Chapter 25
Theo
Bouncing red curls slapped me in the face for the hundredth time, and I gritted my teeth.
I had been the one who insisted she ride with me, not trusting her to have her own horse, but the smell of her hair, the feel of her body against mine—it was a mistake.
I should have made her ride with one of the other guards.
Then I wouldn’t have to endure this torture.
Then again, the thought of someone else touching her had me growling low and deep in my throat. Cynthia’s body pressed back into mine as her head turned toward me.
“Are you some sort of beast?”
I clenched my jaw. “No.”
“Then why are you growling like one?”
My stomach twisted in annoyance, and I leaned forward, my lips going to her ear as I spat my response. “Your hair keeps hitting me in the face, and you won't stop squirming. It's—aggravating.”
The red-haired siren laughed and once again shifted her hips, the sensation making my cock twitch.
My gaze narrowed on the side of her face, and I watched as a smirk sprang to her lips.
My chest rumbled again with another growl, and I shifted backward, trying to adjust my position.
To my dismay, instead of creating more space like I intended, our bodies somehow pressed further together, my chest now firmly at her back.
“You are the one who insisted on this idiotic rideshare, and if I must endure your incessant growling, then you can deal with my squirming,” she snapped, and I leaned forward again, adjusting my grip on the reins so that my arms were touching her sides.
I could have sworn I heard her breath hitch, and the sound had my lip curving upward.
Lowering my mouth to her ear again, I whispered, “I’ll remind you, you are still technically our prisoner. And mouthing off to me is unwise.”
Her body shook, and the sound of her chuckle floated to me. I gritted my teeth, and her head turned suddenly toward me, our lips nearly touching. I flinched back, swallowing thickly, and watched as another smirk lifted her lips.
“You forget I am not afraid of you, lightning boy, and let’s not forget I just helped you guys take down an entire enemy camp. I think I have earned a little trust here.”
“Maybe, but I still don’t trust you.”
Cynthia rolled her eyes and turned forward again.
Her hair swept across my face once more, and I bit back a snarl.
Technically, she was right. She had helped us.
It turned out the mark on her waist is how her people could enter and exit the ward, confirming something Xavier apparently already figured out.
The swirling blood hadn't just been Cynthia’s, but also Morgana’s. Some sort of witchy loophole.
Disgusting, if you ask me. I wouldn't want that evil old hag's blood anywhere near me. But Cynthia didn’t hide it. She told Jaxon vital information about their camps, their armies. I listened to them talk for hours, and it had made my skin crawl. After everything that happened with Zara, I wasn’t sure why everyone was trusting her so easily.
I mean… I was the one to tell them to trust her… but ahh, it was too confusing.
Once Xavier arrived, a plan was already in place.
Aria hadn't been happy with the plan, with her village, her home getting destroyed…
but most of the buildings were made of stone and would hopefully be intact when we took it back.
The portraits of her mother and her father, however, would now be lost and my heart ached for her at that.
But she agreed, and knew it was the right thing to do for our people, our safety.
It gave us an advantage we couldn't afford to pass up.
Xavier was the only person besides me who was skeptical of Cynthia’s motives. He entrusted me with watching her, making sure she didn’t run or turn on us. Which meant I had to endure her fucking hair hitting me again…
My stomach rumbled but I ignored the feeling. No way was I going to share my sandwiches with her.
We hadn’t stayed to find out what happened with Territan. We had been sent away by Jaxon to round up the remaining ogre clans before heading back to Blackrock for the funeral.
The thought of Flynn made me nauseous, and I shifted uncomfortably.
Grief threatened to overwhelm me, but I couldn't let it show, not here, not in front of her, my men.
I haven't allowed myself to think of him.
If I did, I wasn't sure what would happen, and I couldn't afford to find out while I was on the road.
Once I was back, with Dedra or alone, then and only then would I allow myself to feel even a sliver of the crushing pain that consumed me.
The thought of my sister brought on a fresh wave of guilt.
With so much happening and so many moving parts, we had to tell her about Flynn in a letter.
