Chapter 31
NARYA
By late evening, the camp had fully assembled on the cliffs. I spent my time pacing in the hall chamber and watching the sun stretch closer to the horizon. Restless energy coiled through me as the orange light bled across the sea cliffs.
It was nearly dusk, and from my window I could see people gathering outside. Torches had been brought to stand by the bonfires. The low chants and singing still echoed as everyone prepared for the hunt. Several warriors stood near the fires, their chests bared and skin covered in red paint.
Crystals nowhere in sight. Something rarely ever seen in public.
My eyes roamed the crowd. Kalias stood out among them, his Sunstone markings glowing like honey.
He was laughing and drinking from a goblet with the other nobles, but it wasn’t just the nobles who had gathered.
The women taking part in the hunt stood among them, dancing in beautiful red dresses made for running.
Why was my dress black? Did it mean something?
All kinds of men, women and children were gathered down there, waiting for the hunt to begin. And then he appeared.
Daigen.
My pulse thrashed as I pressed against the window, my breath fogging the glass.
I wiped it away as the crowd parted for their king.
When he reached the bonfires, he struck the ground with his spear, burying it in the ash.
Then he crouched down and swooped some into his palm and began painting lines across his face and upper body.
Smoke curled through his hair; the ash streaked his skin like war-prayer sigils.
His chest was bared, revealing crimson markings that shimmered in the dying light.
Unlike the other warriors, he wore no shoes—only black trousers and a gold band that snaked around his bicep.
He towered over the others as he stood waiting. For me.
The door opened with a quiet knock. I turned to watch Threana enter, grinning from ear to ear.
“It’s time to get ready,” she said, hurrying over to the dress. “I was allowed to see this when it arrived. I’ve been dying to see what it looks like on you.”
She unfastened the back and began pulling it off the mannequin.
“This hunt,” I said, my mouth drying. “Do you have any tips?”
“Don’t look back,” she replied. “A lot of people get distracted by those running with them. Or they want to see how far behind their mate is. Don’t let yourself be tempted by that. As soon as the fires are lit, keep running, and most of all, have fun. It’s supposed to be fun.”
Fun. If that was the case then why did I feel so much dread?
I let her undress me, being careful to keep my front to her so she wouldn’t see my scars, and then pull the dress over my body. I tapped my nails against my thumb as I waited for the fabric to fall into place.
“Kalias fell when he tried to catch me,” Thràena said with a laugh, breaking the silence. “He almost caught me by the river. But he tripped on the bank and fell belly-first into the water.”
Imagining the former scholar doing that, in front of his mate, nearly made me laugh.
“Did you stop to help him?” I asked.
Another giggle as she attempted to fasten the ties at the back of my neck, which I promptly took over. Lost in the moment, she didn’t argue.
“Where would the fun be in that?” she said. “He’s supposed to catch me!”
The laugh escapes my lips. Thràena beamed, delighted, and motioned for me to turn around. Then her hand fell on my hair at my back.
“A braid will help keep it away from your face. Or I can pin it back, like the others? Some even leave their hair down, but I think that’s unwise. You don’t want to be breathing in your hair while you run. It’s distracting.”
“Yes,” I agree. “And a braid will do. Just one, please, down my back.”
“Of course.”
She pulled my hair back and gently combed it.
A single braid was how I wore my hair when I went into the woods with Blayren.
It was there he taught me everything he knew from his days in the Guild.
I could forage, build fires and shelter, even set my own traps.
But outrunning a king who wanted to claim me as his prize?
That I wasn’t sure I could do.
And anxiety be damned, I was a little excited to find out. More than a little.
Thràena twisted my hair into a braid and secured it with red ribbon.
“Now we must remove your crystal. Otherwise, it will shine like a beacon when he looks for you, which of course is considered cheating. His Majesty has granted me special permission to remove it for tonight.”
I nodded, and let her remove the necklace. I’d tried twice before but it was impossible. When did I stop trying? When did I suddenly decide that I liked wearing it?
