Stained Glass
Raven
Present Day - Grypheem
Acyclone.
That was all this had been. Since Sparrow had been taken from me. Since I woke up on this ship. Since I met the High Priestess. Since I watched Harold die.
Since I was stuffed into this chamber in a literal castle. Since I was shoved into a bed between Griffin and Julian.
Sitting up, I took a look around. The room was opulent in a way that I had never experienced before. The walls were satin and lined in oil paintings that seemed to depict different versions of griffins. The four post bed itself was huge. It had tobe for us all to fit in here, and it didn’t even partially cover the room.
There was still space for a large wooden couch with stitched cushioning, a matching chair and a mahogany coffee table. Across from that area was a brick wooden fireplace which was currently serving to keep the room warm, but the flame was slowly dying and a crisp chill was taking hold.
The ground was all marble, a swirling of whites and blues. There was an oversized lush rug that laid across most of it, that I knew from getting into this bed, was the softest material I had ever experienced.
There were floor-to-ceiling bay windows, poking out of the top and bottom of thick gold embroidered curtains. Except a single one which was stained glass.
The glass depicted a flower. It was the same one that I had seen sprouting up through the snow. The same one on the High Priestess’s robe.
A hibiscus.
Light shone through it, but not enough to discern the time of day, just that it was no longer dark out.
A knock echoed around the room startling me and causing the men on each side of me to shoot up in the bed. Griffin offered a scorching gaze, his tongue lashing out to wet his lips as he garnered his bearings. My stomach rolled at the sight, a flash of neediness reminding me of the night before. He leaned forward abruptly, a rough hand tucking my hair behind each of my ears, his coarse fingers tracing the sensitive skin there. Heat pooled between my thighs, and I instinctively rubbed them together. He offered a knowing quirk of his lips before placing a kiss to my cheek, lingering there longer than I expected.
Just as my body demanded, I continued on with whateverthiswas. He jumped out of the bed in nothing but his boxers.His sculpted back on full display, his muscles rippling as he stretched.
The sight didnothelp the quivering that vibrated across my nerves. The unwanted desire that churned in my belly.
He marched to another door first, going inside and exiting a few minutes later in a robe and with two more in his hands. “Get dressed.”
He threw one at Julian. Julian grunted his annoyance, offering a quick peck to my other cheek before doing as told.
“Here, let me help you,” Griffin offered me.
I wasn’t sure I wanted him to, but I acquiesced, my toes digging into the warm soft rug below as the crisp air caused my nipples to pebble into hardened points.
Griffin didn’t hesitate, putting one arm on at a time, his fingers tracing my skin as he did so, igniting a fire at odds with the chilliness. His pupils pricked to thin black spots as he stared into my eyes. A connection instant and searing.
There was another knock and Griffin let out a shaky breath, groaning his annoyance before marching towards the sound. He whipped open the wooden door before I could decide what feelings he had stirred up.
“Good, you’re dressed.” Drago’s upbeat voice grated against my nerves as he pushed his way inside, another person walking right behind him that I couldn’t quite see.
I didn’t care that he was Griffin’s brother. I didn’t like him.
“What do you want?” Griffin asked annoyedly, his jaw ticking.
“So the rumors are true. You did take a man to your room.” Drago snorted. “Amelia is finally able to get around, I wanted to reintroduce you all so she wouldn’t be so terrified. Poor girl still has to keep the bandage on, but we are going to set up a room for her nearby for her safety. Just in case.” Drago stepped aside and revealed the person behind him.
Stepping forward, I landed beside Griffin and looked at Amelia. My heart went out to her, it was clear the acid had injured her severely. Her mouth was deformed, half her face wrapped in bandages, her hair hung in clumps, even her nose appeared to be caving in on itself. She wore a violet dress that covered her from neck to toe, not even her ankles or wrists showing, but I could only imagine the extent of her injuries. At what I would find underneath.
“And the celebration will be tonight. Masks are mandatory,” Drago continued, offering up three.
Griffin snatched them, throwing them onto the couch behind him. “Insensitive asshole.” He cut his attention to Amelia. “I’m glad to see you’re alive.”
Amelia opened her mouth to speak, but the sound that came out was broken. Her eyes shuttered in sadness.
