Chapter 25 Head in the Game
Head in the Game
When had this happened–me caring about Karim? I couldn’t tell exactly.
I’d certainly felt drawn to him like a butterfly toward a cornflower from the very beginning.
What I’d discovered about his personality was as attractive to me as his looks.
I craved his touch as well as his company.
And now, even though we were surrounded by gargoyles that would turn against us if the King didn’t return, I couldn’t keep my focus off Karim.
He must have sensed me watching him, so ethereal in the moonlight, because he opened his eyes. He’d closed them some time ago to listen for anything usual.
“What is it, my flower?”
My attention flicked to the gargoyles standing on his other side. They seemed to be paying more attention to the trees around us than to our conversation.
To my surprise, they didn’t show any animosity toward the creatures they were technically still at war with. That was nice to see. I had caught enough disapproving looks my way underground for one night. I also didn’t want to see Karim subjected to such an attitude by our guards.
“I was wondering how long the talks will last,” I replied. It took me some time to come up with an answer other than, ‘I’m falling for you. Hard and fast.’
“There are only a few items on the agenda to discuss. And we have already agreed that no feast will be held in case of a peace agreement.” A short pause. “You’re probably asking this because you’re eager to go home with me…”
There I was again, blushing like a schoolgirl.
“…because you can’t wait to get off your feet.”
Sneaky elf! I shook my head with a smile.
“I just heard all is well within the perimeter,” he added, “so I can finally focus on your comfort.”
“Oh.” Not using my bad ankle for a bit would be nice, indeed.
“Guards, I wish to have my braid-partner-to-be seated,” Karim addressed the gargoyles politely. “There is a log twenty steps to our left. Can you relocate us there in this formation?”
“We have instructions to stay on this spot,” a gargoyle to my left replied in pretty good English. “But since our scouts above report the perimeter is secure, Saxan could bring the log to your mate.”
Mate? My heart did a little flip. If I understood Deidre’s explanation about gargoyles’ beliefs correctly, these guards thought that the gods had made me for Karim. That we’d been put in each other’s path because we belonged together. That we were soulmates.
Just how I felt deep inside but was afraid to embrace that spiritual connection fully. What if Karim didn’t feel the same way? What if his kind didn’t bond as deeply, given that they seemed driven more by reason and pragmatism than feelings?
I glanced at Karim, but he was observing the gargoyle hoisting the huge log onto one shoulder single-handedly.
Head in the game, Jasmine. Now was not the time to talk soulmates and mushy stuff with him.
“Thank you,” I mumbled when the brown-haired gargoyle carefully placed the log beside me. He didn’t appear strained at all.
He bowed his head and quickly resumed his position. For a being his size, he moved very fast.
Getting off my feet felt so nice that a tiny moan escaped me as I sat down.
“Better?”
I turned to face Karim, who sat at some distance from me.
Was he trying to avoid us accidentally touching?
He couldn’t possibly be turned on in this situation, could he?
I had no way of knowing, since that dress of his somehow hid any telltale bulges.
I’d seen the mystery fabric do the same magic back in the bathing chamber.
Yeah, my head was definitely in the game. Just not the right one.
“I feel much better, yes.”
“It is also because of seeing your friend, is it not?” Though his features were schooled, I could tell he was happy for me. The subtle softening of his tone, the gentle warmth seeping into his eyes, the slight shift of his body–I’d gotten better at reading his cues.
“Finding Sue alive and well still feels like a dream. And to discover she is now a queen? Unreal!” I peeked at the guards from the corner of my eye, but neither Mr. Heavy Logs Are No Biggie nor his fellow warriors reacted to the mention of their human ruler, so I decided to continue.
“Did you know these negotiations were her idea?”
Karim nodded. “We learned so from the other kingdoms where a similar alliance has been proposed.”
“Did they accept?”
“Two have and one hasn’t, but it matters not. Each kingdom, be it of the elves or the gargoyles, is free to act as it sees fit.”
“Oh!” So the gargoyles had more than one kingdom, too. We humans had truly been ignorant about the world around us, believing it was just us at the top of the food chain.