Somehow she managed to remove it easily. She set the necklace down on the dresser table. “Would you like to see yourself in a mirror before we go?”
I shook my head. I was scared to look—to glimpse the life I could’ve had with Daigen. Thràena gave a knowing, sympathetic smile.
“Then, shall we join the hunt?”
I followed her out. As I passed the dresser, I caught my reflection in the mirror anyway.
The flash of starlight that glowed in the centre of my crystal stopped me in my tracks.
My breath caught as I grabbed it. The light faded beneath my fingers, but I saw it.
The way the crystal shone silver, like a star had momentarily roused before dying again. But how was that even possible?
“Is anything the matter?” Thràena looked over her shoulder at me.
“No, I…” I placed the crystal back down, and nodded to her. “It was nothing.”
At least, I hoped it was nothing. Because if that light meant what I thought it did, tonight’s hunt wasn’t just a game. It was a warning.
* * *
The bonfires stood like pyres ready to set ablaze the life I could no longer have.
They looked beautiful and tragic at the same time.
Emerias, Izyak, and another warrior guarded them, each one holding a torch.
Thràena walked behind me, fussing over my dress as she followed to where Daigen stood waiting by the tallest fire.
His eyes never moved, completely locked on me.
My breath seemed to still in my chest as I went to him.
On his head, he now wore a gold deer-skull in the shape of a crown, its antlers sharp and gleaming.
When I reached him, the faintest smile tugged at his lips.
“You made it.”
I arched my brow at him. “Did you think I wouldn’t?”
He said nothing, but his silence was loud: he thought I might not.
“I wondered if I’d have to carry you down here myself and then chase you,” he said, that familiar smirk twisting his mouth.
He slid his fingers underneath my braid and slowly caressed it like he was feeling silk.
Next to us, the first bonfire was lit. Then the second.
My heartbeat skipped. One one more and the hunt would begin.
“You better run fast for me, little star. I want to earn the right to catch you.”
His tone was teasing, but in his eyes something dark flickered.
“And when I do catch you—”
The horn bellowed before Daigen could finish.
The third fire had been lit, and every woman ran. Including me.
I didn’t look back. Not until I reached the treeline. Even then, I could tell by those who passed me that the men weren’t in pursuit yet.
Daigen’s laugh followed me as I ran, just like that night in the alleyway. It made me smile as my lungs burned for air, and the trees swallowed me.
Branches clawed at me, tugging at my dress, but I didn’t slow down.
I leapt over a fallen tree and kept running.
Most of those around me kept to the forest path.
Some strayed through the bramble. I veered left, my heart pounding against my ribs.
I didn’t plan on running far. I planned on hunting him.
Then, once I saw him, I’d be the one to pounce.
I would show him how much he meant to me.
My eyes stung, knowing it might be my only chance.
A woman screamed in front of me, then she laughed as a male tackled her against a tree. The chase had well and truly begun.
I felt Daigen’s presence closing in behind me.
Felt the swipe of his hand near my braid whipping behind me.
I pushed harder, ignoring the stabbing ache in my lungs.
There was no time to climb now. I had to outrun him.
Excitement burned in my chest as I leapt over a log covered in red moss.
A clearing rose in the distance. I could see a moonwillow tree standing alone, its tresses fluttering softly in a breeze.
I bolted for it, my dress snapping behind me. Everyone else seemed to be going in the opposite direction. Maybe they knew something I didn’t. Maybe I was running straight into his trap. I didn’t let that stop me. I just ran.
Daigen cursed behind me as his fingers brushed my arm. A laugh bubbled in my throat, half choked by a startled scream. My chest heaved, my dress clinging to me like a second skin as the heat and exertion gripped hold of my body. But I refused to stop. I kept going, kept pushing forward.
Until something wrapped around my ankle and pulled me down.
I slammed against the grass. Stunned, I blinked up at the stars. Blood roared in my ears as starlight pulsed behind my eyes. I knew Daigen had used his magic to catch me before I even heard him laughing.
