Chapter 12
Allie
“Are you sure you’re not related to this Solkar of yours?” I mumbled, barely coherent. “Your hands are divine.”
Ryker had barely touched that knot in my shoulders which had been nagging me more than Dax all day, yet he’d loosened it so fast, I wondered if he’d used his powers on me. But that was ridiculous–the tell-tale euphoria which followed him entering my veins was not there.
My body was so attuned with him, though, that it released under the careful circles he pushed into my muscles, like it recognized him as the cure to all my aches.
Ryker chuckled behind me, the sound vibrating from his chest into my back, lulling me further into his arms. “Sadly, I know who I spawned from and he was too human. Too weak.”
“You’re not weak,” I said fast.
Too fast.
There had been no question lingering in the air, yet I’d felt one pressing against my sluggish thoughts.
“Debatable,” he said slowly, like he still doubted. “We all have our weaknesses.”
“What’s yours?”
“I’m running my hands through her hair as we speak.”
There he went again, making my heart flutter with a few raspy words. Ones that probably meant more than I allowed myself to realize.
“Other than me,” I whispered.
“Geryll and Nadya,” he said without hesitation.
“Geryll said some weird things after the attack.” I frowned, remembering the lost look in his eyes as he’d lain on the bed. “I tried talking to him, but I think it will mean more coming from you.”
His touch slowed. “He’s not feeling good enough again, is he?”
I shook my head.
“It seems to be a recurring issue around these parts.” His fingers circled the base of my skull.
“I’ll talk to him. Again. And again. Until he understands.
He’s carried the unfair weight of his father’s glory all of his life.
However I tried to convince him otherwise in the past few years pales to a childhood of comparisons and expectations.
I can’t destroy the seeds which have been planted.
With enough time, though, I hope to have some sway in the growth. ”
“Do you really think it’s possible? For someone to change their ways?”
The question weighed more than I let on. Some parts of me needed rearranging and I struggled to see how they could fit together.
“I have to.” He shrugged, but it didn’t feel easy. “A few of mine need to be changed.”
“Which ones?”
I craved to know him.
All of him.
Though I kept my own cracks hidden. I couldn’t stop the curious need to delve inside of him and shed a light on his shadows.
“Too many to think about now,” he said.
The answer should have frustrated me.
It only made me want to dig deeper.
With a reluctant sigh, I turned around. The water glided along my skin like a caress. I had no idea what potions he’d poured into it, but this didn’t feel like a normal bath. It soothed aches I hadn’t even realized I’d had until now.
The crystal glowed, casting purple, hazy shimmers on the wall that fought with the gold and dark granite, as we sat in one shared still moment.
Just the two of us–and the strange way he was looking at me.
Ryker had always had a welcomed fascination with watching my every move, but he’d been uncharacteristically observant since he’d returned.
“What happened today with your Brother?” I muttered.
The tension which had been slowly seeping away from him made one final stand. He leaned his head back against the crystal rim, and licked his lips.
Debating.
Thankfully, not for long.
“The Blood Brotherhood Elite gathered. Talks of war and your cousin’s wedding,” he said evenly. “You changed your mind about discussing tomorrow?”
My curiosity gnawed at me, but I knew I’d say the wrong words when it was my turn to divulge. I wasn’t ready to let the moment end. This unhurried moment that felt so removed from the madness waiting for us just outside this steamy room.
“No.” My hand ran through his short hair, settling on his cheek. He nuzzled my palm, turning his head to kiss it as he closed his eyes. Like he too wanted all the comfort I could give, the same I greedily craved his.
“Can’t believe we can’t be there for Evie’s wedding,” I said, not able to hide the bitterness.
I understood the logistical and political nightmare it would be to bring the Protectorate First Family inside the Blood Brotherhood’s secret Capital, especially after what happened at Evie’s first wedding.
But, despite Ryker’s feelings on the matter and Silas’s betrayal, I wanted the rest of my family close.
Family was supposed to stick together.
Then again, what good did my presence do on Sanctua Sirena?
Nothing.
Ryker’s eyes popped open, a glimmer in them. “I can set up a palaver portal so you can at least witness it. Would you like that?”
I didn’t fully register the hesitant tinge in his voice as I bounced on my knees. Thank the gods nobody else could witness these sudden giggles. “Yes!”
“Alright.” He chuckled. “I’ll set it up for you.”
“And Dax. He will want to see it.”
“And your cousin,” he said begrudgingly. “He’s already here.”
I tilted my head to the side. “Does it really bother you that he came?”
“The problem is how he did it. I don’t like him, but he’s your relative.” He shrugged.
“Do you like anybody outside this crater and the Blood Brotherhood?”
He hummed, actually lost in thought. “I respected your grandfather. He ruled for his people.”
“And my father?” I found myself asking.
Ryker worked his jaw. “As a leader or as a person?”
That was answer enough, and despite the sudden lump in my throat, I couldn’t disagree.
Perhaps the gods had been merciful when they’d taken him away. He had not been born to rule in tumultuous times such as these. They would have mangled his soft soul too much.
