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Runa flinched, but I held the Fire Reader’s stare. “I’m sure your flames have already shared our secrets.”
“They didn’t have to.” Solin sighed. “You did that by returning Runa to us with scratches on your back.”
I shouldn’t smile, but I did.
“Don’t look too pleased with yourself, Darro,” Solin muttered, his face falling. “You know as well as I do that only pain can come from this.” His eyes welled with water as true grief spilled down his cheeks.
Runa gasped and grabbed his hand. “Hey. It’s okay, Solin. Everything will be fine. You’ll see.”
Bringing their linked fingers to his mouth, Solin kissed her knuckles and sniffed back his tears. With a sharp smile, he shook his head. “No, it won’t, but I won’t stop trying to rectify what has been broken.” Glaring at me, he added, “Now, give my acolyte what you came to deliver and be gone. I need to speak to Runa alone.”
I didn’t have to obey.
He wasn’t my Spirit Master, and I wasn’t Nhil, but his pain was real.
I honoured that I wasn’t the only one who loved Runa enough to be terrified of what was coming. “Here.” I passed her the roots, flowers, and berries. “You’re hungry and need your strength.”
A breeze danced in her hair as she hugged the food. “Thank you.” Her amber eyes met mine, so different to last night when they’d blazed a brilliant gold as I sank inside her. There’d been no other colour. Just pure radiant power.
The moth was right.
She did look drained.
And I was the reason.
Risking Solin’s wrath and Aktor’s temper, I bent my knees and pressed a swift kiss to her cheek. “I’ll be close by. Come find me in the grasslands after dinner tonight.” My gaze landed on her mouth before I caught Solin’s pained stare.
Without another word, I struck off with Zetas at my heels, heading away from the hunters and back to the outskirts where I belonged.
Swift footsteps chased after me.
I spun with a smile, believing it was Runa.
But my smile twisted into a frown as Aktor slowed and dragged his fingernails over the shaved side of his skull.
Tral and Solin glared at us before moving forward, taking Runa with them.
I crossed my arms as Zetas grumbled, her fangs showing. “What do you want, Aktor?”
My legs bunched for a fight. My hands already fisted.
His nostrils flared as his jaw worked, anger glinted in his dark gaze, and the ash-snake over his shoulders glimmered faintly in the cloudy light. Finally, as if he’d worked through whatever emotion clogged his throat, he coughed, “Thank you.”
I stilled.
Zetas stopped grumbling.
“What did you say?”
He forced himself to meet my eyes. “I said thank you. I...owe you my gratitude.” He looked like he’d choke, but he added, “I would’ve died yesterday if it wasn’t for you. My father would’ve died. My people would’ve died.” He swallowed and muttered, “Runa would’ve died.”
“She would’ve died because of your stupidity,” I snapped. “You ran directly into danger without a thought to the consequences of the bind.”
He flinched. “I know. Believe me...I know.” He paced in front of me, tugging on the long braid of dark hair hanging over his shoulder. “I’m grateful to you for saving my clan and blessing our bellies with food that will last many winters. The fact that the hunt was so successful for our lupic build means my matehood with Runa will forever be bountiful, and I’m beginning to see what Solin does.”
Anger whipped warningly in my stomach.
When I didn’t speak, his eyes narrowed with determination. “She’s special. I see that now. She’s not a threat to my people like I believed. She’s a worthy partner to share the leadership with when my father and Solin pass the titles to us. Yesterday, I told her that I was afraid of her. That I felt trapped in this bind just as much as she does, but...” He squeezed the back of his neck. “After I ran toward the bison, knowing I would die—happily trading my life for my father and my clan, I found myself...upset that I would kill Runa with me.”
I swallowed an icy flush of rage, doing my best to listen and not retaliate.
Aktor looked toward the departing hunters, his gaze landing on Runa’s rare white hair swinging down her back. “She asked me yesterday why I choose war instead of peace between us, and...I no longer have a valid answer. I don’t want war anymore. I want peace. And Runa...she is worth making peace with.”
My stomach knotted; another gust of blackness seeped from my wrists.
Aktor noticed, backtracking a little. Zetas lowered her horned head, her hackles bristled.
He raised his hands. “I came to say thank you and...to give you a warning.” His voice hardened. “I won’t give her up. The fire won’t break the bind, and our hearts can’t survive without the other. In a few weeks, she won’t be yours to touch anymore but...until then...” He gritted his teeth and inhaled sharply. “I will look the other way. I will do what the Fire Reader asked me to do and give you time to say goodbye.”
