Chapter Fourteen
Rhydek
I hadn’t thought I would get any rest.
Despite spending the trip to Morrakan sleeping beside her, there was something different about sharing the nest in my home with Taryn.
Especially after seeing her unclothed.
Relief flooded me when I woke on my side of the mattress, even if I had to pry my wayward tail away from her ankle. For a limb I could control with deadly precision, it seemed to have a mind of its own when it came to her.
I managed to dress and leave without Taryn stirring from slumber. She had finally stopped whimpering in her sleep, the lines of pain easing around her eyes and mouth as time passed since the injection. She hid it well while she was awake, but her exhaustion showed when she relaxed.
Which seemed to be about as often as I did.
Only when unconscious.
Council meetings had continued through screens while we were gone, so there wasn’t much to go over.
The Skarashk colony ship was still on the move, our ships were still tracking it, and certainty that it was heading for Halcyon grew with each report, but fleet maneuvers were Kael’s problem.
Ground forces were mine, so I would continue to train and prepare our warriors until they were needed.
It was always until. If they would be needed was never a question.
With Vorrashan still below the horizon, I planned to go straight to the surface to begin training, but Kael stopped me before I got the chance to escape the Council Room.
“How is Taryn?”
The urge to snarl over another alpha asking about her had my lip curling back, but the fact that his korravai stood at his side helped me swallow it.
“She’s in less pain and she did well in the River Caverns.”
Kael was satisfied with the answer, but Serenya frowned.
“You already took her to the River Caverns?”
It was difficult to keep my scowl contained. Omega or not, I didn’t like being questioned.
“Did you let her use the omega pool or take her to your clan’s?” she asked before I could respond to her first question.
My frown deepened as I stared down at the female. She had gotten better at controlling her kethra, but I hadn’t missed the way they brightened.
“We used the public area, as I always do.”
Surprise warred with concern across her features. Her mouth opened as if she wanted to say something more until Kael’s tail curled around her waist and his hand stroked her arm. She got the hint, dropping her gaze with a short nod.
“Will you be showing her around today then?”
Tail lashing, my frown turned toward Kael.
“I had planned to train with the warriors, as usual.”
Kael was better at hiding his emotions, but his brows twitched as if he didn’t like my answers either.
Was I not doing the right thing?
When neither said anything else, I turned and strode away, torn over what I was supposed to do. I hadn’t given much thought to Taryn other than slipping out without waking her, but with Serenya and Kael’s questioning, I was forced to.
While she was perfectly safe inside my home, there wasn’t much for her to do. Her two bags could be emptied in less time than it took me to walk to the surface, and then she would be left in an unfamiliar place, alone, with nothing to occupy her.
Snarling under my breath as my tail lashed again, I stomped up the stairs. I refused to neglect my duties, especially since I’d already been gone for the trip to Earth and back, but I could get the warriors started and then return to Taryn.
If Kael thought I should be showing her around, I could do that. I refused to be a bad mate, even if I’d never planned to be one at all.
I was surprised to find Taryn already up when I returned. She was digging through her bags with a frown on her face, transferring the expression to me the moment I walked in.
“What’s wrong?”
The question slipped out before I could stop it. It was difficult to maintain the distance I wanted between us when instincts kept urging me to see to her every need. Especially when I didn’t want her to suffer because of me, even if I didn’t want to give her the wrong ideas about our future.
“It’s too damn hot here for all my clothes. I came from a place that never gets above eighty degrees, while it seems like the coolest it gets here is ninety.”
I didn’t understand her references, but her complaint was clear enough, and it gave me the perfect excuse to do what I’d already decided.
“Find something that will work for now, and I’ll take you to the Market for more appropriate drevarn.”
Taryn blinked at me before her brow creased.
“More appropriate? Are there rules about what I can wear?”
Confused, I shook my head.
“No.”
She straightened, putting both hands on her hips. She was still wearing the strip of fabric around her chest and groin, but the pose accentuated her figure, drawing my attention where I wished it wouldn’t go.
“Then why would you take me shopping?”
Multiple answers popped into my head.
Because Kael had implied I was failing as a mate.
Because Serenya had looked at me like I had already done something wrong.
