Chapter Twenty-Nine
Alaya
I made it back to the tent before Domanikk yesterday, my hands trembling as I fumbled with the tent door, my lips still burning from Reth’s kiss.
When Domanikk returned, he tilted his head, studying me. I busied myself with folding and refolding some clothes, avoiding his gaze. He didn’t press, and I couldn’t have explained it anyway—the way my body had responded, the way I’d kissed Reth back.
It’s mid-morning now, and we’ve been lounging in the warmth of the tent.
Days are getting chillier, and it’s been raining—something I’m unaccustomed to.
Being so exposed to the Barrens, the Castle of Thorns is shrouded in searing heat during the day with bitterly cold evenings.
Rain is scarce, mainly having to rely on our Gifts to help the land stay fertile.
Domanikk told me Heartwood has a climate all its own, surrounded by towering mountains on nearly every side. The peaks create a natural barrier that traps weather systems and moisture, giving the region its own unique atmospheric patterns that differs dramatically from the surrounding Barrens.
He even mentioned snow, how it falls silently from the sky in delicate flakes, blanketing everything in pristine white, crunching softly beneath your feet.
It made me long to see it with my own eyes, to feel its icy touch on my skin and watch it transform the landscape into something magical and otherworldly.
My chest tightens when I think about leaving. The wild freedom here, the way the Equitae nod to me as I pass rather than turning away with whispered judgments. Domanikk’s laugh. Even Reth’s intensity.
But then Kiernan’s face surfaces—his crooked smile when I’ve said something particularly cutting, the way we crash together after our arguments, all heat and hunger. My throat constricts. Our marriage was stolen before it even started—taken before we could be us.
I press my palms to my eyes. Domanikk and Reth. Kiernan. The thought of them makes my stomach twist into knots.
Raised voices erupt outside. Rawson appears at the tent door, breathing hard.
“Domanikk, Reth wants you outside—now. The King has sent a negotiator. They’re out in the Barrens.”
Domanikk’s eyes snap to mine, his jaw tightening.
We follow Rawson out to the green. Reth paces in front of his tent like a caged animal, his hands clenching and unclenching.
Domanikk goes to him. Their heads bend close together, voices too low to hear, but Reth’s shoulders are rigid, his movements sharp and jerky.
Around us, Equitae gather in clusters, shifting their weight from foot to foot.
“Rawson, stay here and keep Alaya safe. Domanikk, Ceira, go and get the best warriors you trust. Quinn reports their numbers are small, half a dozen or so. We will match them and see what they have to say.”
When Reth speaks, the air itself seems to crystallise—everyone snaps to attention. His voice cuts like a blade: low, controlled, brooking no argument. The Equitae move with a synchronised precision that speaks of years of unquestioning loyalty, each Equitae becoming an extension of his will.
Reth strides towards me, his boots striking the ground with purpose. He stops, opens his mouth, closes it. His eyes search my face—his brow furrowed, his jaw working as if chewing words he can’t swallow. He turns to leave, then pauses, his shoulder brushing mine, barely a whisper of contact.
“Say the words, Alaya, and I won’t let them take you.” His voice is tinged with a desperate edge that makes it clear just how much this means to him. There’s a vulnerability there, a rawness, as if every word is carefully measured yet still trembling with emotion.
My mouth falls open, but my throat has closed around any response.
Then he’s already moving away, joining Ceira and Domanikk with their assembled warriors.
They head down the track to the Barrens from the green, careful not to reveal the true entrance to Heartwood, where the negotiator—and most likely Thorn Guards—await them.
We wait, the air heavy with tension. Rawson tries to lighten the mood with stories about his latest conquest, but my thoughts drift elsewhere—to two Equitae who’ve become far more to me than my captives, certainly nothing like the brutal savages I was told they were.
The wait stretches on, feeling endless, until the thundering of hooves from the Barrens pulls my attention back.
Dust clouds billow as the galloping group draws closer.
Relief floods through me when I spot Reth’s powerful white Horse Form, with Domanikk’s black beside him, leading everyone towards us.
As they reach the end of the track, they Shift almost midair.
Something’s wrong.
I’ve witnessed Reth’s wrath before, seen it in all its violent fury, but this is something else entirely.
His Enchantra flashes erratically, the mist inside swirling like a cyclone. His ice-blue eyes glow so brightly I can barely look at them directly. His face twists in pure, uncontrollable rage. When Domanikk reaches out to grab his forearm, Reth jerks him away, nearly sending him to the ground.
Rawson steps closer to me, protectively. Around us, the Equitae back away in slow, careful steps—even Ceira’s eyes are wide with something that looks like fear.
“That fucking bastard!” Reth’s growl vibrates with rage, fists clenched so tight his knuckles turn white. “He thinks he can send his son here to double-cross us? Scouts hiding at the entrance of Heartwood, betting we’re stupid enough to let them waltz right in?”
