“Look. No bruises.” She turns her wrist into the light, showing me both sides. “I was pulling hard enough last night that the chain should have split my skin. The blade protected this part of my arm.”
I saw how hard she was pulling, but while bruises mar other parts of her body, her wrist and forearm are completely unharmed.
“I’m not afraid.” She pushes the chain toward me again. “I need this on.”
She’s giving me permission to cage her. Demanding it, in fact. I can’t deny her reasons or…since she makes such a compelling argument…the chance to touch her, skin-on-skin.
Slipping off my steel glove, I catch the end of the chain dangling from her hand, latching it to my left arm again.
The first time I snapped it onto her, I flicked it fast, avoiding any lengthy skin-on-skin contact. Not this time.
My bare fingers find her wrist, the pulse beating there, sensing it quicken, my thumb grazes over her warm skin as I slowly wrap the chain around the blade’s cross-guard.
With the smallest prick of my finger, it clicks into place.
It’s done. I could open my hand again, but my fingers remain circling her wrist. “Cassia will train you.”
Thyra stiffens, extricating her hand from mine.
I’m not certain why she withdrew so abruptly until she says, “Your sister flew her eagle over the village yesterday. The Ember Fae who fought her burned innocent villagers. If she wasn’t there, he wouldn’t have been there either.”
I let Thyra step back from me, but I can’t let her misconception continue. “Actually, he fired atme. Without provocation. He burned half of my helmet off. And we hadn’t reached your village at that time.”
The furrow in Thyra’s brow falters before it deepens again. “But she had no problem scattering iron dust over the innocent.”
Iron dust?I’m not sure what Thyra’s talking about, but she’s already turning away from me, taking all of two steps before the chain pulls taut between us, and her shoulders slump.
“I’ll accept the training if she’s willing to give it.”
“Good.” I consider saying more, but for now, her agreement is what I need.
Of course, I ignore the fact that whatever Cassia teaches Thyra, Thyra could use against me, but I’ll face that challenge if it happens.
I consider the determined beat of her boots on the grass as we walk in near lockstep and the way her tangled hair, its strands as dull as any could be, catches the first rays of sunlight peeking over the trees.
Maybe I want her to try out any new combat skills on me.
Maybe I’ll enjoy tussling with her.
I might even make sure she’s wearing nothing more than a sodden tunic at the time.
My grin fades, and I put a halt to my heated thoughts as I focus on the flight ahead.
Evading interception won’t be easy. I can’t underestimate what Mother might have planned. She’s bound to send out the lords in her Court. Well,lordsis a polite way of referring to them.
The men she fucks.
I didn’t realize soon enough that I needed to keep an eye on all highborn males and ensure they were assigned to my army before they came of age, when Mother could get her hands on them.
I lost one very important warrior that way. A hard lesson to learn.
Shaking off the past, I pick up my pace, scoop up Thyra from behind, and leap deftly onto my eagle with her.
He’s already spreading his wings, tension thrumming through his body as he takes to the air.
He knows as well as I do that we’re flying into danger.
Chapter Thirty-Nine