“I respect you.” His voice lulled me back from the darkness. “As a leader and a person.”
A jolt tightened my chest.
Respect felt more dangerous than desire right now. Because it could be lost more easily.
“I’m not a leader.” Not anymore, if I ever had been a true one.
The corners of his lips tightened. “I can’t make you believe something you don’t want to. But I can believe in you for the both of us.”
It scared me how much I wanted him to–and how my body wanted to wrap around him as a reply.
I shook my head. “You and Dax should form an alliance on this subject.”
“Perish the thought of me spending more time with him than absolutely necessary.”
“You two have more things in common than you realize.”
“Yes, I am also known for my exquisite social skills,” he deadpanned.
“Exquisite, huh? He’ll love hearing that.” I laughed. “You two both like to be left alone to do things your own ways. He didn’t have the advantage of a secluded crater to accomplish that, but he’s his own type of recluse.”
“My type’s better,” he teased.
“That’s exactly what he would have said,” I teased back.
My gaze softened as I studied him, this fearsome warrior with sparking eyes and the patience of a saint.
That same overwhelming feeling took over me, making me want to do something crazy.
Stupid.
Like being vulnerable.
“I–I like the way you are.” I swallowed, my heart beating too hard for such a simple declaration. “You have your principles and you stick to them. That–that takes courage.”
His lips twisted, looking on the verge of disagreeing.
“It’s true.” I shrugged, self-conscious. My gaze fell down to the bubbles floating between us, shiny and unbothered.
His hand rose from them, reaching up until he gently touched my chin, tilting it.
“You’re the one with the unshakable principles.” A corner of his mouth ticked up. “All the Clan Council magistrates can rot under Xamor’s metal boots, but perhaps the fates knew what they were doing when they thrust us into each other’s lives.”
“Or maybe they hoped we would destroy each other.”
He shrugged, unbothered. “Then we’ll just have to disappoint them, won’t we?”
“That–” My heart did that dangerous flip once more. “That is a good plan. A stubborn one.”
He winked. “I know my audience.”
“Your trapped audience.” I stretched myself alongside him, greedy to feel more of his skin against mine. “I’m never leaving this bath and since you said you’d always be by my side…”
He draped a hand across my shoulders, tucking me into him. “I think some people might miss us if we decide to spend eternity in my washroom.”
“It looks enough like a throne room that we could keep council here.”
“Our nudity might stunt our authority.”
“You’re right.” I sighed. “I don’t need Vylkor seeing my legs.”
A rumble erupted in his chest. “He won’t if he knows what’s best for him.”
His hand snaked through the water, caressing my leg possessively. And, damn him, I leaned into it.
“You can’t be jealous. Of Vylkor, of all people,” I said.
I’d only seen the man stare longingly at his broadsword.
“You’re right. He’s too honorable to–”
The clock in the bedroom chimed.
One.
Twice.
It took three full rings for us to disentangle, groaning from loss.
I ran my hand through his hair once more.
I’d been greedy enough with Ryker’s time, it was time for Geryll and Nadya to indulge in his presence.
“Time for tea,” I sighed.
“And questions.”
“They’ll want to know everything about the outsider,” I said as he reluctantly rose from the water.
I barely managed to get a glimpse of his glistening body before he rushed once more. I blinked and he was already pulling his pants on.
“That’s just mean,” I pouted. I didn’t care what he said, the man had been carved by the gods themselves.
He laughed. “You started it.”
“Fine.” I crossed my hands on the rim of the bath. “I’ll only walk out once you’re gone.”
His fingers froze on his belt as he cursed under his breath. “I miscalculated.”
“Yes,” I said primly, before turning serious. “I don’t think Nadya and Geryll need to know about you and Dax almost dying. At least not yet.”
He shook his head. “They’re already worried enough.”
“Especially Nadya.”
“Yes. I don’t know if she got her suspicious ways from me or if she was born like that. I give her two days before she finds out everything about Dax, down to the socks he prefers.”
“He might not even know that.”
“Then he’ll be able to ask Nadya.” He pulled on his tunic, sealing his glorious form from me. “See you in an hour?”
I rested my cheek on my arm. “Don’t hold it against me if I’m already asleep.”
“As long as you’re in my arms, I don’t care.” He leaned down and placed a chaste kiss on my forehead that made my stomach clench. “I’ll be right back.”
I let myself bask in the warmth for a few moments after he left, listening to his footsteps. One day, perhaps I would be going down to tea with them.
I allowed that thought to make me as giddy as it could after days of unrest and fear.
The quiet had felt too good. Like the rest of the world, violent and chaotic, had stepped back for a reason and was waiting to snap around me once more.
With a reluctant huff, I finally left the washroom, hurrying to my own bedroom for another slip. I planned on spending the night between his sheets, with his arms coiled around me, and his room was a fair bit colder than mine.
The moment I was alone in the darkness of my room, I knew something was wrong.
Muscles tense and heartbeat in my ears, my gaze swept over every still shadow in front of me.
My trained eyes honed in on my duvet.
Something was waiting for me in my bed.