Chapter 30
Healed bones
Death felt different than I had thought it would.
It felt painfully sore and smelled like cinder.
Was it possible to move my fingers and make a whimpered noise in pain?
Riaan was cruel if this is what he condemned all souls to in the afterlife.
"Wake up slowly," a male voice softly commanded.
The shock from the sudden voice had me gasping and lunging forward.
The events of the necromancer drugging everyone, a monster chasing me, the shadows dancing around me, I hastily looked around.
Eyes wild and calculating. A hand immediately pressed me down into the bed.
"You don't listen well to orders. Do you?
" Inanov raised an eyebrow and then his gaze softened.
"You're alright. Beaten, battered and bruised.
But alright. You're not going to be able to ride a horse for a while, but the prince used a lot of his power to ensure your left knee was not broken. "
I couldn't answer—my throat felt enclosed, and my mouth was like sandpaper.
Water. I mouthed to Inanov. He was already pouring it into a glass from the porcelain pitcher and handed it to me. I took the pitcher from his hand instead and downed everything.
"Hey, do you want to choke?" he exclaimed but then sighed, he must have felt pity for me holding the pitcher weakly because he began to help me drink. Water dribbled down my chin to my throat and the feeling made me feel just a bit more alive.
"Get the prince. He will have my skin for not notifying him immediately when she awoke," Inanov spoke to the soldier that I had only now noticed was standing by the door of the room.
It's the same room I was given in the Kastel manor.
Well... what remained of it. The wall that had been between the prince's room and my own had collapsed.
"Yes, half the manor had broken down during the fight.
Thankfully, no one was hurt." Inanov looked around and then looked at me.
"You saved the prince. You must have fought with much prowess to have saved all of us.
For that, I give you my thanks, but I also give you a watchful eye.
Defeating a necromancer is no easy task at all.
" He looked me dead in the eye as if searching for answers.
I just stared at him. Not answering, not showing an ounce of emotion at his scepticism or his knowledge of necromancers.
“I trust you, warrior. But if you have anything at all to tell me, I suggest you do. I might be more understanding than the royals.” He looked straight into my eyes, hoping for an answer. I remained silent, not giving in.
The door was suddenly thrown open. "Leave me with my warrior."
My dark eyes met his assessing ones. He eyed every breath I took.
His eyes took in everything around me and everything that was me.
"As you command," Inanov spoke and gave a glance between us both before leaving and closing the door behind him.
For a while, all was silent. The chirping noise of birds could be heard from the outside.
No more heavy rains and storms it seemed.
His gaze felt warm and suddenly I felt self-aware, realizing I wore nothing but a white shirt.
I moved to pull a sheet over me but immediately hissed in the pain that shot from my knee.
His hands were now on those sheets, lifting it to help cover me. I flushed.
"Now, my pretty warrior. Don't strain yourself," the prince softly spoke and kneeled by my bedside.
Looking almost comfortable in the position.
"You look like death." He angled his head to the side, frowning and looking at the bruises scattered over my arm, and I could only imagine how my face had looked.
All I knew was that it stung like hell when I scowled at the prince.
"Yes. That happens when you nearly die," I snapped out of reflex and then clenched my jaw at the instant pain.
The prince was instantly hovering over me; I could feel his breath, his alluring scent of sage and flames.
My body froze and relaxed all at once. Wondering if he'd choke me for my disrespect or.
.. if he wanted to do something else. I couldn't help it.
I was closing my eyes and waiting—waiting for something I couldn't possibly expect but my heart thumped faster and something inside me wanted other things.
A shiver came over me when he softly caressed my cheek.
My body jerked in surprise when I felt his warm tongue lick the water droplets that had slid down to my chin. I stopped breathing. Stopped thinking.
"I would have hidden you like a gem if I had known my stone heart would become flesh for you," he had whispered it so quietly to himself, so silently it had almost felt like I conjured up those very words with my own thinking.
