“Then you know my answer,” I rasped. “The fog will come. If the priestesses cannot stop it, it always will. And you will be there to protect the horde when it does. You are too valuable to let go.”
My words rang around thevoliki, certain and unmatched in their truth.
I think Mina realized that too because her face paled. Her nostrils flared as she took in a deep, steadying breath.
Shewasimmensely valuable. A prize for my horde that I would not disregard. The moment I’d captured her in the fog I knew what I would do with her, though I thought that perhaps there was another way. I knew what she wouldbecome—to me, to my horde—though I’d fought against it.
This morning, however, after a full night of rest and with a calm mind, it became clear to me.
There was only one option to secure her for my horde, in a way that they would accept. In a way that they wouldsupport. They would see her as a witch, a sorceress, once they saw her power. Because of that, they would mistrust her. They would be wary of her. They would never accept her. Unless…
Unless she wore my markings on her flesh. The markings of my family, my bloodline. The markings of Rath Rowin.Theirmarkings.
The horde would never accept her unless I made her my queen.
MyMorakkari.
Andthatwas what I intended to do.
Because of that decision, I would never let her go, no matter how much she wished it.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
“You cannot be serious,” Valavik murmured.
“I have made up my mind already. There is nothing you can say to sway me,” I informed him.
And because Valavikknew me, he heard the unwavering truth in the words.
Valavik blew out a short breath and he turned, looking out over the training grounds, at thedarukkarsthat were sparring. The frost had ended and once the season of life began, thedarukkarstrained hard. To shake off the cold season’s effects. Like untamedpyrokiswaking from their hibernation, jolting to life.
“You will see that it is the only way,” I finished, watching Hukri’s mate take down Arkoni with one perfectly timed strike. I’d left Hukri with Mina, to finish helping her bathe.
Briefly, in my mind’s eye, I recalled Mina’s bared flesh. The smooth, warm expanse of it. Her tight nipples, the soft curls between her thighs.
My nostrils flared and I shifted, feeling the weight of my sword against my back.
“I will marry her.”
The words sprang from Valavik, soft and completely unexpected. For a moment, I couldn’t think about anything but the sudden wave of…possessive. For Mina.
“Nik,” I snarled, still reeling from his suggestion. Thewrongnessof it. “You will not. I forbid it.”
Valavik’s eyes assessed me. They narrowed. “Why not? The horde will accept her if she marries yourpujerak, will they not?”
He made a good point. Yet, I couldn’t understand why my belly was roiling at the mere thought.
You do though, came that taunting voice.You do know why.
My fists clenched so tight that I drew blood from my palm. If she had bewitched me or if Kakkari had shown her to me, had chosen her asmine, I wouldn’t know.
But whateverhadoccurred in the fog was already seated deep within me. Its roots had grown, weaving through my body like veins.Shehad already wiggled herself inside me, binding herself to me in a way I knew I’d never be free of.
Whether it was by her own design, or Kakkari’s…I wanted her.
If Mina didn’t have a lick of power, I thought that I might’ve still kept her. Perhaps as my lover or perhaps as analukkiriduring the cold season, to warm my bed and sate my lusts. At least until I chose aMorakkarifor my own.
I’d always known that I would marry for the purpose ofstrengtheningmy horde. Not for ridiculous things like love or lust.
