Chapter 9
T he sound of fumbling at the door drew Emer’s attention, and she positioned herself, ready to face her captor once more. The sound of metal scraping against metal heightened her alarm. There was a sharp hiss followed by something heavy clattering against the stone corridor. Her blood ran cold as a voice that was not Calder’s growled and cursed under their breath.
Emer frantically searched the room for a weapon. Finding none, she quickly began to pull at the string that closed the neck of her tunic and leaped behind the door. She twisted the chord between her hands readying herself to throw it around the throat of the person currently trying to break in.
With a crack, the door opened, but the intruder did not enter.
Emer raised her hands, holding her breath and silently praying they would walk away because she was not sure if she had the physical or mental strength for what came next.
“Flower?” a male voice asked from the threshold. A voice Emer recalled slithering from beneath the shadows of a cloak.
There was another whispered curse just before a dark form entered the room.
Calder’s profile came into view, though his eyes did not find Emer, and instead, remained fixed on the hall. Without skipping a beat, his large hand clasped her wrists where she still held them above her head, clearing his throat to cover her surprised gasp.
Spooky Raven bastard.
Calder tilted his head and tsked at the unknown and unwelcomed body that remained just outside the room. “If you are here to proposition me, you are not my type, but I’m sure there is a sad soul somewhere looking to disappoint their parents.”
“Fuck you, Cal,” the intruder growled.
“So informal,” he cooed back to the knife-wielding man before him.
Leaning his shoulder against the edge of the open door, he loosened his grip on Emer’s wrist slightly. “Since we are forgoing formality, Dempsey, you would do well to remember who you are talking to,” Calder commanded. “I’m curious. Have you lost your sense of direction or just your head?”
“Funny you should ask…” Dempsey chuckled. “It appears I am not the one who has lost something,” he mocked, tipping his chin towards Emer’s boots, visible in the corner of the room. “Or someone… a rather petite someone at that,” he added.
Calder’s thumb brushed lightly across Emer’s racing pulse but gave no reaction that he was bothered by Dempsey’s observation.
“You didn’t answer me. Why the fuck are you in here?” Calder’s voice rumbled.
“Perhaps I was passing by and found your door open. It would only be polite to investigate such a strange scene. Perhaps the intruder who left the door open was no intruder at all. Perhaps they are a guest, or perhaps they are a ghost, roaming the shadows during the night.” Dempsey spun the tales in the same sickly charming tone he had spoken against Emer’s skin the night before.
“Have the spine to accuse me of something or stop wasting my time,” Calder growled.
“Something to hide, sir ?” Dempsey asked with a grin.
“Whatever you think you have seen here… it will be nothing co mpared to what I know about the friends who provide you with the Aisling root.”
Dempsey remained quiet.
“How do you think your superiors would feel about your familiarity with the Northerners… care to find out?” Calder challenged.
Emer could finally appreciate the superiority in his tone given that she was not on the receiving end.
Before Dempsey could offer a retort, Calder continued, “I feel I must warn you, though, you will have difficulty denying the aforementioned allegations if they come to light given your lack of tongue, which I will have forcibly removed from your skull.” Calder paused. “With that knife,” he said, dipping his gaze to the knife Dempsey continued to clutch.
Dempsey stepped back slightly, proving that Calder could, in fact, snatch it from his hand at any moment. “So, the crow has a secret. How interesting,” he mused, attempting to maintain whatever pride might have remained.
Calder stole back the step, once again closing the space between them. “I think you will find I have many. In fact, there is an old saying among my clan. Secrets and those who learn them are like wishes… they belong at the bottom of a well.”
Calder’s lips curled wickedly.
Dempsey’s facade faltered.
“Luckily for you, I have far more pressing things that require my attention and have no time to spare searching for one,” Calder explained, moving back to the door and holding it open.
Boots scraped against the stones as Dempsey turned to leave.
“Dempsey…”
After a brief hesitation, the man paused and turned to Calder as if he had no choice. Leaning in with the slowness of a beast preparing to strike, Calder spoke in a low tone. “If you make it a habit of touching my things, I’ll find time for that well after all.”
He slammed the door with his free hand and turned to face Emer, whose arms he still held in place above her head.
“How did you know?” she asked.
“I could smell you,” he explained, allowing his eyes to trail down the exposed skin between her breasts, courtesy of the open tunic. “The salve you put on your neck.” He directed his attention up to the chord clutched between her hands. “Strangulation, Merrow? The things I continue to learn about you.” He finished with a click of his tongue.
“What would he have done?” she asked, still not having attempted to remove her hands from his.
He tilted his head slightly before saying, “Trouble finds you alarmingly frequently, you know that?”
Glaring, she ripped her hands free from his and he smirked.
“Would he have killed me?” she repeated the question.
