Samkiel smiled, pure male arrogance. “Good, at least you know who she belongs to.”
Isaiah groaned behind us. “I’m going to be fucking sick.”
Kaden tossed a look at Isaiah. “Don’t worry. I’ll teach you.”
“Thank fuck,” Isaiah praised as Kaden backed away from Samkiel and me, the testosterone battle subsiding along with my nerves.
I remained pressed against Samkiel, sliding my hand along his arm. Even with the dim light of the fire and his dark jacket sleeves, I saw tendrils of Oblivion curl around his arm and fade at my touch.
“Hey,” I said, pulling at his sleeve, but Samkiel continued to give them his hard stare. Another tug, and his eyes finally fell on me. “Let’s just eat and go to bed, okay? We’re no good traveling to the Otherworld half-cocked. We need full cock.”
He snorted and shook his head at my attempt at humor, the tension in his shoulders easing a fraction. No one spoke much after that. Samkiel skinned the rabbit, Isaiah made a spit with the wood he had found, and we all ate in silence once the meat was done.
47
KADEN
Inever realized the depths of Samkiel’s quiet, violent nature. There were stories that hinted at it, and I guess it made sense. Such a bright light could not exist without darkness, and Oblivion was something beyond darkness. I swallowed, unable to forget the panic I’d felt when he’d walked through that door at the eatery. I thought I was having a waking nightmare. No one else reacted like I had, and they still didn’t. Did they not see how Oblivion clung to him like a second skin? It snapped and struck at anything that came too close. How it dipped and dived beneath his skin like a mammal breaking the waves in the ocean. He was Oblivion down to his marrow. I was sure of it. Cold sweat slicked my skin again, and I rubbed my hands together as I heard the crunch of snow behind me.
“I fucking hate this,” Isaiah growled, coming to my side. I looked at him as he scowled at the world. The fire behind us was long dead, smoke curling from the embers, but the moons above lit the world with a silvery light.
“Do you think we will hear or feel them fucking?”
I said nothing. Samkiel had used that godly magic to erect three tents for us. He’d kept ours near enough that they could hear if Isaiah or I decided to flee in the dead of the night. Unfortunately, night had barely fallen before I heard … I’d risen and walked away, unwilling to put myself through the torture of listening to them together. I did not blame him. Samkiel was running off pure hatred for us, and his every instinct was pushing him to claim what was his in front of those who’d threatened to take it. How could I convince them I was no longer a threat? The great and evil Kaden had fallen on that battlefield, and when he came back, he came back wrong.
“Hear, yes. Feel? No.” A rough snort left my nostrils. “We’ll keep practicing on teaching you how to block.”
“I am so glad we don’t feelthat,but gods, I’d also prefer not to hear,” Isaiah sneered, wrapping his arms around himself. His breath curled from his lips as the night grew colder.
“Agreed,” I said, folding my arms.
He tossed a wary look at me. “This must be really hard for you since you’re still in love with her.”
I said nothing, my eyes scanning the snowy expanse ahead. A line of giant mammals trekked up the hills, the smallest at the front as the others pushed it along. I watched as they disappeared into one of the massive caves dotting this area. The snow was coming down hard, and any creature with any sense was seeking shelter.
“Kaden.”
“Hmm?” I asked, finally meeting his eyes. From the expectant look on his face, I had missed something.
“I’ve been talking to you.”
“Sorry.” I shook my head as if the thoughts that plagued me could be disregarded so simply. “What did you say?”
“I said, I’m surprised Samkiel wants to visit the Otherworld. Everyone hates the gods there.” He rubbed his hand against his jaw. “We are probably going to have to fight our way in.”
I had thought the same thing. Tensions were still uneasy with the Otherworld. They had their own rules and reasons, sometimes violently repudiating the gods and their interference. The only reason Nismera hadn’t taken it over was that she knew the fight would take too long. Instead, she’d sought a peace treaty of her own. They offered up a few soldiers to fill out her legion, and she stayed away. The Princes of the Otherworld agreed, but it did not mean they liked each other. They were enemies working toward a common goal.
This would not be an easy visit for any of us, and it wasn’t just the princes and their hordes. Monsters bigger than suns lived in the darkest, deepest parts of the Otherworld. Every single being we would come into contact with would want to kill us on sight. We would be lucky if it didn’t start a war, so I had devised a few escape plans.
“Do you trust me?” I asked, turning to hold Isaiah’s gaze steadily.
He didn’t hesitate. “Yes.”
“Then you have nothing to worry about,” I said. “But I will be honest with you. Don’t underestimate Samkiel. As much as you and I hate him, he is volatile and unpredictable. There is a reason he was King of Rashearim for so long. Most beings would rather slit their throats than face him on a battlefield. Even Nismera has avoided fighting him herself because she knows it, too. When speaking of war with him, brute strength won’t cut it. He’d win.”
Isaiah only nodded, his jaw clenching. “I hate him, but I’m not afraid of him.”
“I think we have more to worry about than him.”
