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With a growl of anger, he rises and throws himself at me. But he always was the weakest of us. It is why he is here, begging me to give up what is mine so he does not have to face the dark elves. He is a coward and a shame to my people.
For the first time since our youth, he attacks me. He is no longer impetuous and comes at me with caution. I can hear him growling deep in his chest.
“You really think this is wise?” I taunt.
He leaps at me in response. He may have improved since our youth, but his move still lacks style, and I easily sidestep his flailing punch.
“Really, that’s the best you’ve got?” I laugh.
He rushes me again, but I casually put out my foot. He trips, staggering against the shelves and sending pots clattering to the floor.
I decide to teach him a lesson. I feign weakness on my left side, and he falls for it. My heart leaps as I twist and grab his leg, pulling him from his feet. If I wasn’t so angry, I would laugh at the surprised look on his face as I have done many times before as we were growing up.
I land heavily on his chest, my teeth flashing close to his exposed throat. “You never learn. Do you, Gradius?” I snarl.
“Get off me,” he manages. “The elders will hear of your disrespect.”
“The elders value strength over cunning. They will not care for your whimpering when the fighting starts,” I tell him.
“This is your fight and your fight alone,” he replies calmly. “Who do you think sent me here?”
“I assume you came here on your own, attempting to better your position with the council.”
“Much has happened while you were playing with your human toy,” he informs me, shoving me to remove my weight. “You’d know that this had been discussed by the council at length if you had been there. You were called, I know you were.”
It’s true. I had received the call, but I had begun avoiding most tribe business over the last few years. I liked living here on my own and considered myself a solitary being. “Fuck,” I cuss.
Gradius smiles at my words, triumph sparkling in his eyes. “If you choose your human, you are choosing to leave the tribe,” he tells me, picking himself up once more.
“You do not speak for the tribe,” I retort. Although in truth, I know he does. What he lacks in strength, he makes up for in shrewdness. His serpentine tongue has probably convinced all of them that this is necessary, and I missed the chance to plead my case otherwise.
“And you are still a fool,” he replies. “Your obsession with the humans will get you killed. The tribe wants nothing to do with your folly. You must take your pet and leave.”
“Get out of my house,” I tell him.
He looks around in disgust. “You are a disgrace to your people,” he tells me. “You play at being human, but you will always be a monster in your mate’s eyes.”
His words sting me. Sierra and I have come to a new accord, but I’m still unsure if she is playing me. Biding her time until she can escape.
“I can tell by the look on your face you know that it’s true,” Gradius says with a sneer. “Give the creature back. The dark elves had prior claim to it.”
“She is not an ‘it,’” I tell him stoically. “She is my mate, and I will protect her even if you are too much of a coward to help.”
“Good luck with that, Zephiro,” he throws over his shoulder as he walks out the door. I notice with satisfaction that he is limping.
“Fuck!” I roar when he’s gone. I vent my anger on the remains of the table, taking it and throwing it against the wall, where it shatters into splinters.
The sound of the bedroom door creaking open grabs my attention. Sierra stands there, pale and shaking. The sight of the fear in her eyes calms me. I have to think clearly. I need to make a plan to protect my woman.
“What’s happening?” she asks in a quavering voice, looking around at the destruction left in the wake of our fight.
“We have to leave,” I tell her brusquely. “Get your things together now.” I don’t mean for my words to come out so harshly, but my blood is boiling at the intrusion.
“What?” she asks, looking bewildered. “I don’t understand. What’s going on, Zephiro?”
“We are in danger staying here, and my tribe will not support us,” I try to explain, but my words just cause her to collapse in tears.
“No,” she cries. “I like it here, I don’t understand. I don’t want to leave. Why can’t we stay here?” she asks, pleading with me with her eyes.
