Page 27 of King of Serpents

“The elder Aglatha,” she echoed. “Let me get this straight—you want to take me deeper?” A note of bewilderment crept into her voice as she raised her eyebrows at him in an expression of absolute disbelief. “Isn’t that counterproductive? We are trying to get me out of here, not bury me.”

“It is only for the time being, and you will be far more comfortable,” he soothed, his voice vibrating subtly with a soft hum. “And more importantly, few venture into the elder tunnels, and no one to those depths. You will be safe there.”

The sound had an immediate effect on her. Tension slowly eased from her expression and drained away as she regarded him, though she fought against the effects by stubbornly crossing her arms over her chest.

“I don’t know. How is that going to get me closer to the colony? No one would expect us just to go for broke and bolt to the surface.”

“True,” he agreed drily. “Though it would put us in imminent danger, because the guards would most certainly give chase. Additionally, it would also draw the attention of hunters outside of the shinara. I am strong, but I am not the incarnation of Higthar.”

She deflated a bit, but she sighed and bobbed her head in agreement. “You are right. I assume you have some sort of plan if you are wishing to take me to deeper levels below the palace.”

He snapped his gavo thoughtfully. “I am convinced that there are other pathways that lead out to the main caverns from the elder shinara. We just need to locate them. However, the tunnels are not something that can be carelessly rushed into. And certainly not for a human alone,” he added, giving her a hard look.

Alex sighed again but inclined her head in assent, even though she pinched the bridge of her nose and massaged the point to relieve the tension apparently gathering there. “Alright. I can’t deny that you’ve got a point. Just bolting back to the colony will just cause all kinds of problems, not to mention seriously damage whatever you are trying to do here.”

He smiled and dipped his head, pleased with her consideration and concern. The shinara needed him too much to exile him, but returning would certainly make it more difficult for him to operate without strict oversight.

Alex bumped the wall with her shoulder, and she leaned against it. “So, what is the first step?”

“A bed,” he said firmly as he began to gather up a few furs in his arms. “I cannot take much at once, but no one will notice if I am carrying a few furs or a couple of small bags tucked under my wings.” He held the furs aloft. “I will take these down there and return.”

She fidgeted in place as she watched him pick a few more choice furs from his nest for her. He would only provide her with the best and most comfortable. It was the least he could do.

“You aren’t going to just dump me there so that you can conveniently forget about me, are you?” she asked, giving voice to a worry that he hadn’t even realized she had.

Therxian held her gaze, determined that she feel and understand his sincerity. “Never,” he rumbled, and he held up the furs. “I would not be giving you the best of my furs if that were my intention.”

She smiled at the fur and walked toward it to brush her fingers over the soft surface. The gesture was innocent but he felt an echo of it caress him, fanning his desire. “These are beautiful,” she murmured, and her eyes lifted to meet his. “Aren’t you worried that someone will notice you transporting these?”

He dipped his chin in the negative. “It is common for males and females both to trade furs and other supplies. If I do not draw attention to myself and do not carry an excessive amount all at once, no one will give it a second thought.”

“I see,” she murmured.

“Just watch,” he hissed gleefully, tucking the bundle of furs beneath his arm

It was not enough to draw even the smallest amount of curiosity. Not one guard so much as glanced his way. Jathella gave him a puzzled look a time or two, but she did not interfere or distract him with questions. It took him hours to build the nest over the course of the night. There was much to be done, but taking things to the deeper tunnels of the elder shinara at a greater frequency extended the hours in which he steadily worked way beyond his comfort level as the air rapidly began to dry with the rising of the sun. By the time he finished, he only possessed just enough energy to fall into his bed, unconsciously seeking out and curling around Alex’s small, sleeping form before sleepily dragging her into his arms and tucking her beneath his wings.

He hummed softly to her as he petted her, his breath dragging in and out of him tiredly as a great weight settled within him with the arrival of the rising sun shifting the ganda in the air. He could second-guess himself about all of this later. Right now, holding her within his arms and beneath his wing comforted him and settled something deep within him as he drifted off to sleep.

Chapter 19

Not once since her sixteenth birthday—the age when she was old enough to be registered as a non-gratas class worker—had Alex thought that she would ever lack something to do long enough to be bored. Certainly not after she was enlisted to Darvel. At her odd posts over the years, it wasn’t unheard of for meals to be eaten in bites in between projects or carried on the go to be consumed while going from one place to another. There never seemed to be enough time for anything, and she hated how she barely had enough downtime to catch a few scant hours of sleep before she had to be on the go again. But this new lack of activity was another kind of hell that she had never considered.

“So bored,” she groaned, sinking to the ground beside the vent.

Therxian glanced up at her from the device he was tinkering with, his gavo lifting curiously. “Did you not just recently kill something?” he observed.

Alex grimaced. “Yeah, but the thrill of the hunt was too brief.”

The male hummed in what she chose to believe was sympathy as he turned the metal sphere around in his hand and brought it up to rest it against the base of his throat. Alex straightened a bit as she watched the sphere glow as Therxian hummed a pitch that shifted in and out of her hearing range.

“What are you doing, anyway?”

His eyes shifted to her, and he fell silent. “Programming it,” he replied. “Tomorrow is another selection, and this time I wish to be prepared.”

“Prepared?” she echoed. She scooted closer, intrigued despite herself. “How is a shiny, glowing golf ball going to help fend off a wanna-be baby-momma.”

His gavo twitched, his eyes narrowing at her slightly with a baffled expression that made her grimace apologetically in response.