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I had not seen him standing there, I had not noticed over my fear and sheer will to get away.
His voice was quiet as he asked, “What have you done now?”
The moon above sparkled, night still blanketed the world under its dark sheet while the stars danced across the sky-twinkling and laughing as the world slumbered. The way the light hit him though had my stomach flipping, the thoughts of him and the way he touched me from my dream caused my cheeks to flush. He was wearing the white cotton shirt from my dream; unbuttoned halfway down his front, the bottom of it tucked into the top of his trousers.
His hair was tousled like he had been pulled from sleep. The bags under his eyes told me he had. He wore no cloak or jacket, it was as if he had sprung from bed at a moment’s notice. The muscles of his arms tensed under the sleeves of his shirt. Flexing as they held onto me.
“Serra?”
His face contorted into an expression that was hard to read, a mix of irritation and concern, but which one was dominant, I couldn't tell. My mind wanted to believe that he cared about my safety, but I knew that was ridiculous. He was probably more bothered by the fact that I had disrupted his sleep. I struggled to speak, my breaths coming in ragged gasps as I tried to regain my composure.
“Trolls. . . chasing. . .ran. . . away.”
The sound that escaped from between his lips had me stepping away from him, I couldn’t tell if he was exasperated by this inconvenience or annoyed by having to be here, by our encounter yet again. Ripped from slumber just as I had been.
Good. I thought glowering at him, my voice finding more solid ground, “I did not purposely ask for this. I did not ask to be chased by a hive of murderous Rock Trolls that want to pull my limbs from my sockets, thank you very much!”
He eyed me cautiously, his eyes narrowing.
I really would not be here running for my life if it wasn’t for this vexing male before me and his stupid game.
As I glared at him, the overwhelming urge to lash out surfaced once again. My fists curled and my nails dug into the palms of my hands. Taking a deep breath, I steadied myself and suppressed the rage that bubbled up inside me. I knew I couldn't succumb to anger or violent outbursts, not now and not in front of him, especially with the threat still looming behind me in the caves.
“How did you get away? Very few survive the Caves of Desire let alone the hive of Rock Trolls that live within its dwellings. Or any of the other demonic and unworldly inhabitants, why were you in them in the first place? What could you possibly have been thinking? It’s a surprise you were not lured away, or enslaved.” His voice pulled my attention back.
My blood ran cold as he spoke, the idea that there were otherthingsthat lived within had every nerve in my body going numb. I tried to swallow- tried to push down the lump in my throat and ease the feeling in my chest. But I found it far too difficult to do as I watched the male before me.
As I caught my breath, I watched the Goblin King pace to the edge of the cave entrance, his expression etched with concern. Despite the looming darkness outside, I found it less intimidating than what I had just fled from.
Even in his presence.
“I just wanted to sleep.” I whispered.
“There are safer places for that.” He responded, not bothering to look at me.
I couldn’t help but wonder if this had been a set-up, if he was working with Jesper to lure me inside. Hopeful that I would come to an end at the hands of another creature, and in turn keeping what belonged to me. My fear had subsided slightly, replaced by a mix of anger and sadness. How could he accuse me of not being careful? I had escaped the trolls and made it this far. But then again, he couldn’t know that, could he? We had barely spoken to each other, and even then, it had been brief.
For a moment I let the thought simmer, anger building in my chest as it replaced the fear, but the feeling did not last long. I felt the blood drain from my face as I thought of Hendrix.
His name a whisper on my lips.
The Goblin King whirled on me. His eyes found mine as he asked, “Hendrix is inside?”
I nodded softly, my voice meek, “He allowed me the time I needed to get away. Got me through the labyrinth of stone and rock.”
I was fairly certain without Hendrix I would not have escaped. I was unsure of the look he wore, it was a cross between fury and concern. Unknown if he was angry at me or feared for what could have happened. He mumbled something to himself, his eyes cast down. After a moment the Goblin King spoke again. His words were firmer than any other time we had encountered each other.
“You should not linger here, Serra. Keep going.” He turned back toward the cave, the sound of the trolls did not reach us but the fright they had left me with had me grabbing his arm.
“What are you doing?”
He glanced over at me, his eyes flickered with another unknown emotion. But there was a warning in them, so I yanked my hand back. Another wave of dread washed over me, the Goblin King’s voice rang as he spoke, his words caused a cold chill to run down my spine.
“If you do not keep going, something far more dangerous could find its way out of those caves.”
The tension in the air was thick and palpable as the Goblin King's warning echoed through my mind. I couldn't shake the feeling of dread that settled in my gut as I stared at him, unsure of what to do or say. His words had cut through me like a knife, and I couldn't help but wonder what he meant by ‘something far more dangerous.’ I knew I couldn't stay here any longer, but at the same time, I didn't want to leave without knowing more.
I asked softly, my voice barely above a whisper. “What did you mean by that? What's in the caves?”
