Chapter 9
Ekkire
Jasmine was my mate. That knowledge sank deep into my bones as I watched over her directly after setting her broken leg.
She was my mate; there was no denying it, as my sigils still glowed brightly for her even now.
So brave, she’d been strong as I manipulated her broken bones back into place and secured the splint.
She’d even tried to give me instructions through the process.
There weren’t many hunters who could have gone through something like that without passing out.
The fact that she hadn’t was a testament to her strength.
With the crushed Hura tree bark easing her pain, she’d gone limp in my coils, her head leaning back, her eyes hooded.
Finally, her breathing was beginning to settle into a normal pattern, and her heart rate was coming down.
That was good. Moving her, however… she could not walk with this injury, which meant there was only one option.
I would have to carry her all the way back to the sky wreck myself.
I could picture what would happen when we arrived quite clearly.
Joxra’s initial relief, if he’d survived his own dreadful injuries.
Then their surprise at seeing my mating marks glowing for her.
They would assume we would not want to be separated, and they’d never let her out of their sight while she was injured.
I could not fault them for that, but it would mean I was trapped—unable to leave and go up to the Sun Fang outpost to help any survivors.
The longer I was delayed… I did not want to think about that.
We could wait here, at least a short while, so she could recover.
I knew there was no other option, though; she was too wounded for me to take with me.
It was wrong to delay getting her to a healer like Corin, who could take away her pain in moments.
Thinking about it, I felt a wave of anxious energy crash through me, no doubt courtesy of the mate bond.
To ease her pain, I had to get moving now.
She had been right to scold me earlier for getting lost in my own shock rather than taking care of her.
I’d already failed at being a good provider, the protector she needed; it proved I wasn’t made right for this.
“I can see it, you know?” she murmured, her words all distinct and clear to me now that we were touching.
The mate bond did all the work, somehow allowing me to understand what she was saying.
It was exactly like the myths of old, from the days when the clans supposedly still mingled, still talked. The way it was at Haven now.
“See what?” I asked her. My mind was already running through a list of things I needed to replace once I got to the sky wreck.
It was also trying to come up with the best way to move her.
Keeping her leg elevated would reduce swelling, and thus her pain.
I’d have to carry her in my arms, which would be… intimate.
“Your desire to be elsewhere. What is it in those mountains that’s calling to you?” she asked. Her chin jutted in the direction of Sun Fang’s outpost. I stilled, my hands freezing on the straps of my backpack. How had she known? Had I been that transparent?
I had a choice here: lock her out, keep her at a distance, or invite her in and tell her what my plans were.
I considered that, because I’d never been one to share my plans with anyone.
When I left Haven, I had simply gone, and when I left the Water Weaver village, I was also beholden to no one.
She would not gain anything by knowing my plan; it would not change what needed to be done.
“The earthquake caused an avalanche of rock high in the mountains, right where I know a Sun Fang outpost is—a small mountain village with several families. I intended to travel there quickly to assist.” I did not tell her I blamed her for the delay, because I didn’t, but I could see on her face that she immediately believed I did.
Her gaze flicked from me to the mountains, and then she craned her head to look in the direction of the sky wreck.
Her brow furrowed, proving she was thinking hard, and then she said, “I guess we’ve got some choices to make then.
” I listened as she outlined those choices with growing consternation.
My chest grew tight in much the same way it had grown painful when I’d thought she’d been in danger, and I’d abandoned her to that fate.
“No,” I snarled when she was done speaking.
“Absolutely not.” Abandon her here? Never going to happen, even if she tried to convince me she could use something called “crutches” to make her way back.
Taking her with me was out of the question, too, because I would not make her suffer in pain any longer than absolutely necessary.
The choices she was outlining weren’t choices, but I appreciated that she was trying.
I recalled her fervent words: “I don’t want to be your mate.
” Perhaps she was just trying to get rid of me in the same way I’d attempted to get rid of her ever since we met.
Though getting rid of her like she was little more than a piece of garbage to be discarded felt incredibly wrong.
No, she wasn’t that. Just inconvenient. Very inconvenient.
“What do you mean, no?” she said, frowning.
Her velvety eyes could sparkle with fury quite well.
It was a beautiful, glittering sight that I both enjoyed and wanted to dispel.
I did not want her to be angry, just like I did not want her to be hurt, but I also didn’t want my life to change.
Now, her sleara was staring at me in exactly the same way, and I had this creeping feeling that the pair were ganging up on me.
Taking a deep breath, I moved, though my tail remained around her to keep her comfortably propped up.
Backpack on my back, my weapons all secured, good.
I handed her the bow I’d made her, and she snatched it from my fingers to clutch against her chest. The sleara had to scramble onto her shoulder to get out of the way, chirping indignantly.
Everything was ready; there was nothing more to do here, so I began reaching for her, my scales shivering along my spine in anticipation.