“It is obviously Nature’s will that you and Queen Sue meet tonight.”
I perked up. “You believe so?”
Karim nodded. “I was informed these are the first negotiations she’s attending.”
“Really?” Nature’s will, Gods, fate–however you called it, there was something extraordinary at work here, not something that could be labeled as a coincidence. That gave me hope for the future.
Since Karim was talking freely on the topic in front of the gargoyles, I decided to continue with my questions. “Has Sue set many conditions for the proposed alliance?”
Karim cocked his head. “Interested in politics?”
“I wasn’t before the apocalypses, but now I guess I am.”
Mirth glimmered in his eyes. “And yet you said you do not wish to become queen.”
“I don’t! Yes, I like the hair decorations, toe rings, and nice dresses that go with the title,” I joked.
“But that’s about it. I’m just interested in knowing what is happening and is about to happen on the surface.
Besides, the Kingdom and us humans living here are directly affected by the war, and since you and I are…
” I shut my mouth before I said the wrong thing.
What were we, really? He had presented us as an engaged couple to the gargoyles, but that was to make me look important enough for a hostage.
It wasn’t like he had asked me to link my braid with his.
We didn’t qualify for moss partners, either.
Come to think of it, we’d been on a single date.
In a bathroom. What did that make us in his world?
Instead of finishing my thought, Karim said, “Your interest in politics pleases me very much. Our guests tonight are offering an alliance against those shadow kinds who hunger for humans–whom King Xaniban wishes to protect–and also threaten our kingdom. Queen Mesia approves of an alliance against the moon-cursed, as an initial step. From then onward, we’ll see whether to expand the bilateral cooperation.
” His eyes managed to tell me that he was all for that.
Now whether his half-sister would agree with him entirely was another matter.
I nodded in approval. Those werewolves were true monsters and had to be stopped. If more enemies of humanity were targeted by an elf-gargoyle alliance, we might stand a chance of survival.
“Another item on tonight’s agenda is trade,” Karim added carefully, studying my face.
“Oh?” That, I hadn’t expected. “Trade in what?”
“Food–and humans.” At my shocked look, he specified, “I added this item on the agenda this afternoon. I’m sure our guests will be interested.”
“You’re offering them women?” My voice nearly broke as I said it.
“Asi.” His watchful eyes did not miss my discomfort, and he moved to sit closer.
His fingers dug into the wood between us, as if he could barely keep his hand from touching me.
“We need extra help for our gardeners, but if the humans prefer to live on a cloud and are wanted there, the Queen is willing to let them in exchange for fruit and vegetables. King Xaniban’s homecloud grows plenty of those. ”
“But what will happen to those women?” He was conveying to me that being left with the gargoyles was good for the humans here, a means to free them from the Queen’s exploitative rules, but I feared the worst. “How will they be… used?”
I jumped in my place as growls erupted around us. Karim tensed up beside me, body instantly ready to fight.
“No homecloud uses females,” Saxan spat the word out, his fangs bared. “They are priceless treasures to be cherished. We give them absolute freedom to live their lives as they choose.”
The other guards flapped their wings in agreement with his statement. They all looked deeply offended.
Hoo boy. “Forgive me,” I bowed my head the way Saxan had done for me earlier. “I’m not familiar with your ways.”
“My lady is forgiven,” he replied curtly before returning his attention to the forest.
I was amazed by how he’d directly interfered in our conversation, but Karim relaxed his stance. It could be that gargoyles, be they royals or not, tended to always speak their minds.
“Our guests are the only shadow kind with whom a human is perfectly safe,” Karim told me next. “The women who go to the homecloud will be cared for. Trust me, Jasmine.”
I took a deep breath. “I trust you,” I found myself saying. “With the life of those women and with my own.”
His gaze brimmed with a mix of pleasure, pride, and sadness, if I was reading him right. “You will be pleased if an agreement is reached, then. Sabinem.”
I nodded with a smile. Karim was doing everything within his power to help humans, as much as the push-and-pull dynamics of his rule with Queen Mesia allowed. He deserved not my doubt but my kiss. Many, many kisses.
Later tonight, when we were alone, there would be nothing holding me back.