My mind was of another state entirely until it finally returned to me when the prince leaned away with an almost playful look, but his red eyes seemed darker. More predator like.
"Just leftover water, it seems. Not tears. You know I wouldn't be able to bear it if you were crying, my pretty warrior," the prince teased while leaning against the bed casually. The statement made me roll my eyes at him—with my heart beating slightly faster.
I changed the subject. "How long have I been out for?"
"Two days." The prince inspected a loose thread from his tunic and burned it with the slight touch of his finger.
"Two days?!" My legs moved on their own and I let out a sharp hiss of pain.
The prince looked to me amused. "Are you always this feisty after battle?"
I deadpanned at him. "Do you ever take anything seriously? Need I remind you that if you had listened to me before dinner two days ago, perhaps you wouldn't have been drugged."
The prince leans close to me. "Now where would be the joy in that?
I love being saved like a damsel. Especially if you're the one doing it.
" My jaw dropped. The prince had no limitations to his constant flirtations. "You don’t understand what it does to me, Morana. I could just see it, how fierce you must have been, oozing with power and satisfaction as you won the battle. I can barely breathe at the thought of how devastating you must have looked. It makes me want to reward you with the most sinful acts that only I would know, would bring you bliss.” My mouth dried as I listened, not daring to stop him even though it was so very wrong, not stopping him even when a pleasing heat pooled between my thighs with just the thought of him knelt beneath me.
His red eyes glaring into my own while he brushed his lips against my inner thigh. Rewarding me like he said he would.
The prince frowned. "These are however, only things I can imagine as I did not witness the fight.
When I had awoken before everyone else, there were scorched flames, broken furniture, the stairs were a mess, doors were burst open and lastly.
I ran around like a crazed man looking for you.
There was blood splayed all over the stables and then there you were.
Broken, yet not destroyed." I watched the prince's jaw clench and let the tension go as he once again smiled.
"It does seem that you came out well compared to your foe.
How did you defeat him?" The prince then studied me.
I bit my lip and then breathed out an answer. "My fire blades were able to outmatch him, but he was... a maker of his own end. The potion he drank was far too strong for his body. It killed him."
The prince raised an eyebrow then. His red eyes flickered as if thinking through the answer I had just given.
"Anti-climatic, he did quite some damage to you before he died.
Care to explain why this was next to you?
" He reaches from under the bed. My heart beating in answer and my blood thrumming loudly.
So loud that I heard it in my veins. The violin.
Obsidian wood—inked with golden engravings.
The violin that belonged to the little girl that haunted my mind.
"It must have fallen from my stallion during the fight." I didn't look at the instrument more than I should have. Instead, I looked into the prince's eyes. The eyes I once feared but had now slowly become used to.
"Do you play?" The question had caught me so off guard that I didn't answer until he asked again. "Do you?" A sly grin danced on his lips.
He looked handsome like this.
Goodness, I must have hit my head hard to be having these thoughts.
"I do… I used to but not anymore." I gave a half truth. Good enough.
“If there wasn’t a restriction, I would have loved to hear you play.
I am sure it would be quite entertaining.
” He traced the gold inked engravings with his fingers lightly.
He then moved to place himself on the bed and laid his head so very gently onto my lap.
Barely putting his weight onto my thighs as he closed his eyes and relaxed on me.
The sight left me dumbfounded and at a loss for words.
His white curls kissed his forehead and his eyelashes swept across his cheeks when he closed his eyes.
"Was everyone nearly dying not entertaining enough?" My tone was bland as I resisted the urge to touch his hair.
His face scrunched and then pouted. "I was drugged. I slept through everything. You can't possibly blame me."
"I do. If you had just listened. Maybe we could have avoided that." I felt like hitting my already concussed head against the wall. That's what talking to this foolish prince made me want to do sometimes.
"Foolish? Why not be foolish when I have such a capable warrior at my side to always protect me." His eyes opened then and there was so much mirth in it that it made him look more youthful. I bit my cheek hard, not realising I had called him foolish out loud.