“No, I haven’t seen him since—” I pinch my lips together. Spending so much time with Jahlee over the past few weeks has taught me that she is incredibly clever, and I consistently walk into her verbal traps whenever it comes to Kai.
“Yes, he was in a ratherfoulmood when he met with us. I figured it had something to do with you,” she teases.
I ignore her gibe and instead ask, “Did it not bother you, the way she was speaking about him?”
“Oh, it did,” she says, her eyes darting to the door as she twirlsaway from the table. “But that’s the thing about family; they tend to get away with things that most others don’t.”
“Family?”
“Iolana is our aunt. Our mother’s younger sister.” Before I can respond, the door to the room opens and Kai walks in. “Brother! You are lookingmuchbetter today. Does it have anything to do with the female I saw leaving your room this morning?” I turn sharply at Jahlee’s words, my jaw clenched until I see the pure amusement rippling over her features. Shecackles as she looks at me, bowing at the waist before giving me a wink. “It’s too fucking easy, Bahira.”
Anger and embarrassment rush through me, propelling my feet towards her. But she darts away, giggling as she pushes Kai towards me to block my path.
“Have fun, you two!” she shouts, running to the door and slamming it behind her.
“There might come a day when I murder your sister, and I just want you to know that she will have earned it,” I warn.
To my surprise, he only smirks, folding his arms over his chest as he leans a hip against the table. It’s another cloudy day on the island, the sun hidden behind their dreary shades of gray, and still, Kai’s skin glows as if he is creating sunlight himself.
And here I am, waxing poetic about it like some love-struck fool.Stuffing the thought down, I ask, “What can I do for you?”
His gaze travels over my face, flicking up to my hair before settling once more on my eyes. “We have another visit to make.”
Chapter Fifty-Three: Bahira
Honna is just undera day’s trip when traveling on foot, something Kai has made sure to mention twice since I met him down in the palace foyer the following morning. “If you want to shift into your wolf, I’ll happily ride you so we can get there more quickly,” I had offered, only to get an annoyed—albeit heated—look in response.
The sun has already crested its highest point for the day, descending down towards the horizon as we make our way on a path forged through the jungle. Humidity lingers in the air, mycurls wild around my face as sweat beads on the back of my neck. I’ve already complained to Kai about it more than once, earning only snorts or amused grunts in return.
Our conversation is light, both of us avoiding the topics that are harder to navigate. I have always easily detached my feelings from intimacy. It comes as naturally to me as training with my spear does, so it’s even more unsettling that, from the very beginning, I have struggled to keep my emotions in check around Kai. Even when those emotions were teetering on the edge of pure disdain, I hadn’t been able to reel them in.
“Tell me of your experiments,” Kai insists. We walk side by side, the trail barely wide enough to do so—leaves and other fauna brushing against our arms as we pass.
I look over at him, my gaze traveling up the expanse of his tattooed arm until they meet his dark eyes. “How about an exchange? I’ll tell you what I’ve found with the blood, andyoutell me what your tattoos mean.”
Kai, to my everlasting shock, doesn’t hesitate. “Deal, Princess. You first.”
I smile, one that is perhaps wider than usual and not managed by caution nor tainted with sarcasm. It makes the shifter king misstep as he kicks up the small pebbles that line the dark soil of the jungle path beneath our feet. My hand shoots out to steady him, feral delight dancing in my expression.
“Fucking jungle,” he grumbles under his breath, drawing a small chuckle from me.
I launch into the retelling of my experiments from home, only leaving out our kingdom’s own magical decline. Kai questions if this is why I am so reluctant to try my magic on his people, and all I can do is nod before quickly changing the subject to what I found in his blood.
As we hike, I explain that his blood lookeddifferentunder the magnifier, that it reminded me of something I had seenfrom home, but I didn’t knowwhythat was. This fact seems to intrigue him as much as it does me.
A shrill scream interrupts our conversation, and I automatically reach for where my spear is attached to my pack, but Kai holds his hand up to stop me.
“It’s not a shifter.” His eyes scan the path ahead, his jaw relaxed as he takes in the other sounds that echo out in response. “We should keep moving. Honna is still a few hours away.”
I stay in step with Kai the rest of the way, burnt golden light from the setting sun painting the foliage around us. We enter the outskirts of the small border village, and I eagerly take in the place Kai used to call home. It’s reminiscent of the other places he and I have visited over my time here, but there is a noticeably differentfeelto it. The sound of the waves rolling in from the nearby shore is louder, while the chatter of people talking is more like a low hum. There are fewer people out mingling though animals of all species dart behind the homes, moving along the edge of the jungle in skittish steps.
“Can you communicate withrealanimals when you shift?” I ask, the back of my hand accidentally brushing against his. The path had widened as we got closer to what I assume is the village center, large structures with carved signs hanging from their doors dotting either side. Yet Kai and I remain close to each other, his warmth at my side different from the one that surrounds us—even with the sun nearly gone.
“Realanimals?” he asks sarcastically.
I wave my hand in exasperation in front of me. “You know what I mean.”
Kai laughs as he looks down at me from the corner of his eye. “No. I cansenseanimals when they’re near, but I can’t communicate with them. Nor can I speak with another shifter while they are not mortal.”
