“Thank the skies,” he said, closing his eyes in obvious relief. Gently, he guided me over to one of the chairs in the sitting room. “I’m sorry I didn’t get here sooner—the door was boarded from the inside, and I had to break it down.” His jaw tightened. “I was terrified I wouldn’t make it in time.”
“You did, though,” I said with a shudder as I looked at poor Raven.
If he was as disturbed as I felt, he hid it well. “Did she say anything?”
“She called my name, and then she said, ‘I need your strength.’ ”
He nodded thoughtfully. “When I broke through the door, you looked like you were shrouded in shadows. I could barely see you.”
“It wanted my power,” I said with another shudder.
“It’s getting more desperate,” Talon said with another glance at Raven’s broken body. She didn’t so much as twitch.
“I think it was trying to use Raven to catch me unawares, and admittedly, I didn’t want to hurt her. Even when she looked like…that.”
“You hesitated, and she hurt you,” he said, and for a moment, he sounded like General Isa scolding me for not firing my bow fast enough. “But I should have been here to stop her,” he added with a frown. “Next time I won’t make the same mistake.”
“What are you supposed to do? Sleep in here with me?”
He gave me a look that said that wasexactlywhat he planned to do. Despite everything, heat bloomed across my cheeks.
“I’ll get something to clean and bandage your wounds,” he said before disappearing into my bathing area and coming back with a pile of clean cloths, fresh water, wraps for bandaging, and some sort of strong-smelling ointment.
“This may sting a bit,” he warned before proceeding to gently clean out the gouges in my left arm, where it was the worst.
Pain burned through me like being clawed all over again, but I refused to make a sound when he was trying so hard not to hurt me. His calloused fingers brushed over my skin so softly, and as I looked down at the prominent tendons on his strong hands, I was struck by the way this skilled warrior could still be so gentle. I watched his face as he concentrated, my eyes tracing the line of his jaw. He was heart-stoppingly handsome, but it was more thanthat. Even though we had once been enemies, he was always there when I needed him. I sucked in my breath when my eyes dropped to his plush lips.
His gaze flicked to mine. “I’m sorry,” he murmured, thinking he had hurt me. “I’m trained in field dressing, but I’m not the best healer.”
“I’ve actually never been doctored in the normal way before,” I admitted quietly. “Ama—my mother—always healed any wounds I had. She used to tell me one day I would be able to do the same.”
He rinsed my left arm again before drying it and carefully applying the pungent ointment. “But that day never came?”
I held my other injured arm up in answer. “I got wind power instead.” I just didn’t go on to tell him that my abilities had nothing to do with my mother’s earth magic.
“You should have used that power tonight,” he said, his crystal blue eyes holding mine. “If it meant keeping you safe.”
“Somehow I don’t think the emperor or Lord Heron would agree with you.”
He reached out and touched my cheek, his hand warm and strong. It was meant to be comforting, but it sent shock waves of awareness through me. I couldn’t stop staring at first his arresting eyes and then his full lips. “I don’t want anything to happen to you,” he said, his gaze dropping to my mouth before sweeping over my thin white nightgown. Heat flared in his eyes for a moment before he turned his attention to treating my other wound.
When he finished, he added more wood to the fire until it blazed, setting the whole room aglow and banishing all the shadows. He walked over the remains of Raven, brow furrowed.
“I’m going to have my men take care of this,” Talon said quietly. “You shouldn’t have to see it.”
He crossed to the door and summoned Baz and Kestrel toremove the corpse of Raven—and her head. I watched grimly as the three of them cleaned up the mess in my room.
“Be sure to burn the remains,” Talon said to them.
“Yes, Commander,” they replied, carrying what was left of her wrapped in extra linens.
When they left, he came to my side. “You can rest now,” he said. “I’ll stand guard.”
I looked at my bed, the covers halfway on the floor from when I had scrambled to my feet not even half an hour ago. Even with Talon staying in here with me, I didn’t know how I would ever feel safe enough to close my eyes again. Surely only nightmares awaited me.
When I didn’t move, Talon held out his hand. I took it, and he led me over to the bed.
“What if—” He interrupted himself with a pause and deep breath. “What if I held you? Just until you fell asleep?”
