Lifting her left hand, she held it before her and stared at it as if willing it to explode, or at least fire to life. “Traitor,” she said to it.
I quirked an eyebrow at the word but refrained from telling her to try harder again. I could feel the disappointment in her eyes, see it in the set of her shoulders. The fingers of her right hand dug deeper into the earth, trying to tap into something I couldn’t comprehend.
Much like her.
CHAPTER 28
Kobal
“You’ve become more of a watchdog than your hounds.” Bale tossed back her flame-red hair as she stepped beside me.
“Of course I am,” I grated through my teeth. “She must be protected.”
Bale’s mouth pursed as her eyes ran over me before she lifted one slender shoulder in a delicate shrug. “I know that, but we are all capable of protecting her. You must take a break once in a while.”
I knew they were all almost as capable as I was, but I was the strongest of them, their leader. I had helped to train them for battle; I trusted any one of them with my life. Then why didn’t I trust any of them with River’s? No, I trusted them with her; I just didn’t like the idea of not being there to see her.
She had managed to slip out on me last night after all. She would definitely get past one of them if she chose to do so.
“Are you screwing her?” Bale inquired.
“No, she’s vital to the mission.”
Bale snorted. “So, you haven’t tried then?”
I didn’t bother to respond to her as I focused on the mass of humans swarming to get into line. I refused to leave River alone in this mess after the way they’d started to treat her. A frightened human was a dangerous thing, and they were definitely afraid of her. They were also jealous of her. It was a combination I worried would get her hurt.
Not to mention, I saw the way some of the men still watched her. Despite their fear of her, she was alluring and they would bed her if given the chance. I may not be able to have her, but I’d kill any one of them before I allowed them to take her.
“I thought so,” Bale continued. “It’s in our nature. We take what we want, but for once, deny yourself. Humans tend to put more value into sex than we do. It will only cause complications if you get mixed up with her.”
“It is none of your concern, and we willnotbe discussing it.”
She lifted an eyebrow and her jaw clenched, but she didn’t say another word. It was rare I didn’t want to hear what she or Corson had to say, but I would not discuss River with either of them right now.
River emerged from the crowd. She didn’t bother to glance at the tables around her. She kept her head held high as she wound through the people who hastily stepped away from her. Her step hesitated when she spotted us and her brow furrowed, but she continued forward.
“What are you doing here?” she demanded when she stopped before me.
“Hello to you too,” I greeted dryly while Bale grinned annoyingly.
River glanced between the two of us before brushing by me to walk out the door. I turned to follow her, glowering at any man who turned to watch her passing. A young solider blanched and turned quickly away when my lips skimmed back and I bared my teeth at him.
“What are you doing?” she hissed.
“Making sure you stay safe,” I replied.
She shot me a look over her shoulder. “I don’t need a guard dog, and part of the reason they don’t like me is because of what they consider your excessive attention to me.”
“And the fire shooting from your hands,” Bale pointed out. “They didn’t really like that much either.”
“And the fire,” River agreed with a roll of her eyes.
She walked over to a large tree and settled beneath it. Her back rested against the trunk as she unwrapped her sandwich. I found myself fascinated by the mundane movements she somehow managed to pull off with an easy grace most of her species lacked.
Is she more demon or angel?
She seemed to be such a perfect combination of the two species that I didn’t know which part could be stronger. Add in her humanity, which was something both demons and angels sorely lacked, and she was an enchanting combination I found irresistible. The angels were nearly as ruthless as we were from what I’d been told. They simply treated souls better than we did, but then they didn’t get the souls we received either. I’m sure they would have been more than happy to make Stalin’s eternity as excruciating as we had.