“No, I am not taking you with me. You must see a healer, quickly. No, I am not leaving you behind to make your way back alone. I’m carrying you back to the sky wreck,” I said through gritted teeth.
Just thinking of either of those options made me furious.
Did she think she was so skilled that, even injured, she’d make it?
Or did she think her life was worth so little I’d carelessly abandon it to fate?
I lifted her with my tail, then snatched her into my arms. Her expression was mutinous, but she did not say another word.
She’d gone pale as the sleara, her mouth settling into a grim line.
“Pain?” I asked, shifting her as carefully as I could to raise her splinted leg without jostling it.
She shook her head, but I knew better, so I offered her another wad of Hura bark.
That she took it meant she knew how bad it was.
Getting my bearings, I ignored the soft flutter of Dove landing on my shoulder and settling in like she belonged there.
Then I began carrying Jasmine downhill, dread filling me with each tree we passed, each rock I went around.
She clung to me, wincing even though I tried to move as steadily as possible.
The ruined, earthquake-damaged terrain made that hard.
I hated that I was hurting her. She should be resting on a soft nest, pampered with treats and warm furs.
Not this… yet I also knew she was as much a hunter, a warrior, at heart as many other males I knew.
I expected them to be strong, so I was going to respect her strength and expect the same of her.
“Oh fuck, Ekkire, do you hear that?” she suddenly whispered.
I had to admit that it was extremely convenient that I could now understand her.
Twisting my head left and right, I sampled the air for scents while listening for whatever she’d heard.
“Do you think that guy is coming back to finish us off?” she asked, very quietly.
“Yes,” was the short answer, but I didn’t say anything.
Msera’s scent had continued to linger in the clearing, but now I picked it up further downhill too.
He’d gone to fetch reinforcements. At least a dozen more Thunder Rock.
I looked at the slight curve of black visible over the trees in the distance.
The sky wreck had sunk into the ground when it opened up beneath it during the quake.
It was closer than it looked, but still too far.
They would not have sent the Dragon back to Haven, not while a threat still loomed, but that didn’t mean Sesethul was close enough.
They would not hear us if we called for help. We were on our own.
“How many are there? I know you know. You’ve got better senses than I do, and even I know they’re out there!
” Jasmine was getting impatient, and with the threat of danger, she also sounded stronger.
Clearer. I made a choice then, one I knew I would never be able to undo.
Had I been able to leave her near the sky wreck and alert them to her presence, I might have still slipped away and forced myself to forget about her.
The longer she stayed in my presence, in my arms, the harder leaving her would be.
“Too many. They’re between us and safety.
We must go the other way.” I shifted her ever so carefully in my grip until I could raise her above my head.
“You must cover our retreat with your bow while I focus on speed. Can you do that, little hunter?” I didn’t realize how badly I’d slipped up, revealing the already intensifying feelings the mating bond inspired in me.
Not until I saw the flutter of a smile curve her lips.
“I can do that, just… don’t drop me, kay?
” She wasn’t angry when she said it; she was still smiling, and it took my breath away.
So soft, so unusual. Her pink hair caught the wind and tangled with the rest of her silky black locks.
I settled her very carefully onto my shoulders, securing her broken leg and her good leg against my chest with one arm, as gently as I could.
This was going to hurt her, but she just chewed roughly on the third strip of bark I offered her and prepared her weapon.
Turning away from the trap of Thunder Rock warriors waiting ahead, I headed back the way we’d come—back into the mountains, speeding around rocks and over fallen trees.
Not so cautious about jarring her now as I was about getting distance between us and these hunters, dead set on killing my brave Jasmine.
I heard the whiz of her arrows as she released them before I saw hide or scale of the warriors.
They gave chase, though, as soon as they realized we were heading the other way.
The scent of blood in the air told me that even with a light bow and tiny arms, Jasmine was finding her mark and doing some damage.
She was magnificent, and truly skilled with that weapon.
Her skill rivaled any hunter I knew, and she was tough too.
This was not a female who would slow me down while traveling; she’d add to the journey, contribute.
I’d barely discovered the truth of this mate bond and its intensity, and already my beliefs were changing.
Fate chose for a reason, and perhaps it even chose well.
I thought that perhaps with enough speed I could circle around and double back on them.
The gullies and other damage to the land the earthquake had caused made that impossible.
There was only one way to go: forward. We needed to keep going uphill, further into the mountains, and as fast as I could.
Jasmine was a light burden, and she’d used her bow cleverly to force the pursuing hunters to fall back. It wasn’t going to be enough.
Casting my head left and right, I could think of only one option. It was risky, because the earthquake could have done serious damage here, too. Thunder Rock was highly superstitious, though, and I hoped that would work in our favor. They wouldn’t follow us. Not in there.