I knew it was wrong, but we couldn't risk her hearing it from someone else, especially since we were too far away to tell her in person. It had been our only option. My eyes burned and I tried to push down the overwhelming emotions. Not now. Not here. I sniffled, and Cynthia’s head turned slightly as if she’d heard, and I coughed to cover it up.
We rode on for a few more hours and came to a plateau near the bottom of a large mountain. My men would camp here tonight, and tomorrow we would make the remaining journey to Blackrock for the funeral.
I sighed as I looked at the steep path, the rocky outcrops I needed to climb, and I swung my leg off Konai and extended my hand to Cynthia.
She looked at my hand as if I insulted her by trying to help her, and she huffed in annoyance as she ignored my help and dismounted.
Her boot caught, and she stumbled. My arms were already outstretched, and I grabbed onto the back of her arms to steady her.
Cynthia yanked free from my hold and I rolled my eyes at her and addressed the other men, who were already dismounted and unpacking.
“I’ll be back in the morning.”
Walking in front of Konai, I patted her head offering her an apple. She greedily took it, which made me smile but as she trotted away, her tail hit me in the face...
Cytnhia’s barking laughter filled the air and I closed my eyes taking a deep breath.
Konai was neighing playfully, and when I opened my eyes, my gaze ensnared Cynthia's. “Stay here and don’t get any ideas.” My shoulder brushed hers as I walked past, and a shiver went down my spine at the contact.
I eyed the guard standing behind her, and he nodded at me in confirmation that he would watch her.
“Wait, what? Where are you going?”
Ignoring her, I strode away toward the path that would lead me up to the ogre encampment. The initial ascent was steep, but after the climb it was a smooth walk the rest of the way. I only hoped I wouldn’t encounter too many daka. They liked to live on the mountains.
Approaching the first rise, I braced my hand against a jagged outcrop and hauled myself up onto the boulder.
My fingers barely found purchase along the rock face, tendons straining as I searched for another handhold.
As I climbed, pebbles skittered down the incline beneath my boots, and I pulled myself onto a narrow shelf of stone.
There, I found another handhold and lifted myself higher until I finally reached a small ledge.
Ahead, two more climbs awaited before the path leveled out.
Just as I reached to continue my ascent, I heard a grunting sound coming from below me.
Peering over the ledge, my chest tightened as I watched Cynthia pull herself up the rocky wall toward me. How did she get away from the guards? Glaring at her, I snapped, “Absolutely not. Go back to the camp.”
She ignored me, and my blood boiled. Her palm slammed near my feet, and I growled as I watched her pull herself up onto the small ledge.
Her large brown eyes narrowed as she looked up at me, and I swallowed hard, pressing my back against the stone.
She was on her hands and knees in front of me, the ledge barely big enough for both of us, and her face was dangerously close to my crotch.
She smirked as she leaned back on her ankles and stood, glancing over her shoulder briefly to gauge the space behind her.
Her large eyes slid back to mine, and I shoved the image of her on her knees far away in my mind. Annoyance bubbled in my chest and I grabbed her arms, pulling her so our faces were almost touching.
“Go back to the camp, Cynthia,” I repeated the words, but she only huffed, pulling out of my grasp, and folding her arms across her chest.
“I don’t think I will, General. I’m not the type to stay behind. And anyway, haven’t you made yourself my keeper or whatever? Shouldn’t you be keeping me by your side in case I slit your men’s throats and escape?”
Her lips curled into a sly smile, but I narrowed my gaze on her and took a small step toward her, closing the gap between us again. Cynthia’s eyes widened at my approach, and she reached out to grab onto my shirt, nearly tripping backward and off the cliff.
“Is that what you want to do, witch? Escape?”
“Not a witch,” she sneered and tried to push me away, but I didn’t budge, which only seemed to frustrate her further, making her let out a soft exhale. “If I wanted to escape, I would have done so already, don’t you think?”
My mind raced through my options. I could drag her back to the camp, tie her up. Or I could knock her out, or… or…I could take her with me. A low rumble escaped my throat. “Don't slow me down.”
Turning sharply, I placed my foot onto the next step and pulled myself up.
“Whatever you say, dick,” Cynthia murmured, and my head shot downward. My hand slipped out of the hold, and I cursed, prompting Cynthia to bite her lip to hide her amusement.