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I lowered my voice, forcing myself to be as calm as possible to keep from upsetting her further. "If you even think of laying a single finger on her, I will present your head as a gift to your beloved sister. Do you understand me?" My fangs lengthened, and my wolf paced, ready for a fucking fight.
"I think Byriel's right." Lex's cheerful tone cut through the tension. He walked up to Tzidal and wrapped his arms around her shoulders, completely unaffected by the rage that hung in the air. "Obviously, his sister has some guards on her side, but the wolves at Vaesen weren't aware of any orders from the King."
Byriel gave Lex a curt nod, obviously thankful to have someone on his side. Then he looked Tzidal hard in the eye before dropping the flint on the ground. "The King would never kill me. He believes in the sanctity of royal blood."
"Royal blood," Lex snorted. "As if your flesh would taste any sweeter than a maid's."
Byriel's expression was pinched as he narrowed his eyes at Lex. "For someone that lives and hunts in wolf-territory, you seem very comfortable mocking our ways. I don't care for it."
"I'm comfortable saying whatever the hell I want, sunshine." Lex tipped his chin up, giving the alpha a piercing glare. "But I'm done talking about this today. It's boring, and I'm hungry."
Lex stepped past me, stopping just next to Byriel. "If you have a problem with my attitude, you know where to find me. You may think you're at the top of the food chain, but when the sun sets, the real monsters of Havre come out to play, and I would love to see if your royal blood soaks into the dirt any slower."
Byriel lowered his chin to look down at the smirking siren. "I look forward to both of us bleeding for our cause."
The Cave
Tzidal
* * *
"This is a good one,"I yelled over my shoulder as I entered the small cave.
This part of the mountains had many caves for us to take shelter. Some were too small or already occupied by other wildlife, but we didn't have to look too far to find a decent place to sleep for the night.
Byriel stepped inside and dropped the satchel. He kicked at a few old, burnt logs in the center of a poorly made fire pit. "I think we should go without a fire tonight, but I leave it up to you," the alpha said. "I plan to keep vigil outside the cave. I want to see if our shadow shows their face."
"Be careful. We just got you and Joon back to good health, and I don't want to throw that away with a sleepy fall from a tree." I settled on the soft dirt. There were very few pebbles or stones, and I was confident it would be a fairly comfortable night's sleep. "If you see Lex, will you tell him where we're camping? I'm sure he'll be out all night, but I don't want him to worry."
Byriel rolled his eyes, making me smile. It was a rather animated reaction for the usually stoic wolf. "I'm sure the siren will be fine. He's at the top of the food chain after all."
Before Vaesen, Byriel had seemed almost relaxed, but since the battle with Hida, he had pulled into himself. I couldn't blame him. Hida said so many horrible things about the King hating Bryiel. It would have broken my heart too, to think my father wanted me dead.
Bryriel turned toward the cave's entrance, but I yelled out, stopping him. "About what we said at the witch's house." Guilt twisted in my gut. "I know this can't be easy for you. And I'm sorry for not trusting you before. I just—"
"Please don't apologize, omega." He lowered his head, bringing himself to my level. His green eyes were rather striking, even in the dim light. "I understand your mistrust. I deserve it. Please know, I would never hold it against you for being honest."
"I just want to say that while I know our paths are going in different directions, I appreciate your help so far. I feel that." I swallowed hard, gathering all the mercy in my bones, "you've fulfilled your debt to me. I forgive you for your part in killing my mate. My Korban."
Byriel stared at me. His dark eyes went a little glassy, but there was no other indication he had heard me. Finally, he cleared his throat. "Thank you," he whispered, his voice gruff. "That means...very much to me."
His mouth curved slightly, almost resembling a smile. It made him appear younger and kind. While he was always polite—sometimes to the point of annoyance—he never came across as especially friendly. Or perhaps he had just been too exhausted for the emotion. I understand that. I was sure I hadn't been very friendly either.
"You have been nothing but courteous with me even though you have no reason," he said. "That is not something I will soon forget."
He gave a quick nod, then disappeared into the forest, not giving me a chance to respond. The gentle movement of leaves and the groan of a few branches drifted toward me. Then it went quiet.
"I think this will help," Joon said as he entered the cave.
He carried something wrapped tightly in a black shirt. I glanced at the garment, deciding it was probably time to switch out my dirty, green robes for one of the uniforms we had swiped from Vaesen.
Moving cautiously, Joon dumped a bright crystal into the center of the fire pit. A chunk of luminite gave off a soft yellow glow. It was warm and cozy, and so tempting to touch. I reached out, but Joon pulled my hand back quickly.
"It'sveryhot," he said, placing the shirt in my hand so I could feel the heat that had soaked into the fabric.
"Where is everyone?" he asked, settling beside me. His scent was smokey and sweet, and wrapped completely around me in the small space. It was bliss.
"It's just us tonight," I smiled, looking forward to snuggling my alpha without Lex's sassy commentary or Byriel's stuffy presence.
