Slowly, he lowered himself on one knee, followed by the rest of the black clan. I shifted my gaze from face to face of those who remained standing, until one after another, the white warriors took a knee, bowing their heads. The whole room fell intensely quiet, and for the first time, I accepted the reverence without second thought. Slowly I lowered myself to the throne, wrapping my fingers around the wooden armrests encrusted with gemstones. My nails traced the stitching of the leather.
Tynan stepped toward me, his eyes never leaving mine. I watched every move he made as blood rushed through my veins like liquid fire. At that moment, everything around me disappeared. If we were alone, I would have forced him down on the throne and straddled him until my overwhelming euphoria either subsided, or transformed into something else. Out of nowhere, the memories of his hot lips tracing my spine filled my head, and a ravaging flame ignited my blood. The way he made me feel was nothing I could ever take for granted.
Tynan stood beside the throne, facing the others, with his hand on his sword, black as a raven's wing.
“Such a great success!” Sage proclaimed as he finished his long and descriptive breakdown of what happened earlier in the throne room.
Tynan lifted his eyebrows, removing his sword.
Once I claimed Rutherford’s throne, we did not stay long in the auditorium. If the old clan leader lacked the courage to meet us, then he will have to deal with the consequences. As Sage explained it, everyone knew that his failure to appear had only shown his weakness, and his inability to protect his own people.
“Do you really think so?” I turned to Sage.
“Oh, milady. That move was, for lack of a better word, perfection in and of itself, as nearly all of your decisions.” Sage’s eyes lingered on my husband.
With the help of servants, who clearly had no idea who was in charge now, we were placed in a comfortable set of rooms with double doors separating the bedroom from a massive seating area. There were multiple pieces of art on the walls set in golden frames, comfortable leather chairs and low side tables. The gorgeous balcony doors were opened wide, showing the darkened sky lit with stardust. Soft, barely distinguishable, music made its way into the room.
“Alright. It's getting late. We need to rest.” Tynan walked Sage all the way to the door without further ceremony.
“I ordered dinner for you, and rest assured, someone is going to test all of your food. I will personally see to it. And I’m placing guards by the door. There’s nothing you need to be worried about.” Sage extended his neck, trying to catch my eye while Tynan attempted to shut the door in his face.
I remained standing where I was, watching Tynan carefully locking the door. The muscles on his shoulders and back flexed. I took a step closer as he turned. His eyes were enigmatic, dangerous, alluring.
Did he think that I undermined his authority? Was he mad? No, that wasn’t it.
I could feel him with every inch of my skin. Heat pooled deep down in my abdomen and I could not stop the blush that painted my cheeks.
Everything turned into an outpouring of emotions that finally gushed out, finding their long awaited release. Our clothes were thrown to the floor and our bodies intertwined with desperate, overwhelming need. His lips traveled up from my hip bones, making me crazed and craving for more. I tugged on his hair, arching my back on the soft carpet. Tynan’s lips slowly made their way up to my breasts but I could not wait any longer.
I pulled him on top of me, greedily taking his lips. I was hungry for him, I was wild, unapologetic for what I wanted. He gave me everything I so desperately needed; his burning, intense eyes, his skin on mine as he guided my hips. I could not hold my gasps any longer. As I was about to fall, his hand found mine and our fingers intertwined.
CHAPTER THIRTY
FRID
It was midday when I found the hidden entrance, the one Amira used when she brought us to the compound. My heart was racing when I finally made it all the way through the abandoned store and knocked on the steel door. I remembered Mahin had told me that they guarded every entrance since the Scars gave them so much trouble. I did not even realize that I was holding my breath while I waited for someone to respond. Finally, a faint noise sounded on the other side.
When the door opened, I lowered myself down the stairs, and into the labyrinth of halls. The sight of the familiar glass jars filled with shimmering light gave me an odd sense of comfort. The woman who guarded the entrance did not ask me anything and I was glad of it. I was much too tired to even think properly. When we made it to the main chamber, the woman turned back to return to her post and I followed the familiar pathway. Everyone I passed stared at me as if they had just seen a ghost. Then it occurred to me that I had been gone the entire night and the whole morning. I had to let Victor know I was alright.
With that thought, I rushed straight to our room. But, when I got to our chamber, he was not there. I exhaled, feeling the sharp sting of disappointment. He was probably enjoying the food or flirting with the sisters, but I was too exhausted to care. I could not take off my weapon fast enough before dropping into bed.
The endless, mildly irritating dreams followed one after another. Victor was there; he was saying something that annoyed me to no end. Then he tried to take off my boots and I protested, but no matter what I did, he would not leave me alone. Finally, I opened my eyes, staring at the man himself. Victor was holding my foot in his hand.
“What? What the . . .” I muttered.
“Go back to sleep.” He removed my boot.
I sat up. Victor did not look like his normal self. He looked pale and exhausted. His hair was more disheveled, like he had raked through it over and over. His eyes bore a serious and a gloomy expression, a line creased between his eyebrows.
“What?” I asked.
Before answering, he dropped into the chair. “I don’t want you to do missions for them,” he finally said.
“Why?”
“It’s too dangerous.”
“How do you know? You weren’t there.” It was a weak defense, but I was not prepared to be ambushed the first thing after waking up.
