He must have noticed my trepidation because he approached slowly, the hand not holding a knife lifted in a calming gesture. He shushed me, stooping enough to drop his weapon before raising that hand like the first. I didn't understand what he was doing or why he was acting like that until he spoke to me.
“You are safe. You are okay.”
My gaze darted around as I tried to figure out why he was saying that. Was there another one? Did they come in groups? Did the whole camp need to move somewhere safer?
Rath’s hand was warm when it wrapped around my wrist. He pried the knife out of my hand, handing it off to someone else, but his eyes never left mine.
“Breathe, Korvash. You are safe.”
It was when he cupped my cheeks that I realized I was hyperventilating. My whole body trembled against his palm, and my knees went out from under me. Rath caught me, pulling me against his chest. Zoya came out of nowhere in her nightclothes and a cloak, appearing at our side with fear and determination on her face. Her gaze swept over us both in a clinical manner before she turned to me.
“I-I-I—” I couldn’t get any words out. It felt like they were caught in my throat, and I couldn’t force them out, no matter how hard I tried.
“It’s okay,” she soothed, taking a deep breath and urging me to do the same. “You’re okay. Try to breathe, Finn, or you’ll pass out.”
I was feeling really lightheaded. I tried to do what she asked, but I couldn’t seem to make my body listen. My fingers dug into Rath’s arms, desperately reaching for that safe feeling that blanketed me whenever he was close. He wrapped himself around me so much that I couldn’t see or hear anything but him. His rapid heartbeat, his deep breaths, the strength in his arms as he held me. It helped, and I tried my best to match my breaths to his, listening to his heartbeat as it slowly came down to a more steadythump, thump, thumpagainst my ear.
“Were you hurt?” Zoya asked Rath. My fingers tightened, worry rising again, but it quickly came back down when Rath answered in the negative.
“No. It had no chance. I caught it as it was leaping at him. I should have known better than to return until I found it.”
“Honestly, it’s a good thing you did; otherwise, he would’ve been alone when it came for him,” Zoya argued.
“You were where you were supposed to be,” an older male voice said soothingly. I recognized it, but at the moment, I couldn’t place it. I also didn’t care. I just wanted to get as close to Rath as I possibly could.
There was a flurry of activity around us, but no one seemed to expect anything from me. Rath kept me wrapped up in his arms and spoke around me, reporting to the older man what had happened in the forest earlier.
“How did you manage to attack the thing twice without being injured?” someone asked.
Rath turned, looking over his shoulder, and I could hear the frown in his voice. “What are you talking about? The kill was quick.”
“There are two stab wounds,” the person explained, and I could hear shuffling like they were turning the creature over to prove it.
Large hands rested on my shoulders as Rath gently pulled me away so he could look me in the eye. “Did you…?”
I dropped my chin, my bottom lip quivering. “I-I didn’t mean to. I tripped the first time it jumped at me and?—”
Rath sucked in a sharp breath, yanking me back against him again. To my surprise, a tremor ran through him, much like it had through me before he’d settled me. I wrapped my arms around him, squeezing him as tight as I could muster, my face buried against his chest.
“I’m sorry.”
“Alright. I believe it is safe to say the danger has passed,” the older voice said. “Verus, alert the other hunters and everyone else, then get some rest. I get the feeling we have a ceremony to plan.”
I didn’t know what he meant by that, and I didn’t care. It took a few moments for Rath to loosen his hold enough for us to walk away. We headed back to his tent, but then I remembered he wasstill covered in blood. We didn’t have anything to clean him up inside the tent.
“You should go to the river and clean up. I promise I won’t leave again.” I’d caused enough trouble today, being where I shouldn’t.
Rath shook his head. When I opened my mouth to argue, he pulled me against him again, resting his forehead against mine. “I can’t be away from you right now. I’ll survive.”
I didn’t like the idea of him being uncomfortable just because he was worried about me. So, despite how much I hated it, I drew him to the river myself and stripped down, leading him into the icy water with the most blank face I could muster.
Rath huffed, pulling me against his body. “You are not good at hiding, kolrav. You do not have to pretend.”
That word was new, and I wasn’t sure what it meant, but now wasn’t the time for a language lesson. I focused on running my hands over his skin, washing off all the blood. I wasn’t as cold as before, maybe because I was still numb from the panic, but I still didn't want to linger in the water if I didn't have to.
Rath took his turn, running his rough palms over my skin. Because I was cuddled against him, a fair amount of blood had transferred to me, too. He wouldn’t let us leave until he was sure every drop was gone. Then, when we were both clean, he dried us off and covered me with the cloth before sweeping me off my feet and marching us straight back to his tent. And instead of bringing me to the fire to warm me up, he warmed me with his body on top of mine and his tongue in my mouth until I was so worked up I came with a cry and ruined the efforts of our river bath. But when he followed after with a shudder, I couldn’t find it in me to complain.
Fourteen
