Chapter 26
twenty-six
EVEREST
Eissa is waiting for us, his white robe billowing around him, his eyes set in a stern stare.
That sight alone has my heart in my throat.
Then I blink and see several Vyastil behind him, and based on the way they’re dressed, I assume they’re guards.
And of course, there’s the prince—Jyrion. Doesn’t he have better things to do? Like an empire to rule or some shit? Why the hell is he concerning himself with this?
My eyes meet his, and I see a sneer on his lips. I have to curl my fingers into my palm to keep myself from slapping that smirk off his face. I don’t think that would go over well.
Eissa hums low in his throat, and I turn to look at him. The look he’s giving me makes me shrink back, holding my tongue. My sudden urge to engage in fisticuffs with monsters twice my size dissipates immediately.
In his eyes is a warning not to do it, no matter how much I want to.
Rathyn says something in Eretharian, and I hear Eissa respond. He looks almost sad as he utters it. They carry on discussing something, and it pisses me off that they’re not including me.
But that thought dissipates when the guards rush at us.
Only, they don’t grab me, or Rathyn.
They take hold of Cielo.
For a moment, I do nothing but stand aghast for a few seconds before lurching forward, only to be brought back by the twist of Rathyn’s tail around my waist. “No, human. You stay with me.”
“But…they’re taking him!” I shout, feeling like everything is tipping sideways. “They can’t take him. He did nothing wrong.”
Jyrion scoffs. “Human. Listen to your keeper. You know nothing of our ways. You cannot speak about the law of Erethar.”
I glower at him as Cielo struggles for a moment, trying to escape before something shifts, and I see his shoulders slump as he’s led away. It’s a terrible sight, one I never want to see again. Guilt claws at me, making my eyes sting and my chest ache. What’s going to happen to him?
Oh god. This is my fault. I made him take me to his world.
Whatever happens sits solely on my shoulders.
I feel a prod at the opening of my mind, a small stroke, a reassurance before it disappears entirely.
I glance at Rathyn, who is standing stoically, not showing that his wounds are still healing. It bothers me for some reason, but once again, I say nothing. Instead, I turn my gaze to Eissa, begging him with my eyes, “Help him.”
But he’s not looking at me, the lowly human. He’s speaking to Rathyn. I turn my furious glower on Jyrion instead, but all he does is smirk, making my entire body shake with rage.
Eventually, Eissa steps forward, a sad song in the air, and he clasps something around Rathyn’s wrist. It’s a bracelet, thin and metallic, and it winds up his forearm and squeezes, making Rathyn wince.
And then it’s done, and Eissa steps aside.
The prince doesn’t go as easily. He almost seems to jeer at the sight of Rathyn wearing this band. What is it? Is it some kind of monitor?
Eissa says something to Jyrion, soft but with authority, and then the two of them are speaking in low, off-tune hums.
Eissa turns back to Rathyn and gives a small nod before guiding Jyrion out of the shed.
Rathyn and I stare at one another but say nothing. It doesn’t feel safe yet. I don’t know if they’re listening. So instead, I push the shed door open, and we step outside.
It’s still dark out, and I wonder if time moves differently in Erethar, but I don’t have time to think too hard about it because Rathyn is rubbing at his arm where that metallic band is pinching his skin.
“What is that?” I ask quietly.
“A way to track me.”
My eyes widen. “What? Why? You’re not going to run, are you?”
“No. It is an insult more than anything. I will not run. I will face the tribunal with pride.”
“A tribunal?” I ask, my voice trembling. “For what?”
“For breaking the rules. For allowing you into my world without an escort.”
“Do they know how you showed me the way?”
“They do not,” he says, glancing down at me, his hand going up to gingerly clutch his bruised chest. “And they cannot. They think I must have told you more than you have a right to know.”
“And Cielo?” I ask, thinking about my friend, who I asked to risk it all…oh my god. “What’s going to happen to him?”
“He will face trial and severe punishment. His station is not as elevated as mine.”
That makes me stop, a rush of emotions pulsing through me once more: anger, grief, guilt. My mind conjures up the dilapidated warehouse, the leaking roof, the crumbling walls.
“He’s not as elevated as you? Well, that’s fucking obvious. I’ve seen where he lives. How you treat him. Oh my god. He’s so fucked, isn’t he?” My steps falter, and I press my hands over my face as a sob threatens to break free. “Oh hell. This is all my fault.”
Rathyn stops and glances down at me once more, his tail reaching out and tightening around my thigh. “It is not your fault, my Everest.”