My heart lurches.
Kiernan was here? For me?
As Reth starts pacing by the fire, Domanikk walks over to us.
“Rawson, take Alaya to my tent. He’s unstable. I can’t have him around her.”
“I want to stay. This involves me—let me help,” I insist, glaring at him.
“Just fucking do as you’re told for once,” Domanikk spits, his voice hard and cold.
Rawson grabs my arm and pulls me towards Domanikk’s tent. As we move away, I feel Reth’s power surge over the clearing like a breaking storm.
Reth
I know they all stare at me like I’ve gone mad; I can feel their judging eyes boring into my skin.
Let them fucking stare.
I can still see the cocky grin on that fuckers face, his first words hitting me like a match to kindling.
“I believe you have something of mine? I have come for my wife.”
Like she’s a possession to covet, like we’ve taken his favourite toy.
Despite my rising temper, I kept myself in control—Domanikk’s presence and input keeping the negotiation on track.
Prince Kiernan demanded Alaya’s return in exchange for five of our own.
Regardless of whether I believed she was worth more, I knew for a fact he couldn’t hold his end of the bargain.
But I wasn’t about to let him know that.
Then Ceira found them—his scouts hiding around the true entrance to Heartwood. It was well hidden, only revealed when used. They obviously had intelligence of its location and tried to trick us with this farce of a negotiation to lure us out.
Then all hell descended. Their Thorn Guards are ultimate killing machines, but he’d underestimated us.
We had the advantage of numbers and speed.
We took down the Earthbound with ease, and when the Thorn Guards advanced—even enhanced by his Amplifier Gift—he’d only brought six.
Against our newly trained warriors with controlled powers, we matched them blow for blow.
Sensing his mistake, Prince Kiernan retreated into the Barrens like the cowardly fucker he is.
“They’ve gone. We scared the shit out of them,” Domanikk says, jolting me back, his hand coming up to cup my cheek. “They ran.”
He’s trying to break through my fury, trying to temper my rage into something to celebrate. And his hand on my cheek, in front of everyone? What the fuck is he thinking? He knows full well why we must be discreet in front of the Herd.
“He treated us like idiots, Dom. Like shit on those shiny golden boots he could just polish off.” I hiss, slapping his hand away from my face. My anger won’t abate—the more I see Prince Kiernan’s smirking face in my mind, the more I want to see his head roll from my sword blade.
It was too close. Them finding Heartwood’s entrance would’ve been a death sentence for everyone inside. I couldn’t let that happen, no matter the cost.
“Where’s Alaya?” I ask Domanikk calmly. He hesitates, searching my face.
“She’s in my tent, safe with Rawson,” he replies, eyes drawn and piercing.
“This ends now. You might not want to admit it, but that’s why I’m your Alpha. What we’ve worked so hard for—this sliver of peace and unity. They rely on us to keep them safe. Nothing is worth more than Heartwood’s safety.”
“You can’t be serious?”
“He’s shown he’ll stop at nothing to get her back. If we can’t keep her, they can’t have her.”
I start towards his tent, but he grabs my arm.
“I can’t let you do that, Reth.”
I stare at him in shock. He’s never questioned my decisions—his loyalty absolute.
“I told you, she’s made you weak, made you blind to anything but where you can stick your dick.” I spit at him.
He steps into my space, his face inches from mine. No words of challenge are spoken, yet they hang between us. A challenge would be his undoing, and I’d rather not kill twice today.
“Don’t do it, Reth. I don’t think I’ll be able to bring you back from the depths of your darkness this time.”
Before I can move, Domanikk senses my resolve, and yellow luminescent mist swirls around him as he Shifts.
I’m older and quicker at the Shift than most. I meet his attack in full Horse Form.
Bigger. Stronger. Alpha.
I feel his love for her in every blow, every bite to my skin, every pound of his legs and kick of those hooves. I take those strikes as my own, matching that love with painful regret.
If she’d told me she wanted to stay, if she’d fought me for her survival, I would’ve fought for her. For us.
I’ve never used my hidden power on Domanikk—an unspoken promise I’m about to break.
As he charges again, I snap low at his legs, grab his front fore in my teeth, and yank him to his knees.
Submissive below me, sides heaving, I unleash it.
Pure, unfiltered pain flows through my body into his.
I see it hit in the whites of his eyes, the spasm of his muscles, the tremor of his legs.
I rise, my pressure no longer needed as he’s unable to move—the pain too acute, too intense.
I Shift back into Fae Form and look down at him, my regret and guilt pouring over him.
I’m not walking towards that tent with elation. Each step is a step towards a darkness that will likely consume me.
To save Heartwood, I’ll have to destroy myself.