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“I’m afraid not. I’ve got several people on it to try to track his movements if it really is him, then another team trying to dig up anything they can about this sorcerer.”
“You really think they’ll be able to find a weakness?” The idea seemed astronomical considering how the villain had managed to keep his identity a secret for so long. Surely if he had an actual weakness, someone would have found it already.
Kai certainly seemed to think so, grinning at me in that crooked, off-hand way of his. “With you, me, Yvonne, and my men? I don’t see how we couldn’t. If that guy has a weakness, we’ll work it out.”
I tried to return his smile, though I didn’t have the same confidence. While I was incredibly happy to finally have an idea of who’d cursed me, everything kept running through my head on an endless loop. I found myself replaying the single interaction we’d had, trying to dissect it in a new light.
“I have some things to update you on, too,” I said, heaving a sigh. So much had happened so quickly lately. What I wouldn’t give to go back to my quiet, hermetic old life, secluded from everyone, worrying about gathering supplies and reading books.
Well… that wasn’t quite true. I didn’t want to go back that far. I’d been so lonely then, even if I tried to deny it. Despite my own strict, self-imposed rules, I craved companionship, or even the ability to silently work next to someone. That was why I’d joined the military. I figured it was regimented enough that I didn’t have to worry about being overly familiar with anyone. Maybe I could do some good to counteract the awful effects of my curse and balance the scales.
My life was certainly more stressful lately, yet I realized I didn’t want to go backward. I’d learned so much about myself and experienced so many things. I’d learned so many different shades of love, from the deep friendship I felt with Darla, to the camaraderie I felt with Mad Dog, to the potent mix of everything I felt for Kai.
Gods, after fighting it for so long, I couldn’t deny how I felt for my mate. I didn’t just admire him. He inspired me, amused me, and he challenged me. He made me want to be better. To be stronger. To be kinder. The way Kai took care of his men and truly valued them taught me I didn’t always have to be so prickly. I didn’t always need my teeth bared in a snarl. He saw people as people—a skill so many in the castle clearly didn’t have—and he taught me not to assume the worst in everyone. Then there was his bravery and his relentless drive when it came to doing what was right.
My life was a lot more dangerous, but I had to be honest, I could never give it up. Not now my eyes had been opened to what was waiting out there for me.
“Oh?” Kai said, echoing my earlier response.
“So, the how and why is complicated, but I came face to face with my malignant shadow when I questioned that assassin.”
“You did? Are you all right? Did it hurt you? Well, more than it already does?”
“No, but it was unsettling. Especially since I never knew that it could enter another person. But whatever Yvonne’s doing to protect you and me has forced it to play outside of the rules. It manifested itself to that assassin and basically… possessed him. He had no idea what he was doing.”
Kai was at my side again, pulling me into his arms. “I’m sorry you had to experience that. Still, that’ll be valuable information for Yvonne. Could you tell me more so I can write that up and have Oren or one of her ravens get it to her?”
I nodded, taking a deep breath before I recounted the entire experience, from how I felt in the moment, to how the assassin acted. Everything I’d felt or thought, everything I’d sensed, I laid out for him.
And he listened, because of course he did. His expression changed as he took in this new information, but no matter what, I felt his love and support through our bond.
When I finished, he hugged me even tighter and kissed the top of my head. His scent filled my nostrils and soothed me, pushing down the awful feelings beginning to rise within.
“Have I ever told you you’re incredible?” he whispered against my hair, making goosebumps rise along my arms.
“I don’t feel that way right now to be honest. Mostly, I feel like a menace.” I closed my eyes as if that would help shield me from the truth.
“Hey. You know none of this is your fault, right?”
Even if I wasn’t half a shifter, I would’ve been able to hear the worry in Kai’s voice. Funny… usually I felt like arguing whenever he said something like that, or I’d quietly dismiss the idea in my head, but something had changed, because there was a different feeling simmering in my chest now. A righteous indignation rapidly coming to the forefront now that I knew who was responsible.
“I do, actually, because it’s the Shrouded Shriek’s fault.”
Kai chuckled lightly, pressing his lips to the top of my head yet again. That was perfectly fine with me. Now that I’d let my walls down, I was always hungry for his affection, and greedy for whatever morsels we could steal away while in his home.
“That’s the thing, Kai. If he’s strong enough to make a curse like this, one that’s gotten even more powerful after twenty-two years and can affect things outside of my own body in a greater and greater radius if we subvert it, how do we stand a chance of killing him?”
Kai tilted my head, once again, so I was looking up at him. I’d seen his face so many times, but he still managed to make my heart skip in my chest.
“As you know, the Shriek’s reputation is that no one survives his attacks unless he tells them to send a message to his enemies. But when he faced us in that forest, faced you, every single one of us survived.”
Never in a million years would I have thought of it that way.
“We all lived because of you, Ayla. I have no doubt of that, and you protected all of Fort Canid as well. That relic was able to chase the Shriek off—something that was also supposed to be impossible. I’m sure I don’t need to remind you how anytime you come up against a challenge against something that threatens to hurt those around you, you rise to the occasion like no one else. You’re Ayla Everton, and I know your determination, your strength, and your compassion will always win in the end.”
Was that how he saw me? I flushed from head to toe at the image he was painting, so different from how I envisioned myself, but I could feel his sincerity through the bond. I knew he wasn’t lying; knew he wasn’t paying me empty compliments. He believed them right down to his core.
How did I ever get so lucky? I had no idea. I knew I was more determined than ever to break my curse and help Kai end the war ravaging our lands. I was tired of having my life dictated by someone else before I was even born.
