Chapter Five
MERRICK - NOW
DAY FOUR
Panic surged through me the subsequent morning, or what I assumed to be. The spot where Era had slept beside me was empty and cold when I awoke. Stumbling out of bed half awake, I scrubbed at my eyes, shoving open the door.
The storm inside me stilled the moment I saw Era curled up on the loveseat with a book in hand. She was so immersed she didn’t even notice me entering the room, her brows drawn together as her eyes scanned the pages carefully.
I released a sigh of relief, then strolled up to her. “You scared me. Allowing me to wake up alone…just cruel.”
“Sorry…” she said unhurriedly, eyes glued to the text in front of her.
Wow. She really was distracted. “What are you reading?” I asked with a grin. “Something filthy?”
That caught her attention. She tore her gaze from the pages, giving me a deadpan look before the corners of her lip turned upward. “Ha-ha. Very funny.” She motioned me over, and as I sat beside her, she handed me the book. The title read THE TALES OF NEREIDA.
“It talks more about The Valley of Awakening in here.” I tried not to react to her body pressing into mine as she leaned over, her finger drifting over the pages. “Its purpose is to weed out people with bad intentions, to keep their home safe.”
“Yeah, that’s what Immeron told Lena, more or less,” I answered as I scanned the archaic text.
Those with a dark heart, the evil, the unsavable, shall make no entry into Nereida.
The Valley shall show you the realities you refuse to accept.
Then, and only then, shall you be freed.
“It is also intended to teach those who pass through things,” she continued. “Truths of themselves. If the Valley deems those who attempt to pass through unsavable, they remain trapped here. Forever.”
My eyes dragged from the pages, my heart picking up speed as I stared at the DAYS LOST parchment.
“Did you mark the calendar?” I whispered.
She frowned, glancing over to where I gawked. “No. Why?”
I gaped at the fresh red tally, marking four days. My stomach plummeted. “Does it say anything about what happens when you can’t make it out of here?”
I slowly ripped my stare from the sign, and Era scanned the pages with a frown, flipping through. “There’s a name in here...Ketsia...” Her slim finger pointed at one paragraph. “Damn these pages. So much is illegible.” She bit her lip, then froze, her worried eyes rising to me.
That couldn’t be good. My sight lowered to read the passage that had her concerned.
All dark souls of the land dwellers shall remain trapped in the Realm of Dreams, never seeing the light of day again, until even their own name is forgotten.
“Fuck...” I shook my head back and forth. “Fuck, fuck, fuck.”
“There must be something we haven’t learned, then, right?” she stuttered, trying to sound confident in order to comfort me. Or perhaps herself. “Neither one of us has a dark soul.”
I was far from perfect, but I was confident I wasn’t an evil man. I raised a brow. “And you think the answer is in one of these books?”
Era nervously drummed her fingers against her thigh. “Why else are they here?”
I puckered my lips, nodding as my stare traveled over the rows and rows of books, then shifted my attention to the kitchen. “Are you hungry? We need some energy if we’re gonna read all day.”
She gave a coy smile before resuming her focus on the book. “As long as there is no butter involved.”
I laughed softly as I stood. “No promises.”
“It’s strange,” she commented a beat later, as I strode over to the kitchen. “We’ve been gone for a while, and yet I don’t feel alarmingly hungry. As if time is...off.”
I halted when I grasped the bread I had cut yesterday. When I drew the cloth back, I held it up to Era. “I think you’re right.”
Era gasped softly at the sight of the uncut loaf of bread. “How curious.”
I clutched a knife, cutting the same pieces off from yesterday. “At least we don’t have to worry about running out of food.”
As I scooped up some jam, Era asked, “Have you ever heard about Faeries?”
My bottom lip protruded in thought as I smeared the fruit spread. “Like fairies in stories? Winged creatures?”
“These don’t appear to have wings, and they are spelled differently than the way they are in children’s tales. ‘E’ instead of an ‘I’.” Another page flip. “This text…it isn’t written as if fiction.”
I smooshed the pieces of bread together. “Are you trying to say that Faeries are real?”
“I’m not sure.” After plating the two raspberry jam sandwiches, Era barked, “Now get your ass over here and have a look.”
“Damn.” I took a bite of my sandwich, hurrying to the loveseat before handing over hers. “Who knew you could be so bossy?”
She gave a playful swat as I sat beside her, and I had a look at the worn pages.
Long ago, before a single Mage walked Soltis or a Sea Nymph swam the sea, there lived the Faeries. As the most powerful creatures in the Endros, the Faeries could bend the will of the skies and all vegetation. Unable to be coerced, these beings posed a threat to—
“Ugh!” I complained. “The text is illegible.”
