Chapter 12 #2
The silence stretched between us, heavy with everything we had left unsaid. And the way he had been looking at me… like I held his whole world in my hands…
“I do apologize that you feel I abandoned you.” Sincerity rang through his voice.
“That was not my intention, I swear. I thought Finn would keep you occupied. But anytime you need me, I will be there. I promise.” There was a depth of meaning in that statement.
He gave a dark look to the remaining bystanders watching us with interest and they scattered.
“There were reports of a hole in the Veil in Norethgale. I went to sort it out,” he said quietly.
“The Veil will eventually heal itself. How long it takes depends on how big the repair is, but until that happens, all manner of chaos can take place. Hufen. The dorchas. Destruction. Deaths. It requires someone to deal with it.”
I blinked in surprise. The anger, which had already begun to fade away, disappeared entirely. “You actually told me.”
He gave me a long look. “Despite what you may think about me, it was never my intention to keep secrets from you.”
I sighed. I did know that. At least in my rational moments. “In my defense, no one tells me anything here. And when I asked where you went, they wouldn’t tell me.”
“Asking about me, were you? I knew you missed me.” He had such a smug look on his face that I couldn’t help myself. I flung my arm out and struck his chest.
My palm connected with solid muscle, and his hand caught my wrist before I could pull back. He laughed—a full laugh that I’d never heard from him before. Erde be damned if that didn’t make my heart speed up. His thumb pressed against my racing pulse, and I knew he could feel it.
An answering grin spread across my face and he froze, laughter dying on his lips. His eyes burned into mine and we just looked at each other, until it was too much for me and I looked away.
That broke the spell.
He immediately released my wrist before surging to his feet and extending a hand down to me.
Taking it, that familiar jolt went through me, but he didn’t just pull me up—he hauled me to my feet with enough momentum that I crashed into his chest. His arm came around my waist automatically to steady me.
For one breath, we stood frozen chest to chest. His arm was a band around my waist, my hand was outstretched against the hard planes of his body.
We broke away at the same time. I ducked my head to hide my flush.
“I have to admit, Princess, you are good.” His voice was completely composed. As if the last few minutes hadn’t happened. “And you’ve been utilizing Kaia’s training. I recognized some of those moves.”
“Great. Maybe I’ll be able to protect myself next time I’m attacked.”
He froze. “What do you mean?”
I looked at him, confused. Surely he had heard. “Cillian escaped.”
Everything about him went deadly still. Even the air paused. When he spoke, his voice was so cold it could have frozen water. “Escaped?”
“Several days ago. I assumed someone would have told you—”
“I was dealing with the fallout from holes in the Veil, chasing hufen around the kingdom, and they let that bastard escape?”
If he’d had more of his fire channel, he would have started smoking.
“I was only gone a week. How could everything get so fucked in a week?” he muttered.
“It’s been a busy week.”
He gave me a flat look that told me he did not appreciate that remark—or rather he appreciated it but he didn’t want to. His lips pressed into a line before he ran a hand roughly through his sandy waves. “So what now?” he asked me.
“I still want to hit something.” My voice was shakier than I had intended.
“Then pick up your sword.”
I extended a hand. I was shocked, and elated, when it flew into my hand with just a thought.
“Do your worst,” I said with more bravado than I felt.
“As you wish, Princess.”
And with a flash, he was on me, attacking me.
I could barely keep up, dancing away on my toes to avoid the fight being over in the first few moments.
Both of us were still charged from the conversation we were now ignoring, him from fury over Cillian, me from a week’s worth of worry and anger, and it showed in our fighting.
We went at each other with an intensity that bordered on vicious, all pretense of training forgotten.
But gradually, through the clashing of swords and the circling of feet, the lingering anger and worry drained out of me.
The familiar rhythm of the sword work, the simple pleasure of fighting someone talented—well, more talented than you—worked to ease the anxiety that had doubled every day he was gone.
He must have felt it, too, because when he paused to let me catch my breath, there was something almost like a smile playing on his lips. “Feeling better?” He wasn’t even winded.
“Getting there.” I attacked again, breathing heavily, but there was less rage behind my movements.
“Stop telegraphing your moves. I can read you like a book.” He parried my blow effortlessly, a clang ringing out through the yard.
“Fuck you.”
“Language,” he tutted. “Also, I’m a bit surprised. I’ve heard much more eloquent insults from you.”
“Did you want to just talk, Champion? Because that would be a first for you. Or did you want to dance?”
His grin was like the sun coming out from behind a cloud. “I’ll dance with you anytime, anywhere, Princess. Try to keep up.”
And with that, I had no room to think of anything other than where his sword was and how to keep it from cutting me in two.
Erde be damned, he was fast. I barely kept up.
We ended up with our swords locked, our bodies strangely entwined.
I could feel each place his body touched mine.
It was like an intricate dance, but deadly.
He exerted just enough pressure on his sword that I struggled to keep mine in place, keep him from overpowering me.
I finally broke away, and we continued on in this vein for quite some time.
He finally took pity on me and called it quits, both of us drenched with sweat—actually, I was drenched with sweat, while Griff just had a nice gleam to his skin.
I watched him toss the practice sword back and forth from hand to hand and remembered how he had stopped my sword with just his forearm, with no visible injury.
I knew he was strong, but I also knew how much strength was in my attack.
“How is your arm not broken?”
He knew what I meant and looked at me, considering how to answer, when it occurred to me.
“You can shield,” I breathed in wonder. “With your body channel.”
“Not many people know that.”
“Does it extend to others?”
He was surprised by the question. “I’ve never found out.”
I left it at that, still thinking it over, and as I turned to get water, he called out softly, “Princess?”
I turned back to him, an unreadable expression in his eyes. “I’ll tell you next time I have to leave.”
“Promise?”
“Promise. And I’ll find you as soon as I return.”
“Thank you.”