothing tying her there except a misplaced sense of obligation. She definitely owed her mother nothing.
Not even love.
But leaving behind everything wasn’t easy, either. There was a lot to be said for familiarity. Even when it was bad. Better the devil she knew than one who could be worse.
What if there were no devils at all?