Era covered her mouth, still eating her sandwich as she responded, “Read lower.”
I squinted, reading the next legible paragraph.
Fate is forever changed by the time of threes.
The trick is who is kin.
The sacred five shall offer their blood,
So the Faeries may rise again.
Only through……reborn
……his death
Killed….she’s torn
Brother and sister….
I squinted my eyes, irritated by all the missing text. “The sacred five,” I muttered. “Time of threes? What the hell does that even mean?”
“No idea,” she supplied, placing her empty plate on the low table before the couch. “But do you see the symbol? Up in the corner?”
My brows raised.
A spiral.
I flipped the book over to see the title, which read: THE HISTORY OF THE ENDROS.
I groaned, plopping the book in my lap. “My brain hurts,” I whined.
Era sighed, falling back dramatically against the couch cushion. “You’re telling me.” She winced, rubbing her temples.
“Are you still having headaches?” I asked gently.
“Yes, unfortunately. That’s what woke me.” She groaned, her eyes squeezing shut. “I don’t know why. I’ve never been one to get them. Certainly not at this frequency.”
I set the mysterious tome down and moved to sit closer, angling my legs toward her. “I’m sure the stress of our travels hasn’t helped.” I paused. “Turn around.”
Era peeled an eye open. “What?”
“Just listen.”
With a single look of suspicion, she turned her body so her back was facing me.
When I placed my hands on her shoulders and began to knead, she froze. “What are you doing?” she breathed.
“Easing your tension. Distracting you,” I murmured, rolling my thumbs up and down her neck in circles.
She moaned ever so softly, her head falling forward. “You shouldn’t be touching me like this,” she whispered.
“Like what?” I questioned innocently. “This is just a friendly massage.”
She gave a breathy laugh, her head shaking from side to side, but she accepted my gesture.
What I lacked in self-control, I made up for in soothing movements. I tuned into her feelings as I circled my thumbs between her neck and shoulders, enjoying her comfort.
Enjoying her desire.
Thoughts fired like lightning in my mind, thinking about how just last night, my tongue was inside her mouth. How right it all felt, even if it only lasted a few moments.
Era tilted her head, offering up one side of her neck as I ran my fingertips up and down, into her hair, down her collarbone.
“Feeling better?” I purred, my breath dancing along her ear.
Her eyes were shut, lips rubbing together. Her reply was but a breathless whisper. “Yes.”
I tucked her hair behind her ear and hovered my lips over her neck. “Do you want me to stop?”
Her chest rose and fell. “No.”
Era gasped, hand instinctively going back to grip my thigh, as I slid my tongue up her neck before sucking on the delicate skin.
I knew I should’ve refrained from using my gift, my control slipping every passing second that her desire mixed with mine.
But her lust was intoxicating, every pulse of pleasure surging through me like an unrelenting high.
My other hand slid under her shirt, gliding up and down the bare skin of her belly in soothing motions while my teeth nipped at her skin. My length stiffened as heat pulsed between Era’s thighs…Gods, I could actually feel physically what my touch was doing to her.
I’d never experienced this sensation before.
Era moaned softly, my hand trailing lower, lower, before the pads of my fingers slid over the fabric of her panties. Her hips rose, pressing her sex against my touch, and I dared to dip my fingers underneath the fabric.
I couldn’t hold in my groan as I slipped through her slit, her own needy whimper sounding as I explored her soaked pussy with my fingers.
Fuck.
I stopped kissing her neck to catch my breath, panting heavily as my movements quickened, as Era’s head fell back, resting against my shoulder.
Yes…this was working. I could sense her release building as I continued swirling my fingertips on her clit, just as I could feel the precum leaking from my tip.
Could I come just from feeling her orgasm?
“Merrick…” she moaned, about to fall off that ledge. But then she cried out in frustration, tearing herself away from me, staggering off the couch. “JUST STOP!”
My face heated, my eyes widening in embarrassment. “I’m sorry—”
She pulled at her hair, turning away from me. “I can’t...I can’t take this.”
I sat there like a idiot while she piled books into her arms.
“I need…I need distance.” She froze, unable to look me in the eyes. “Just, please don’t come to bed until I’m asleep, okay? I’m going to do my reading in there.” As a tear started trailing down her cheek, she turned away, muttering, “It’s...it’s too hard.”
My heart broke a little as she walked away, and I could swear I felt a crack as I heard the bedroom door shut.