Angry, I pushed to my feet and glared at him across the clearing. He was no longer wearing his headpiece. Just him, ruthless and beautiful.
“You cheated,” I panted, glaring at him.
“I grew impatient,” was his only reply.
Then he walked towards me, prowling like a beast that had finally caught its prey. There was something about the way he approached me that made me feel small and alive. Excited.
I should have been livid at him. How dare he cheat?
But his dark gaze pinned me to where I stood.
It was then that something primal ignited in me.
The thrill of the chase, the wildness of the hunt, the way Daigen was looking at me like I was already his…
It surged through my veins and spread across me like wildfire, startling me. Frightening me.
I stepped back, torn between running from or to him.
When his lips spread into a smirk, I chose the former—and I ran.
Daigen chased after me. Everything blurred as I headed for the tree.
All I could hear was my heartbeat and the thud of our boots hitting the ground.
Desire and longing rose within me, clawing its way up my throat.
He closed the distance in three beats. This time when he reached for me, he didn’t miss.
He grabbed the bottom of my dress and tackled me to the ground.
Hard enough to knock the air from me. He didn’t speak.
He didn’t even smile anymore. He just looked at me, his chest rising as quickly as my own, his eyes feral, then his lips were upon me, crushing me hard and fast until they stole what little breath I had left.
Damn him! I kissed him back just as hard. Damn me!
He groaned into my mouth, and I felt his cock harden against my body.
It wasn’t just my anger I forgot. It was everything. My past. My future.
I didn’t freeze when Daigen swelled against me. Didn’t panic when his tongue slipped between my lips and he kissed me. Didn’t panic when he ran his hands up my leg and slid underneath my dress. I surrendered to him completely.
Because I wanted to.
“Caught you,” he breathed against my lips.
“You cheated!”
He smirked again. “I wanted my prize.” Then he kissed me, softly. “I’ve never been a patient man, Narya. Even less of a patient king.”
He lifted my dress over my hips and trailed his fingers slowly up my leg until they dipped between my thighs.
He never looked away. I couldn't either.
The world around us seemed to tilt and there was only us.
His breath and mine, his fingers on my skin, and the press of his chest as I arched into him, wanting more.
My instincts told me to run from him, to get the upper hand, but my body surrendered like it had always wanted to be conquered by him. I wasn't just powerless. I was defeated. And I wanted to be. I always had.
He undid the ribbon in my hair. “I wanted to do this the moment I saw it.”
His voice was hoarse, raw with need. He trailed the ribbon over the slope of my breasts to the valley between them.
I pressed against him, breathless, as his hand lifted my leg over his hip, his cock pressed harder against me.
I shuddered when he dragged the ribbon across my sex, caressing me with it.
“Daigen—"
He didn’t stop. Not until a horn split through the trees.
He pulled away with a growl and gently lowered my dress. When he pushed off me, he offered his hand. I stared at it for a moment.
“What happens now?” I whispered.
“Now I carry you back,” he said, grinning.
I placed my hand in his large one. But that wicked look in his gaze made me pause. He was up to something. I just knew it.
"You better not throw me over your shoulder like a barbarian,” I muttered, barely suppressing a smile.
He smirked at that. “Sweetheart, I just hunted you through a forest. Did you really think I was going to be gentle with you?”
Before I could object, he picked me up and slung me over his shoulder effortlessly.
My protests left me in a startled squeal.
“Daigen!”
He smacked my ass lightly, then slid his fingers down to the back of my thigh.
“I told you to run. I didn’t say how I would carry you back once I caught you.”
“You really are a barbarian!”
He chuckled at that. “And yet here you are, laughing.”
I was laughing—really laughing—and for a moment, it felt real. Like I could let myself believe this night was ours and no one was going to take it away from us. But then Daigen paused, and the muscles in the back of his legs tensed.
"I should make you laugh more,” he whispered, his voice stripped of humour.
My laughter died and suddenly I wondered if I’d ever laugh again once he let me go. We both knew it was only a matter of time, and time felt like it was slipping through the cracks in our crystals.