His movements ceased, jaw going slack as he drowned in his own blood.
I rose, heart thudding against my ribs, and surveyed the scene.
No one else moved in the mist.
The chain tying me to my mate vibrated with anxiety. Sylaira made no sound. No move to sit up. For the briefest of moments, fear twisted a knife in my gut.
Had she been harmed?
But I wouldn’t still feel her presence if she had. And her pain was my own. I slapped away the unnecessary emotion and raked in a breath.
Returning to the wagon, I found the most infuriating female in all the worlds, pale and trembling and streaked in blood. Vomit piled beside my mate, the acidic scent mingling with wet earth and metallic tang.
“They didn’t hurt you, did they?” I asked her, climbing onto the wood with practiced ease. It sagged for a moment beneath my weight, but otherwise held.
She shrank away from me, eyes blown wide. “No. Get away from me.”
I gritted my teeth at the taste of her fear. “Those males would have dragged you into the depths of the woods, had their way with you, and then sold you back to me. You should be saying ‘thank you for saving me, Vaeron.’”
“I wouldn’t be in this situation if it wasn’t for you,” she hissed. And that storm that flashed in her eyes heated my veins.
Goddess, how I relished her fight. It was so much better than her hollowness.
“I didn’t think Elessarum would throw someone back with their magic either,” I crooned, a teasing smile playing at my lips.
“Well, since I’m bound to you now, I suppose my rules have changed,” she bit out. But she no longer held herself so rigidly. The tightness in her posture eased.
Still, I kept my distance. As much as she flung wrath in my direction, she was still in shock. I’d seen it countless times, and pressing into her proximity right now would only make it worse.
“Aye, everything is different now.” I reached into my pocket and pulled out a damp cloth. “For your face,” I said, tossing it into her lap.
She swiped away the remaining ruby on her skin.
“I can clean that up if you’ll allow me close,” I offered, gesturing to the vomit.
Her attention flicked between it and me for a moment. I found myself desperately wishing to know what she was thinking.
No doubt the sight of me ripping the throat out of someone in front of her only confirmed her belief that I was a monster.
“Fine.” She edged to the far side of the cart, more mobile with the rope tying her to one side cut.
Maybe I wouldn’t do that again.
I dug into our supplies and found more clothes, using the rain to wet them and clean the area. The downpour surged overhead, diluting the crimson and assisting in washing it away.
By the time I finished, the spacelooked like the fight had never happened. I couldn’t say the same about our surroundings.
“Here, drink this.” I dug out a wineskin and offered it to my mate.
“What is it?” she questioned, of course.
“Wine. It will make you feel better.”
She sniffed the contents, then took a healthy drag. And another. And another.
I snatched it back, some purple dribbling down her chin. Without thinking, I swiped it away. We froze, my hand extended in midair between us.
Fuck.
