His dark eyes flickered over her face, taking her in. His hand tangled in her hair, Riona shuddered as he pulled her head back, exposing her throat to him. A soft, desperate sound left her lips, swallowed instantly by his mouth crashing into hers again, stealing the breath from her lungs.
She felt it all. The scrape of bark biting into her skin. The contrast of his lips, hot and demanding against the cool night air. The slow grind of his hips against hers, leaving her lightheaded and wanting more.
She should stop and think but she couldn’t focus on anything except the freedom this moment held. In the quiet, out slipped a moan echoing into the night and, in that moment, Riona let go.
Chapter 52
Meanwhile in Lumora
The towering spires of the Druid School glinted faintly under the early morning light, and Kyron’s voice echoed through the halls as he called for help. The weight of Sorcha and Cat didn’t slow him, his steps purposeful and his tone commanding.
“Help! We need a healer!”
Doors creaked open as startled figures emerged, but it was Commander Nethran who appeared first, his gaze taking in the scene in an instant.
“Sorcha?” he said, his voice tight with concern as he approached. “What happened?”
“She’s hurt,” Kyron said shortly, adjusting Sorcha in his arms. “And so is the damn cat. They need a healer now.”
Nethran didn’t waste time. “Follow me,” he said, turning sharply and leading them toward the medical unit. Once inside, Kyron gently laid Sorcha on one of the cots while Nethran called for the healers. Cat slipped from Kyron’s grip, landing awkwardly on his feet but managing to limp to Sorcha’s side. The healers arrived quickly, working on Sorcha and Cat with practiced precision.
Nethran stood off to the side, his arms crossed as he watched the scene unfold, his jaw tight with unspoken questions.
As the healers worked, Cat’s silver eyes flicked to Nethran, and he spoke. “You’re wondering what’s happening,” he said evenly. Nethran’s eyes narrowed. “You could say that. So, you’re not just a cat… Cait Sídhe. It’s been a long time since I’ve heard the stories.” His gaze bore into Cat, scrutinizing every inch of the creature.
Cat looked amused by the statement, tilting his head with an air of mock offense. “I was… intrigued.
Sorcha reeked of magic, and that kind of scent is hard toignore. But in a short time, I’ve grown to like her,” he confessed.
His eyes glimmered like crashing waves, their tides of light and shadow pulling at the room’s attention. “She is mine, and I am hers. There’s no place she can go that I can’t follow.”
The words hung in the air, weighted with meaning. Cat turned his gaze to Nethran, who stared back unblinking for a long time. The commander wasn’t sure he could trust the Fae. He knew too well the stories of their kind, creatures of habit, cunning, and contradiction. The Cait Sídhe could guide souls or steal them, and it was impossible to know which path they might choose at any given moment. But tonight, there wasn’t much choice. After a beat, Nethran nodded slowly.
“I suppose it’s no surprise, with Samhain being so close, that she found you when she did,” he said. “So then, do you have any idea what happened to the two of you tonight?”
Cat, who had been casually licking his wounds, paused to glance up, his expression irritated at the interruption. “Well, Commander,” he began, “Sorcha, for reasons beyond my comprehension, decided to take us to the Bridge of the Forgotten.”
He straightened, his voice dropping slightly as his eyes scanned the room, ensuring he had everyone’s attention. “For those of you who don’t know, the Bridge of the Forgotten is a death trap. All who walk across it if they aren’t already dead soon will be. It’s haunted by souls whose lives ended unnaturally: by force, by tragedy, or by betrayal. These spirits wander the bridge endlessly, damning anyone foolish enough to cross. Anyway, in doing so,” Cat continued, his tone laced with dry exasperation, “she managed to draw the attention of every skeleton, walking dead, banshee, wraith, and just about any other creature in the area.”
He let out a heavy sigh, his tail twitching.
Suddenly, it split into two, the newly formed tails whipping through the air with almost deliberate nonchalance.Nethran’s eyes flicked around the room. Kyron stood off to the side, his expression unimpressed, a flicker of annoyance in his gaze as he crossed his arms tightly over his chest. The healers, however, were transfixed, one of them letting out a soft gasp at the sight of Cat’s transformation. Sorcha lay motionless on the cot, her breaths shallow but steady, oblivious to the growing tension. Nethran’s gaze snapped back to Cat, his patience visibly thinning. The Cait Sídhe seemed entirely unbothered, tending to his wounds as though he had all the time in the world.
“Oh!” Cat suddenly exclaimed sarcasm dripping off every word like venom. “I almost forgot to mention the near-death experience at the hands of her impeccable sense of direction.” He glanced at Sorcha. “Really, Commander, she nearly got us killed. It was impressive, in a catastrophic sort of way.”
Kyron, muttered what sounded suspiciously like,
“unbelievable.”
Commander Nethran cleared his throat loudly, his tone edged with irritation. “And was there anything else?”
Kyron turned his glare on Cat, shaking his head. “You know, for someone whoalmost died,it’s great to see you walked away completely unbothered. Maybe just get to the point and tell us what happened, since you’re feeling so chatty.”
Cat froze mid lick, his tails flicking menacingly behind him. “Iknewyou didn’t like me,” he said, narrowing his eyes at Kyron.
Kyron shot back a pointed glare, raising an eyebrow. “I know an Otherworldly being when I see one, Cat. I was suspicious of your motives from the start. Your kind has areputation.”
Cat’s lips curled into a sly grin. “Hmm. So isthatwhy you’ve been hanging around Sorcha all this time? Or could it be there’s a littlemoreto it, Kyron?”
