Chapter 17
Chapter
Seventeen
Time passes by in a series of polaroid pictures. Snapshots of light and movement, worried faces, being enveloped in heat and soft fur, the most delicious thing I’ve ever tasted poured into my mouth, and then—nothing.
Perhaps this is what death is. Simply nothing. If I’m dead, I may as well catch up on my rest without the wind howling and the cold scrabbling at me like skeleton’s fingers. Although I doubt I would need sleep if I'm dead so that must mean…
I’m alive.
My eyes snap open on a sharp inhale, the smell of deep earth warm and familiar. A faint undercurrent of snow and pine tears at my heart. My Yeti.
I stretch like a cat, and the furs piled on me fall as I sit up to find myself naked. I reach up to my shoulder and explore with my fingertips, searching for any damage from my run in with the tranquilizer dart.
My skin is smooth and unblemished, not so much as a pinprick or even a bruise to mark where Ben shot me. In fact, as I swing my legs over the edge of the bed, I notice it—I feel amazing.
Carefully I stand, but my legs are sturdy and strong. I listen for the presence of anyone else, but all I hear is the quiet sound of the cave breathing.
Spying my pack leaning against the wall, I grab it and bring it next to the fire. Unable to recall the last time I ate, I root around, looking for a snack. Frustrated when I can’t find something quickly, I decide to dump the contents out.
As I dig to the bottom of the upended pile, my fingers brush something unfamiliar—a bundle of moss and bark, wrapped and bound with delicate vine. I didn’t pack this.
My breath hitches, confusion giving way to realization as I carefully open it. Inside, nestled with such care it nearly breaks my heart, is the Silene vitalis. Its petals are pristine, shimmering faintly even in the dim light of the fire’s coals.
He gave it to me. A whole intact plant, roots and all. Lovingly packed.
Eryon cast me out, heartbroken over the old traumas and fears of being used and duped. Yet he did this—ensured I would live, even if we’d never see each other again. A lump forms in my throat, hot and suffocating, as I clutch the bundle to my chest.
He saved me, even when he was worried the cost had been too high. Ben said my life was worth nothing to him, despite all the years I had devoted to him. But Eryon showed me, with this one gesture, that my life means everything. That I was worth saving, yet again.
Cradling the precious gift to my heart, I race out into the cave system looking for him. I want to call out his name but hesitate after he told me not to. As I run, I ponder Sita’s words. Since he told me his name, does that mean I am his mate? Do I want to be?
My feet carry me straight to the home of the Silene vitalis, like an invisible string is pulling me to my Migoi. I’m amazed by my speed. My lungs easily handle the increased demand for oxygen, and my heart rate barely accelerates as I fly towards him.
I burst out into the magical alcove, met by the lush landscape and mineral scent of the hot springs. My eyes are drawn to the great skylight above showcasing the tapestry of a million stars cast upon a midnight velvet sky.
Walking to the base of the spring, I gently replant the luminescent blue-violet flower near its brethren. The earth is soft and fragrant under my hands as I arrange the fragile roots, nestling them into the soil and then covering them lightly.
I take a step back, smiling proudly at the way the plant looks like it had never been disturbed. Sure, the plants are promising, but here is where they belong. Not in a lab, stolen from their home and protector.
A wall of heat crashes into my back, and I know Eryon is standing behind me. I am both dreading and anticipating this moment in equal parts. Does he understand why I said what I did? Does he still care for me?
Before I can weigh the thoughts, he whispers my name, his name for me, “Sruhnar.”
The way he rolls the R reverberates deep in my belly as I turn to face him. He is standing so close I could reach out and touch him, can feel his breath coasting over my flesh, smell the crisp scent of snow and pine that clings to him.
My lips part on my inhale, trying to breathe in his very essence. I want to explain every moment, clarify every word that he witnessed, but he doesn’t allow me the chance. Instead, he sweeps me up into his great arms and molds me to his body, claiming my lips in a hungry kiss.
I pour my explanation, my apology, my hopes and desires into every touch of our lips which says more than my mere words ever could. My legs wrap around him as my hands sink deep into the thick fur across his chest, my fingertips seeking the unique velvet texture of his skin.
His scorching kiss tells me that all is forgiven. Balance has been restored.
“Mate me,” I gasp out between kisses. “I want you to mate with me at your wildest. I am not afraid. I want all of you.”