Because leaving her alone while I trained the warriors felt like abandoning something that relied on me.
But none of those answers were going to pass my lips.
“You said your things are too hot. You need drevarn suited to Morrakan.”
Taryn stared at me for another moment before looking down at her bag as her shoulders slumped.
“I’m sorry, you’re right. I don’t know why I reacted that way.”
Sighing, she pulled out several pieces of fabric before holding one up with a grimace.
“These were designed for weather that isn’t actively trying to cook me.”
I had no idea what cooking had to do with weather, but her point was clear.
“It will get better.”
Taryn blinked at me with an odd expression on her face before giving a silent nod. Putting her back to me, she set the fabric on the bedding in front of her, but her hesitance to change with me in the room was clear.
Walking out, I told myself I was giving her privacy for her comfort. In truth, I didn’t trust my reaction if she was naked next to our nest.
I still heard the sound of fabric rustling, and my shaft twitched as I pictured what she had looked like once more. So soft and smooth, pale skin reflecting the colored lighting around her as beads of water ran down her curves.
My kethra brightened and my tail twitched, but I forced myself to walk across the room and prepare a cup of water.
A moment later she emerged in one of the odd garments she’d worn on the Zeydrassk.
The top and bottom were the same faded blue, completely unadorned, with a square cut that hid her femininity.
I hated it.
“Drink this. Do you need food?”
I thrust the cup at her, some of the water sloshing over the top. Her eyes narrowed but she took it from me.
“I don’t usually eat breakfast. Coffee is enough.”
She sipped the water as I frowned at her, trying to decide whether to feed her anyway and what coffee might be. She needed to recover her strength, but I also needed her cooperation, and forcing her to eat if she didn’t wish to might ruin any chances of that.
“I’ve never heard of coffee.”
Horror flashed across her face and I barged on before she could grow hysterical.
“You will need to stay close in the Markets. It’s easy to get separated, and there was an incident with Serenya and some trezakkar her first trip there.”
My claws pricked my palms over the fact that we still weren’t certain those responsible for that situation were the same ones who had attacked Rowena, nor had we found them.
“Incident?”
I didn’t want to scare her, but she needed to be aware there might be danger here.
“Not all Morraki approve of mating Humans.”
It was the simplest way to put it.
She muttered something under her breath in her own language, but the tone was clear. She wasn’t happy that information had been withheld, and I didn’t blame her.
When we stepped out into the tunnels, they were busier than before Vorrashan rose. Warriors moved between training grounds and armories. Betas scurried to complete their daily tasks, keeping the alpha they assisted on track and managing everything that kept Korvashan running smooth.
More than one Morraki stared when they saw us. Or, more accurately, when they saw Taryn. The pale color of her skin was impossible to ignore amongst my people’s darker tones. Her glowing kethra only made her stand out more.
Curiosity rippled among them, stirred by the fact that she walked with me and was pumping the scent of nervous omega into the tunnels.
Taryn noticed the staring but kept her head high, her gaze pointed ahead.
Even her kethra grew steadier, only rippling with the pace of her heart.
Other than her scent, she hid her nerves well.
“They will get used to seeing you. Once your scent changes, you’ll draw less notice.”
She glanced at me from the corner of her eye. Her brows twitched as if she had to force them not to crease.
“Once my scent changes?”
She kept her voice as low as mine had been, the hum of others enough to hide it even from Morraki enhanced hearing.
“An omega’s scent changes once she is claimed. Alphas are attracted to the scent of an unmated omega, but once we are bonded, it will warn other alphas away.”
She was silent as we began descending the stairs we had used the day prior, the press of other warriors forcing her close. My tail reached for her, prepared to coil around her waist, but I forced it still.
“So, my markings will change to match yours, and my scent will advertise that I’m taken. Does yours change?”
Biting back my smirk, I arched a brow.
“What do you think?”
Her huff of irritation as she focused on her footing had my grin growing.
“Of course not. I bet ours changes as a biological warning to other males that getting near us is a risk because alphas are territorial beasts.”
My laugh echoed in the stairwell, drawing more curious stares. She had figured out that part, at least.
“You seem very calm about that.”