“It is. I should have found another way…I should have pieced it together, but it’s so hard when I know nothing!” I grab at my hair, feeling tears sting my eyes.
“There was no other way.”
I inhale roughly. “There’s always another way.”
He says nothing for a long time, and my mind wanders back to the cave as we make our way to the apartment. The mood between us is tense, but there’s nothing that can be done to fix it. Cielo is gone, and it’s not like my anger and indignation can change class issues in the Vyastil society.
I broke the rules by going without an escort. Cielo broke the rules by agreeing to help me.
I feel like I damned us all, and I’m so lost because nothing is what it seems. Walking into the living room, I flop down on the couch and pinch the bridge of my nose, trying to hold back tears. I will do something about Cielo. I don’t know what, but for now, I know I’m helpless.
I hear Rathyn moving around, probably doing something with his healing herbs, and he comes into the room a few moments later with fresh bandages over his chest. I wince at the sight, but I’m not feeling very fond of him right now.
“You are angry.”
“I’m confused. And sad. And yeah, angry.”
He perches on the cushion beside me, and when he reaches for me, I stiffen. He pulls his hand back. “My Everest. Ask your questions. I will do my best to answer what I can.”
I swallow thickly. I want to ask why he’s okay with the way Vyastil from the Outerlands are treated, but I don’t think that’ll get me anywhere. So instead, I think about the Tarek and what he told me, and eventually ask, “What is a VySytheh?”
Rathyn visibly stiffens, and he says nothing.
“Don’t fucking ice me out. It clearly means something, and I want to know. That Tarek obviously seemed startled that you can read my mind and I can read yours. And I think you’ve been keeping the reason from me.”
“It is not for humans to know or understand,” he says.
I pull back like I’ve been slapped. “Really?”
“My Everest…”
“Whatever.” I’m too damn tired to fight him on this. I’ll make him tell me later. “I don’t care anymore. This whole thing fucking sucks.”
Our eyes clash, and I see the way his ears flutter. He’s as upset as I am, but he’s also injured. I need to give him what I can so he can heal. So he can face the tribunal, strong and assured. I can at least offer him that.
“I want to go to Cielo’s trial. I want to be there,” I say as Rathyn tries to get himself comfortable on the cushions. The strain on his body is evident.
“That is not possible.”
“Fuck that. I want to be there. He’s my friend.”
Rathyn freezes, his ears bent down, his eyes flashing. “Vyastil and humans are not friends!” His voice makes me pull back slightly.
“What? What the fuck?”
“Humans are simply a tool.”
I stare at him, horrified, my lips parted, my cheeks flushed. “Oh, is that what I am? A fucking tool?”
His ears flutter, and he shakes his head, realizing what he just said.
“Yes, as far as other Vyastil are concerned, that is what you are.”
“And you and me?”
He peers over at me and is annoyingly quiet. And I’m not in the mood to push.
“Yeah, alright. I see how it is. I’ll give you my cum, like the tool I am.”
The air between us is thick with tension. I don’t want to be mad at him, but I am. I’m upset over this whole thing. It’s too much to process, to think rationally. I just want to curl up in a ball and cry. But I can’t.
Even when I glance over and see Cielo’s pink jacket folded carefully on the counter, and his empty mug.
“Everest,” Rathyn says softly, but I wave my hand at him.
“Your cum factory will be fine. I just need a fucking minute.”
His hum is low and flat, but I ignore it, swiping at my eyes. Everything over the past day has been too much. My emotional human heart can’t take it.
Being injured by the guys from the gym. Losing Rath and realizing he’s hurt in a place I’m not allowed to go. Forcing Cielo to break all the rules to find him.
And then watching him being taken away.
I jump up and rush to the bathroom, locking the door behind me even as I feel Rathyn probing at my mind.
“Leave me the fuck alone.”
He does as I ask.
My fingers curl against the cold marble countertop, and I stare at myself in the mirror.
My eyes are red-rimmed, my cheeks splotchy.
It’s then that I realize my cock cage is still on.
With trembling fingers, I find the key I stored away in the drawer and unlock it, pulling it off my dick and tossing it aside.
I don’t want that on me. Especially since Rathyn made it clear what I am to him. What he thinks about me deep down.
That’s only your emotions speaking, I try to tell myself, but it’s no use. I’m tired, worn down, and all I want to do is feel something other than this pain.
But Rathyn needs me, and as much as I want to punish him, I have a duty as his companion to offer him my cum.
I’ll take some ruenox and let him have his fill. But I won’t let him know how much I like it, or how much I yearn to be more to him.
I have more pride than that.
I have more than he could possibly know.