“I will be more beast than man. It will be raw, primal. This will not be any gentle lovemaking, no plant to ease the way. It will be a claiming. And once I claim you, I cannot, will not, let you go,” he declares.
I square my shoulders and meet his eyes, my voice firm as I say, “I don’t want you to let me go. I want to claim you just as much as you want to claim me. I don’t care what you are, as long as you are mine.”
A wicked smile stretches across his lips and challenge dances in his eyes. He pushes me off him and starts backing away. Yet instead of shrinking with the distance, his form grows and grows. His long white hair lengthens and his muscles flex. Even his canines appear more prominent.
The transformation is startling. Any trace of the man behind the beast is gone. The creature that stands before me is pure Migoi. He throws his head back and roars, “Run!”
Fear slams into my stomach like a lead weight, dragging at my limbs until instinct kicks in, screaming at me to do just that.
I spin and bolt, darting into the nearest tunnel.
I have no idea where I am going, I don’t think, just keep moving, feet pounding against the uneven ground as though the devil himself is chasing me.
My feet slip over the loose rocks in the dark passages, but I push myself, muscles burning, lungs bursting as I run faster than I ever thought possible. My steps falter as I’m faced with a split. The left tunnel seems to head up, and I feel a breeze from it, so I choose that direction.
My calves sting with the added exertion of the incline, but I keep running. I burst forth into a cave that has somehow captured the night sky. I stare in wonder at the tiny bursts of light all around me.
As I look around the cave, I see it is full of glittering crystals, reflecting the light back at me through their facets.
The beautiful distraction is my downfall.
Air whooshes out of my lungs as a strong arm wraps around my middle and snatches me from where I stand.
A startled scream leaves my lips before a hand clamps down over my mouth.
Harsh panting in my ear turns to wicked laughter as he growls out, “Mine.”
I sink my teeth into the fleshy palm covering my mouth, startling him enough to drop me. I take off back the way I came, feeling smug at my escape until a hand wraps itself in my hair streaming behind me. I’m brought up short, pain prickling delightfully across my scalp as fear pools in my belly.
Pressure on my head forces me to my knees, the harsh ground biting into my flesh. I can’t help but cry out as a pebble lodges into my knee. A shove to my back has me falling forward, catching myself on my palms.
A hiss escapes my mouth as he curls his massive form over me, trapping me between his large body and the cool earth. A satisfied growl rumbles from his chest as he subdues his prey.
I had longed for this, to be taken by him in his full Yeti form in a pure primal claiming, but now that I’m trapped, I’m not so sure. Before I can think it through, my body reacts—bucking wildly, trying to throw him off, but it's futile. I can’t so much as budge the creature wrapped around me.
He brings his nose to my hair, scenting me.
As his breath cascades over my ear and neck, shivers race down my spine, leaving goosebumps in their wake.
I turn my head, desperate to catch a glimpse of those luminous eyes I love so much.
Instead, I am rewarded with a snarl and a lick up the side of my face.
One large hand palms the back of my head, forcing it down to the ground while the other wrenches my hips up higher into the air.
Great, snuffling breaths trace down my spine and over my ass.
I hear a sharp inhale followed by a satisfied moan, my only warning before he begins to feast on me from behind.
He laps at my pussy, my ass, my cheeks, devouring me.
The building sensations are a direct counterpoint to the harsh earth digging into my hands and knees.
My head and body are pinned, immobile. All I can do is pant through the rush of being eaten by a starving creature.
His great tongue probes at my entrance, slipping inside of me.
A moan escapes my lips at the sensation of being filled with his wet, muscular, thrusting tongue. In his full Yeti form, its so large it feels like being fucked by a man. Within seconds, my hips are trying to grind back into it, but I’m pinned. When he pulls it out, a plea falls from my mouth.
“Oh, please,” I beg, wanting the warm heat to return to my dripping core. “Please.”
“Please what?” he snarls.
“Please, do that again,” I whimper.
“Do what?” he demands, voice rough.
My cheeks flame at having to say it out loud, but my clenching core aches to be filled. “Please put your tongue inside me again.”
A dark chuckle precedes his return, but instead of slipping his large tongue back into my sex, he spears it directly into my ass. A startled scream morphs into a long continuous moan at the decadent sensation of the wet, pulsating warmth inside my forbidden hole.