As she lifted her eyes further, she found the wyverns glittering across the wild sea, all watching her as intently as the people around her.Acceptance. Loyalty.
Everyone, every creature and race and person standing on these ships in the Eiatis Sea—was fighting for a new world, and for afuturefor them all.
And before her… in this male that she cared for more than life itself?
Love.So much love she could barely take it when he just waited, letting her decide.
Because that’s also what Merrick was doing. Right now, he was giving her a choice, like he always did. He was asking if she’d surrender to him—if she’d trust him with this. If she’d be his equal, his friend, his lover, his… everything.
Lessia took his outstretched hand without a moment’s hesitation.
Chapter 40
Loche
Iviry had been right to suggest that they use whatever had been planned for Loche and her and give it to their friends—allow a celebration that didn’t place the new leaders of Havlands in the center but rather made them hosts of it.
The air was so layered with emotion and excitement that it quelled whatever mistrust and worry had remained after he and Iviry married, and even the apprehension that had arisen today, when the drums started, faded with every step Merrick led Lessia down that aisle.
Loche stared out over his people—their people—and in that moment, he felt it.
The world that could be.
The alliances that could form.
The acceptance and the unity and the harmony that could develop.
He barely heard the words Raine spoke as he led the ceremony, although they must have been beautiful because every female around him was sniffing andsobbing as they watched Merrick place a crown of flowers on Lessia’s head, watched him drop to his knees once more before her—a male surrendering entirely.
Loche almost shook his head when Lessia pulled him up again, stepping in so close they were nearly one, their fingers laced and foreheads leaning against one another’s.
It was so clear to anyone who had ever been in their vicinity that they belonged together.
Lessia didn’t need the dress that mirrored Merrick’s hair, nor the marks covering her skin. Merrick didn’t need the golden tunic that made Lessia’s hair shimmer—nor did he have to cut out the small hole above his hip bone whereElessiamarred his own body.
But still… it made so much sense.
Two souls who had spent their entire lives in hiding were now finally allowed to love in the open. Live in the open. Show the world who they were—together and individually.
Fuck, it burned behind Loche’s eyes as well when Raine gave Merrick a knife and he cautiously carved a small cut above Lessia’s chest and licked off the drop of crimson it produced, before Lessia did the same to him—the formal sharing of blood forever tying them together.
It was so intimate, and still not one person could look away when Merrick’s eyes widened as Lessia smiled at him—a smile full of promises of the future, of time, of everything he’d already given her and she wanted to give back.
A low whimper sounded beside him. Loche watched Iviry’s face strain as her eyes darted from the couple who appeared to believe they had all the time in the world, tothe south, where come tomorrow or the day after, the horizon would be filled with enemies.
Loche reacted instinctively. Stepping behind Iviry, he pulled the female to his chest, resting his chin on her shoulder as he breathed into her ear, “We will survive this.”
She didn’t respond, but she didn’t pull away, either, so Loche continued as Merrick finally dipped Lessia in a kiss—to the shouts and cheers and whistles from the crowd. “I’ll make sure you survive this, Iviry. If I can promise you nothing else… that is what I’ll vow.”
As the sounds of the crowds roared in his ears, Iviry turned around, and while her blue eyes were filled with worry and sorrow and love, there was something hard in her voice as she replied, “You can’t promise me that. I… I can’t allow that.”
She looked so small then, her bottom lip trembling as her eyes flew over their people. They had now started gathering around the braziers and tables with food, or taking drinks with them and settling around the ships.
“So many of these people will die,” Iviry whispered. “You heard what the spy told us today. They have more than twice the ships we do, Loche. How are we going to protect our people? How are we going to keep everyone here alive?”
“We’ll find a way.” Loche’s hands went to her face, his thumbs brushing away the tears that had formed there, and he shifted her body so his own covered her from the rest of the world. “We’ll find a way, Iviry. We have the wyverns, and you saw the snakes Raine and Frelina brought. We have some of the shifters who will join them in the sea. They’ll thin out the lines. We have your Fae… We have Elessia and Merrick.”
“We can’t ask that of them,” Iviry said in a hissed whisper. “You saw what happened when they used whatever that horrible power is. They’ll die, Loche.”
