I would have shoved her out of the way had others in the room not started shifting, pulling my attention again towards Ariana.
While Shal ran to close the distance between himself and Ariana, others stepped into the circle. Two Bavadrin men drew blades, flanking Ariana protectively. Shal came to an abrupt stop, a look of surprise gracing his face. Then, two others stepped out, flanking him with blades drawn as if to assist the scumbag. His ridiculous smirk did not get the chance to fully form before four others emerged, blocking Shal’s men. The entire thing was like something done by design. To call it random acts seemed unlikely.
Landin, the Bavadrin whom Ariana saved by giving up her father, positioned himself behind Shal, kicking the back of his knees. Shal dropped to the ground, his sword slipping. Landin brought a thin blade to his neck when he looked up. The room stilled completely.
The warmth in my hands receded. My attention trained onher, drawn to the woman who controlled the entire area without even moving a muscle. Fear did not touch her steady green gaze as she observed the man on his knees before her.
Ariana remained where she stood when Shal had first been poised to attack. Those loyal to her protected her, fighting for her to ascend. She did not give a single order. No command was spoken, yet the Bavadrins acted so fluidly.
Ariana tilted her head, eyes narrowing. “Do you give up yourclaim to Superior?” Her voice moved through the chamber as though it were alive. Like a cat, her words slinked around every soul before setting its sights on the man on his knees before her.
The room held its breath, waiting for the response.
Shal looked at her with such hate-filled eyes. “You don’t deserve to be the Superior.”
“Very well.” She pulled my blade from her pocket and looked at it.
At first glance, it appeared simple and silver, but if given the time to be observed, its intricate carvings on the handle and the blade could be seen. She turned the dagger in her hand, taking the time to view it while running a thumb down the handle. Then she shifted her attention to Shal, walking over till she stood before him.
“Final chance,” she said, giving him yet another opportunity to give up.
“Your father should have taken care of your mother before you were ever even born!” Shal seethed, and the room soundlessly gasped, lips parted, jaws dropped.
From where I stood, I could hear Ariana’s breath leave her. Her eyes momentarily slid shut, and she inhaled slowly and deeply. A slight tremble moved through her, likely unnoticed by all others.
The nerve of that maggot to use such emotional words in his pathetic attempt to derail her. He was honorless. If he were to take over as the Leader Superior to the Bavadrins, then I would have seen to it that he would have met the same fate as the previous one. My hands itched to feel the warmth of his blood on my knuckles.
The old bat standing before me balled her hands into fists at her side, her heart rate raising ever so slightly. Edda’s entire stance turned rigid. The male’s words triggered something in her as well.
Ariana stood motionless before Shal, her gaze turning unevenand difficult to read. If the man’s comment hurt her, she did not show it on her face.
Something changed as if the air vibrated with a power stemming from Ariana, and I couldn’t look away from her. Smoothly, she kneeled down, balancing on her toes before him, my blade in her hand. There was something otherworldly about her at that moment. As if she were not the same woman I came to know over the past several weeks. As if she possessed the power to shift the entire world.
Her head tilted, features softening ever so slightly. She was completely captivating. Ariana brought the blade to Shal’s cheek and placed a roughly two-inch cut beneath his eye, deep enough for a decent stream of blood to coat the dagger’s edge. Shal flinched, but Landin kept a firm hold on him, keeping him from struggling.
My heart punched me in the ribs.
Ariana casually observed the blade, the blood on it. Her gaze then locked on Shal, and she brought the weapon’s edge to her lips.
This was unlike anything I had ever experienced. My chest tightened till I could not draw a full breath.
Her full lips parted, and she ran her tongue along the side of the blade. A sigh passed between those lips, sounding as if she just tasted the sweetest thing in the entire world.
My mouth watered.
Spirit, help me. What is this woman doing?
Her eyes remained locked on Shal as though there was no audience. She was a vortex I could not escape.
My lips parted, drawing in a shaky breath.
“Well, looks like she is even more savage than I thought,” Iver commented lowly, his eyes wide with a spark of excitement as he observed the scene unfolding before us.
I didn’t seem able to form a coherent response.
“Mmmm, delicious fear,” she said, naming the taste of his blood. “I wonder if this is how your blood would have tasted that night Fraser butchered my mother. The night you stood beside me, squeezing your eyes shut and pissing yourself.”
“Shut up!” He jerked forward with rage. The men behind him kept him from lunging at her.
