You did nothing wrong,I insisted as I raised my eyes to his tormented gaze.
Is this what is holding him back from me?
Riordan looked down at the forearm guards left lying on the ground between us, and it was obvious he was still unsure exactly what had happened. He had seen the scars and the brands, but he did not understand the meaning. This was not the kind of vile reality that ever touched the griffins who were born in the Mountain City.
I merely gave him a mental nod, knowing that the full sordidtruth needed to come from Orion.
The confirmation that whatever had held hisskiáback from him was now in the open between them seemed to give Riordan determination. He shifted toward us slowly, and I felt Orion tense in my arms as his breathing grew quicker once more. I squeezed him and kissed his head again, which seemed to calm him, and he did not object any further to our king approaching our position.
Riordan knelt next to me, his hands clenching on his knees as if he wanted to reach for Orion but was forcing himself to refrain from it.
“I am sorry. I did not intend to cause pain or distress,” Riordan began softly.
I stroked a hand over Orion’s hair as he drew in a slow, deep breath and then nodded.
Riordan hesitated, his eyes lowering to hisskiá’sarms, which Orion clenched against his chest. I knew my king wanted to ask about the scars, but he was worried about how the query would impact Orion. I watched his resolve solidifying on his face until he nodded to himself.
“I want to understand, Orion.”
I looked down at the Ktínos who seemed to draw his knees closer in reluctance before unleashing a shaky sigh. Then his body eased again, but it slackened in a way I did not like at all. It was as if he felt defeated and was giving in to something he thought that he had no control over. And the knowledge of why his body would have taught itself to react that way to stress made me fuckingill.
“Only if you want to, Orion. But I truly think you will feel better once this is off your chest,” I assured him.
Riordan stiffened suddenly, and at first I thought that it was in response to my words before I saw the way he was looking in disbelief down at Orion.
He thinks that I will find him reprehensible afterthis, Riordan explained.
He shifted closer to us more confidently so he could lean over Orion. I watched with my heart in my throat as he kissed hisskiáright over where my lips had touched. Riordan trailed kisses down to Orion’s temple and then reached up to brush his hand through Orion’s hair with a breathtaking tenderness. The touch made hisskiágo slack in my arms again but not like a helpless animal in a trap. More like a person who finally felt safe.
After another moment of gentle coaxing from Riordan, Orion finally unfurled his arms. He rested his elbows on my knees to expose his brands and scars.
Riordan stared at the marks for a long moment before reaching for them. He hesitated when Orion tensed but then pushed forward in determination to brush his thumb over the rough skin as if touching it could explain it.
“Who did this to you?” Riordan growled.
“I did,” Orion spoke aloud for the first time since his frantic outburst, and his voice was hoarse.
“Why?” Riordan asked him.
“I was trying to get the brands off my flesh.”
“The tattoos?” Riordan verified, as his thumb shifted from the scars to the brands. Orion flinched, his face hard as he watched Riordan touching the part of him that he seemed to find the most disgusting.
“They are brands,” Orion reiterated, voice brittle with his self-loathing. “I do not belong to myself.”
“What do you mean?” asked Riordan. He managed to keep his voice steady, but I sensed his rising alarm.
“I am a slave,” Orion stated dully. He stared straight through Riordan’s chest with eyes so distant that it broke my heart all over for him.
Riordan inhaled sharply and then seemed to quell his immediate fury as quickly as it threatened to spill over. His mind was a vault, all I could sense now was a rumble of his growing rage behind his shields.
“You are no such thing,” he said once he’d composed himself well enough to speak without shouting.
“I am—”
“You belong to yourself, Orion. Youalwaysbelonged to yourself, and no brand could ever change it. Now who the fuck did this to you?” Riordan demanded more curtly, his composure beginning to slip again.
Orion began to tremble, not from fear this time but with the pure emotion wreaking havoc on him.