Calder looked away and something dark crossed his features. “I wasn’t lying when I warned you against the dangers of the Isle. It has its fair share of beasts,” he sighed.
“You are all beasts but him I like least,” she breathed. Unspoken understanding passing between them that Dempsey was in fact the man from the shadows.
“Good thing you are not a helpless maiden then. Come,” he said, motioning for Emer to separate herself from the wall.
“You don’t need to fear him. Not if you stay near me,” Calder assured, but she shook her head in disbelief. “You doubt me? I think I should be insulted.”
“Doubt implies uncertainty, and I am very certain that you are wrong,” Emer said plainly.
“I think my leniency has caused some confusion. You clearly are not aware of my reputation, or else you would know that I have done far worse to people who have done far less to me than you.”
Emer’s jaw slackened.
“Surely you didn’t think I would let just anyone throw a boot at my face?” he asked with a tilt of his head .
Emer wanted to curse her heart for the sudden leap she felt. Certainly, the abnormal response resulted from the recent trauma or the fact that the man before her had saved her twice in as many days. It was absolutely not due to the fact that the rule-minded Sea Raven was admitting that she was an exception. Her body’s reaction was unacceptable, yet it defied her a second time when the corner of his lips tipped up.
“I didn’t throw it at your face… I hit you in the back,” she corrected him.
“You are mistaken. The first boot you threw was, in fact, at my face, but it missed… the second is the one that hit me in the back.” He stepped closer as he spoke, and her breath hitched. His smile widened. “Don’t start pretending to be afraid of me now. Remember, I can tell when you lie.” The tone in his voice fueled an entirely different type of flutter—one that bloomed in her chest and settled low in her stomach.
Dempsey’s sinister nature was masked behind charming smiles, whereas Calder’s wicked smiles suddenly felt far more dangerous. As she watched his gaze move to her neck, her eyes grew wider, and her lips parted. He leaned in closer, bringing their eyes level.
“You may not fear me… but he does… and that is what I find interesting, don’t you, Emer?” The rumble in his voice as he said her name was like cold water cascading down her bare back.
“Now, any thoughts on how he knew where to find you?” Calder asked.
Emer’s face twisted, knowing exactly how Dempsey knew where to look. The memory of her screaming Calder’s name rang in her ears.
She swallowed, knowing the confession was going to cost her something and hoping sharing the knowledge would be worth it. “When he grabbed me, I called for help. Your help,” she said the last words more quietly .
Calder blinked once. Twice. Then with a nod said, “Well, now I find many things interesting.”
While neither of them acknowledged it, they both recognized that the dynamic between them had shifted.
Calder sought Emer when she tried to escape, and in the end, she sought him in return.
It was not until later that she wondered why she had returned to the keep rather than running into the night. It was not as simple as choosing a known evil over the unknown. In the brief moment she had to choose, she chose the Raven over the sea and the shadows. Soon, she would learn if that was wise.
“Are you worried he planned to look through your things? Seems to be quite interested in finding out all your dark secrets,” she asked in an attempt to change the subject.
“Wouldn’t matter,” he responded with a shrug.
“You have letters and documents all over your desk.” She paused as his eyebrow raised. “What!” she barked.
“Did you find anything particularly important when you… innocently browsed my desk?” he asked.
“That was not the same.”
“Agree to disagree. You found nothing, and neither would he, and I think you know that,” he said with a satisfied smile. She shook her head in annoyance, but the act left her dizzy. She began to stumble back, but his grip caught her arm.
He eyed her for a moment before sighing, “Get cozy, Merrow. I can’t let you leave this room, not even to cross the hall, and while I am sure you will remain unimpressed, I do have important things to do,” he explained, stepping forward.
Emer moved to retreat but her legs bent as their backs collided with the bed. Calder loomed over her as she glared, now seated on the bed.
“A chair will suit me fine,” she argued.
“Your stubbornness serves no purpose other than to hurt you,” he observed, and suddenly, it felt as if they were no longer speaking of the seating arrangement.
Emer smiled. “It also serves to piss you off and I find that a worthwhile endeavor.”
“Oh, I can tell.” Despite himself, Calder smiled. “Rest,” he echoed the earlier command.
“I don’t need to,” she said stubbornly.
“Yeah. And I don’t need a stiff drink,” he said as he dipped his head down to her. “Always making me repeat myself."
Glaring, Emer backed across the bed until she was against the wall. She pulled her legs to her chest and scowled at his profile. With a blink, her neck felt stiff and her head felt heavy. She dropped her chin to rest on her folded knees. On the next blink, she realized it took more energy to be angry—energy she did not have—and her scowl quickly faded. A more extended blink made her internally reprimand herself for allowing her eyes to linger closed for longer than before. Her brow furrowed and she coaxed her eyes back open. A final blink.
Then nothing.