Chapter 61 Samkiel
SAMKIEL
The chirping of the birds made my entire skull throb.
I raised my hand, cupping the back of my head, surprised not to find a wound or any blood.
Goldpass. Dianna’s panicked face when light burst above me in the midst of battle, and then I remembered nothing.
Fuck. They had taken me. I forced my eyes open and stared at the ceiling of the beautiful room, and groaned.
Raising up on my elbows, I glanced down to see that I was dressed in comfortable white and gold-trimmed pajamas.
I jumped to my feet and strode toward the massive window.
Light poured in when I pulled back the curtains covering the eight-foot windows.
It nearly blinded me, but I shielded my eyes and hated what I saw.
Large golden warships hung in the air, clouds rolling across them in waves, half obscuring the behemoths.
I rubbed a hand down my face when I realized where I was.
Fuck. This couldn’t be happening. Dianna was going to be so furious.
I knew this world, this realm. I had been here eons ago. This was Trugarum, Milani’s home.
That fact left me with a couple of options.
I could speak with her and see if she would let me go before my wife showed up and burned the sky to embers, or try my hardest to break out myself.
The warships before me seemed to taunt me as if that attempt was even possible.
Fuck. I needed another plan. I knew Milani.
Knew that while she may be a tad overly possessive, she was not a warlord, but maybe there was a way I could speak to her and see if she’d be interested in switching sides. Hope flared in me.
I would do anything in my power to prevent war.
My father had taught me long ago that some battles could be won with words and treaties without ever having to lift a blade.
War served no one but the rulers who sat on their thrones and benefited from it while soldiers and citizens bled.
I had learned in my long years alive that it was pointless.
There were no victors in war. If they did not die, they carried such deep scars that not even a generation could erase the trauma. War was the last thing I wanted.
Air hissed as the doors to my room slid open. I turned and stepped away from the window, watching the adrueth guards enter my room. They flanked Ennis, their shining white gold wings spread.
“Looks like sleeping beauty is finally awake,” Ennis said with a smile.
I started toward him, but a sharp blistering pain exploded in my neck and radiated through my body, sending me to my knees. My body shook, and I gulped down air when the agony finally eased. Lifting a shaking hand, I traced the loose-fitting silver prong collar encircling my throat.
“What is this?” I hissed.
“A safety procedure,” Ennis said with a careless shrug.
He pressed that button again, and pain shot through my nervous system. I jerked as if I had been electrocuted, gritting my teeth as I stared at him. He only smiled before lifting his thumb off the button.
“I didn’t do anything,” I said through clenched teeth and untempered rage.
He only smiled and shrugged. “Oh, I know.”
Fucking bastard.
I struggled back to my feet, my legs still trembling. Ennis held up the remote that controlled the collar. His guards watched on impassively.
“Where is she?” I asked because I knew he was about to take me to his insane sister, and I just wanted to get it over with.
I HAD ACCEPTED long before Dianna and I ever got together that no one did it for me anymore.
Temptation had begun in my youth and remained prevalent throughout my life.
I had obliged those who’d literally thrown themselves at my feet, male or female, trying to fill some gaping void that threatened to consume me.
It helped at times, but it grew too far, too wide.
Perhaps my depression started long before Rashearim fell, and I hadn’t noticed it beneath the crown that sat on my head and the gold and jewels at my feet.
After the death of my world and the loss of my kingdom, I’d locked myself away in a self-imposed prison.
I’d assumed that my lack of desire was a symptom of my depression, but then I’d met her, and I’d felt again, wanted again.
More ferociously than I ever had before.
She was my heart, my love, and my other half.
The thought of even touching another made revulsion shiver through me.
So, Milani spread out in what I used to think of as all her beauty, her breast pointing to the high ceilings, did absolutely nothing for me.
“You summoned me? For this?” I asked, doing my best to keep the disgust from my voice.
She flared her wings wide and fluttered them, making each gold-tipped feather sparkle and her breasts lift.
“You look even more dashing than I remember, especially wearing my house colors,” she all but purred. “I never imagined you cutting off those luscious locks of yours, but I cannot say I’m displeased. You are a dream.”
My lip curled as I looked down at myself. “You had your soldiers dress me?”
“Don’t worry.” She twirled a piece of hair. “I watched. You were perfectly safe.”
I had a split second to rein in my temper, trying my best not to lash out. “That’s beyond a violation.”
“It’s nothing I haven’t seen or tasted before.
” She smiled. “Don’t look so down. I’ve missed you, and I thought we could pick up where we’d left off.
” Her nails drew lazy circles on the tousled sheets of her massive bed.
It looked like she’d been hedonistically rolling around in them before I arrived.
“Milani,” I said evenly, aware of how erratic her temper was. “What we had was over eons ago. What part of my leaving was unclear?”
“That’s what lovers do,” she purred. “They have spats, and then they get back together.”
I sighed deeply. “I was hoping to speak to you about a peace treaty.”
Milani pouted. “That’s boring. Let’s not talk,” she said, slipping out of bed. She tossed her hair back over her shoulders and flared her wings like some exotic bird trying to trap a mate. She stalked toward me, her hips swaying seductively. But she wasn’t Dianna, and she never would be.
She stopped in front of me and ran her fingertips along my shoulder.
She squealed and yanked her hand back, clutching her fingers against her chest. Her eyes narrowed, and she glared at the collar around my neck.
The small amount of electricity I’d used to shock her wasn’t even enough to activate it.
“How?” she demanded.
“The collar dampens my power, but it doesn’t tame it.
You cannot bind me, Milani.” My jaw clenched.
“Dianna owns my heart and my cock. You can have neither, and if you attempt to touch me again, I’ll stop worrying about a peace treaty with you.
Now, get dressed. You’re insulting me and embarrassing yourself. ”
Her face contorted with anger, her jaw clenched so tightly I feared she’d snap a tooth. She wrapped her wings tightly around her, covering her nakedness. “You’ve grown mean,” she sneered.
“My wife is meaner. She’d scorch your flesh from your bones for your indiscretions,” I said, my tone ensuring she knew I meant every word. I leaned closer and whispered, “And I’d gladly let her.”
A vein bulged across her forehead as she clenched her jaw, her mouth curling in anger at the mention of Dianna and who she was to me.
Milani didn’t handle rejection well, and she hated not getting what she wanted.
She had proven that when my arranged marriage to Imogen was announced across realms, and she threatened war.
Luckily, her father, along with his advisors and councilors, informed her of the foolish mistake it would be.
She’d had no power then, but now? She had far too much now.
What happened next was my fault for forgetting what a spoiled brat she was.
“Guards!” she yelled, and a second later, the doors were thrust open. Her gaze held mine as she said, “I think Samkiel is ready to return to his room now.”
Double-pronged spears fell across my front in an X pattern before they pushed me from her room and led me back to mine.
I spent the rest of the evening looking for any weak spots in my room.
It was massive and luxurious, but it held nothing useful.
Every piece of furniture was attached to the wall, and the windows did not open.
I could use Oblivion, but I wasn’t confident with the collar on that I could control it enough not to obliterate everyone on board.
By the time the moon rose and night spread across the sky, I had given up.
I sat on the edge of the bed, blowing out a breath as I looked out at the stars.
I had no doubt that Dianna would find me.
My only concern was how and when she would arrive.
She was beyond intelligent and crafty. I just hoped she didn’t set the stars on fire to announce her arrival because no matter how strong my akrai was, I had given Milani information that had made her artillery damn near unstoppable.