“And you make me afraid,” she murmurs, and I don’t think it’s right, so I ask her to repeat her words, but she waves me away with a smile.
I dance with Nyja, too, and spin Jutrzenka around a few times. Strzybog comes over to share drinks, our elbows entwined as we down glass after glass of the kind of vodka that would kill a mortal after a sip.
Jaga throws off her coat and draws glances with her bare arms and corseted breasts. The music and alcohol swirl in my veins,and I pull her closer, turning her back to me as I grind my erection against her ass.
“Oh, please,” she laughs, throwing her head back on my shoulder. “You’re a beast.”
“Your beast. Come on. Let me fuck you. No one will bat an eyelid since it’s a proper revelry, and fucking and orgies are allowed.”
“Orgies?” she asks with a coy laugh when I grip her breast through the leather. “Who would you invite to join us?”
“No one, but they can watch. I’m generous like that. How do I take this off?”
“You don’t. I won’t fuck you, Weles. We’ll be done soon, and it will be over.”
She turns, gives me a soft kiss on the lips, and walks away before I have time to grab her. I stare after my girl who won’t be mine, my heart sinking into a poisonous pool of resentment, hate, and longing.
Oh, thatfuckingtease.
The King of Bees comes to my side, offering me a cup of mead held in a palm made of insects, and I push Jaga out of my mind. We won. Anything is possible, and I will win her, too. She wants me, that is plain.
“What now?” the King asks in a dry whisper. “You stopped him, but it’s not over.”
My smile shrinks, and I down the mead in one go, the alcohol too weak to affect me.
“No, it’s not. We must take Wyraj, but we can’t do that before…” I sigh, frowning into my empty cup.
“Before your beloved gives you her soul.”
I look up, leveling him with a sober look. His eyes are visible among the crawling multitude of his face, and they watch me with uncanny concentration.He could do it, I think. He could claim Jaga for himself and defeat us all.
“Perun will try something again, but he is a slow thinker,” I say to change the topic even as cold shivers of suspicion and jealousy crawl down my spine. “I’d say we have at least a few weeks to figure out how to bleed him dry. For now, we must celebrate. We did a great thing today, and you had a crucial part in it.”
He nods, not humble and not proud, and moves away, buzzing as his hand detaches from his body, becoming a tiny swarm that brings him a fresh cup of mead.
I look in on Jaga through our bond, barely peeking to make sure she’s safe. She’s flying as cold, autumn dusk settles around Nawie, and her whoops of joy are muted by the fog. I retreat before she notices my presence. The bond between us has grown wide and solid thanks to the enormous amounts of magic Jaga sent through today.
Just one more moment of intimate connection, one more step, and I will meet my goal. And after that, she’ll never be free of me.
“Will you finally tell me why you hate Jutrzenka?” I murmur in Chors’ ear, finding him alone by a pillar, gazing into a fire.
He looks up with a small smile and shakes his head. “It’s long in the past. You haven’t told me everything that happened to you, either.”
“That is because I’m your father, and it’s my role to shelter you, no matter how old you are,” I say, putting in effort to sound jocular, though I am perfectly serious.
Chors is innocent, but not like Jutrzenka. Some parts of normal experience have been denied him, and for a long time I thought I was to blame because I didn’t give him a mother. But he simply was this way—a man who only watched and never took part.
Until Jaga.
“I want to shelter you, too, Father,” he says, his eyes sparkling in a mischievous smile. “Besides, you have far more importantthings on your mind, do you not? I heard you and Jaga are doing well.”
“Insolent brat,” I mutter with affection. “Yes, we’re doing better. Are you going to take her from me again?”
My tone is light and teasing, but I need reassurance. Chors snorts with amusement and nods. I blink, taken aback. I did not expect it.
“I’ll definitely take her from you if you hurt her again,” he says with a low laugh. “So be on your best behavior.
“Are you threatening me?”
