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He releases a slow breath. “Thank you for taking care of her. And thank you for keeping her safe.”
I shouldn’t have to tell him that she’s done as much for us as we have for her. He should know that, if he knows her at all. I shouldn’t have to tell him that protecting her isn’t a choice for us. It’s who we are, who she makes us . And I want to kill him because he doesn’t know, because he’s reduced her importance to us to nothing more than a duty rather than an honor, rather than a desire, rather than passionate obsession.
"She's my mate," I tell him, choosing each word with care. "That's my job."
His gaze sharpens. "I know you three think she's your mate and that she's important to this battle of yours..."
"There's nothinkabout it, on both accounts."
"I guess she's the one who will decide that though," he says, running his fingers through that short hair of his. Not nervously, but almost like he feels sorry for me, like he knows her choice, and it won't be to stay with us.
“Are you going to take her away from us?” The question might make me weak, but the answer has the power to crush me. To destroy all of us. And I get the sense that so far in this conversation, he’s dodged whatever he truly thinks. Whatever he’s planning.
He sizes me up with a glance, with a gaze so stark it’s clear what he wants. But instead of honestly telling me that, he shakes his head and shrugs. If he had pockets, he would shove his hands in them. “I don’t know. Like I said, it’s up to Ann and what she wants. That’s all that’s ever mattered to me. All that ever will.”
And fuck if I know what she wants.
“If you try to take her, I’ll kill you.”
Some men have whimpered when I've spoken similar words. Others have cowered. But this Rayne? He gets that look of pity on his face once more. Probably because he knows that as much as I'd want to kill him for taking our Ann, I wouldn't. Because she's not just some prize, some possession, some tool to win this war. She's a woman, a person, and if she decides to leave with this man... we'll let her.
Because what else can we do?
I turn away from him, heart in my throat. Tonight, we won a battle, but we may very well have lost the war.
3
Ann
The cave is quiet and awkward. Rayne had kissed me before saying he needed to step out for some air. I wasn't sure if it was because I was exhausted, but the second he left I picked up on just about every emotion in the cave... and the emotions weren't good. Onyx and Dusk seemed to be more angry and jealous than upset after the battle. Part of me wanted to shout at them, to ask them if this is really the time and the place for this kind of nonsense. But another part of me wonders how I would feel if some old mate from their past life came back.
The thought alone makes my teeth clench together. As wrong as it might be, I would never want another woman touching them, being near them in any sort of romantic capacity. At the Royal Fae Academy, Rayne was constantly hit on by other women. They knew I was his fated mate and there would be no one else for him, but they didn't care. They saw me as so far beneath him logically that it might be the one time a mate-bond could be broken. At least, I'm assuming that's what they thought. The thing is, it didn't bother me that much. I knew I wasn't the prettiest, the smartest, or the most powerful. But I also knew that Rayne barely noticed the women, so this rise of jealousy inside of me over a non-existent woman is new to me, and a bit of a hard pill to swallow.
Rubbing the back of my neck, looking between the two men who seem upset, I drink more water from the waterskin I'd been given and eat more of the jerky. My muscles feel tight. My head aches, and my body has that sore feeling that comes after a hard workout. The thought of laying down right now and falling fast asleep sounds amazing, but I close the waterskin and finish the jerky, knowing that no matter how much I might want to rest, there's still more work to be done.
Dusk's wound might be healed, but his chest still has a massive black and blue bruise on it, and I can see him wincing and holding back a groan every time he moves. If I can help him, if I can ease even a little of his pain, I need to. Regardless of the tension in the room.
If I can.
My magic isn’t without limitations. I know it. They know it. And I'm wondering if I can even do more tonight after all I'd already done.
I move closer to Dusk, and he puts one hand up. “No.”
No?Since when doesn't Dusk want me to touch him? Since when does Dusk tell meno?
“Dusk.” I try to keep my voice gentle. "I want to help." I want to ease his suffering. But when he glances at me, there's a fire blazing in his eyes, mistrust where it used to be only trust.
“Are you leaving with him?”
Oh. I thought the men were just upset about Rayne appearing back in my life; I hadn't considered anything after that. But now it's suddenly making a lot more sense. They're afraid I'm going to leave them.
"Just let me try to heal you." I reach for him again, but he jerks back from me, hissing in pain.
Which makes me feel about an inch tall.
He would rather suffer than have me touch him. Rather just lie there in pain if there's any chance that I might be walking away from him and his brothers. But I don't want his healing to be connected to whatever decision I might make in the future. These things aren't connected. Not in any way. And yet, it seems clear he won't let me help until I give him an answer.
Whatever that answer might be.
