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I had to live up to expectations. Honor my people’s indelible support of the Summerstream clan.
What was the alternative? To wed Zoei? To claim her publicly as my mate? Two royal Alphas together… Goddess, how would that even work?
I let myself sink into the velvet, wishing it would envelope me for a few minutes of peace. No Cryssa, no Zoei, no Almanera.
Just the warm, welcome embrace of rest.
Chapter Twenty-Five
Olympia
“Your pacing is making me dizzy.”
The irritable rasp brought tears to my eyes.
I turned with a gasp, rushing to Zoei’s bedside. My feet moved so quickly that I almost tripped over the corner of the carpet.
“You’re awake!” I leaned over her pillow to inspect her color. She was still paler than usual, but her pulse had picked up. “Let me get the doctor. He just stepped away.”
“No.” Her grip was firm as she held my wrist before I could move. “Don’t. I’m fine.”
“But your wound…” I protested.
“Can’t feel it,” she insisted. “Promise.”
“How about some water at least?” I offered, noting how cool her skin still felt.
She nodded, and I filled a large glass with water from the side table. She drank quickly, and asked for another.
“Tell me Almanera is dead,” she said, setting the glass down and swiping at her lips. “Tell me I killed him.”
“He is,” I assured her. “It was a joint effort.”
She fell back against the pillows with a gusty sigh, staring at the gilded ceiling.
“The stalagmites,” she whispered, as though recalling a memory long forgotten. “That was an impressive move. Very unexpected.”
I perched on the edge of her bed, fiddling with the covers.
“I don’t know if you should be praising me,” I said slowly, knowing how Zoei would react. “He wanted to better his people. He simply chose a horrible way to do it.”
She speared me with her gaze. “I knew it! You’ve always been squeamish about using your powers. How can you defend that bastard?”
I shrugged. “If it was wealth or personal gain he sought, then perhaps I would have the same sentiment as you. But he wished for the borderlands to have its own governance. That’s…” I paused. “Not a terrible dream to have.”
“His dream involvedkillingboth of us and consolidating the political power of Vetri and Agnivale!” she sputtered, a lovely bloom of red unfurling on her cheeks. It was a joy to see those splotches afterhoursof grayness.
I touched her bare arm, tracing the veins that still stood out almost a day later. The thick cords pulsed with each heartbeat, assuring me that she was safe, and very much within her power. Ample undisturbed rest and the doctor’s visits had restored most of what she’d expended yesterday.
Expendedsounded generous. The truth was that Zoei had depleted herself to save us. She had given every last bit of her powers to ensure I lived to see another day.
“Almanera would have succeeded in killing us all,” I said, placing our fingers together. “If you hadn’t done what you did.”
“The truth is,” she said a little sheepishly. “Anger got the best of me. Again.”
A little smile tugged at the corners of my lips. “I’m not surprised. You’ve always been a fool.”
“A fool that saved your life,” she scoffed. “Well, tried to, anyway.”
