Page 35 of Ashborne: Defiance

We both did, but at least I’d had the freedom to reach the water. Been able to rinse away grime and wet my hair and—

“We do,” he said flatly. “And then we’ll need to get you back to the castle. They’ll be looking for you. But if you’re wearing these clothes and looking that tired, you can just tell them you got lost and they won’t—”

I took a quick, sharp step back, shaking my head. Vane’s brows shot up.

“I’m… no,” I whispered. “I’m not going back.”

His jaw went tight and his head eased back. I recognized the posture of a man about to explain why things could not be, and rushed on before he had a chance to speak.

“Koa says that she and I are linked now. That we’ll be together forever. And that’s… that’s what I want. It’s what I’ve always wanted,” I said, hating myself for the pleading in my tone.

“Grace, I know this has been a shock, but the world has not stopped while we’ve been… distracted,” he said coldly. “You’re a woman of the blood. Your absence hasn’t been ignored. If the people who know you aren’t shown that you’re alive and well—”

“I can’t. I won’t!” I insisted, and took another step back from him in case he tried to grab me. “I will not be forced back into the arms of a—”

“No one is forcing you anywhere. This has all been about not forcing you—remember?” he snapped.

I took a third, startled step back at the fury in his gaze. But I didn’t flee. I would not flee.

‘I’m not leaving you!’ I sent to Koa.

She murmured sleepily in my head. ‘Do not fear, Firebird. We are forever.’

Those words soothed the panic a little. But it flared again when I met Vane’s gaze once more. He’d folded his arms and stared down at me, his jaw hard. “You’re noble. You understand duty,” he muttered.

Hot, angry panic flared in my chest. “Yes, I understand duty,” I snapped back. “I also know what a stubborn, arrogant pig looks like!” I didn’t know where the words had come from, and clapped a hand over my mouth as Vane’s brows shot up again.

“I’m not suggesting you have to return to the castle forever, Grace. But we have to let them know you’re safe. Otherwise—”

“No! I won’t do it!”

“You aren’t listening to me!”

“You’re the one who’s not listening!” I stabbed a finger at his chest. His hand shot out, faster than a blink, to clamp on my wrist.

I inhaled sharply and instinctively reared back to pull myself free, but he held me, his fingers curling all the way around my wrist like a manacle, his knuckles white. And the moment my weight shifted, he jerked me closer.

Imbalanced, I stumbled. My other hand landed on his chest, palm flat, right at the center, while he caught my waist with his free hand, to steady me.

A crackling jolt of something shot through me from the point where my palm planted on his chest, up my arm, through my body, to clang behind my navel.

He swore and jerked both hands off me, stumbling backward, wide-eyed.

We broke apart, both panting, and came to a silent halt, staring at each other.

A piece of that simmering want had bubbled up again, trilling behind my belly-button. But it was a thrill. A tease. Not the aching, inconceivable drive of the days before.

Sweat had broken out on Vane’s brow again, but his gaze narrowed. He wiped his forehead with the back of his hand without breaking eye-contact.

“I’m not going back,” I said quietly.

“Yes, you are. Even if it’s only to—”

There was a flash, a grunt, a deep hiss, and the resonant snort of air pushed through a set of lungs the size of a small pony.

I sucked in a breath to scream, but then released it in a shaky laugh when I realized Vane lay on the ground, both hands above his head in surrender.

And Koa stood over him, one foot planted on his chest, and each of her five talons pinioning him to the dirt, just inches from each limb. Her scales flashed red in the sunlight—one moment near black, then she shifted and the sun sparked shining crimson.