AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Times have changed,” Gavin said in a firm but reassuring tone. “You’ve all just saved us from getting mind-controlled by the Sarenians. Expect a hero’s welcome when you land. You have earned the entire planet’s gratitude.”
Could he be right? Could this have put the purebloods in a more favorable disposition towards us? I frowned as a different thought struck me.
“The question is whether they’ll be grateful to us or to you,” I challenged in a soft voice. “After all, without your unexpected arrival, our escape would have failed. We’ve heard the rumors about the population wanting you as their next Magnar. Deimos was also attempting to indoctrinate us to be your loyal servants as Braxia’s new ruler. This incredible rescue will undoubtedly make them want you even more.”
Gavin frowned and shook his head even as I spoke. “Maybe some of them will try to give me credit, but it doesn’t change your part in it. And as far as ruling Braxia is concerned, Keran is our future Magnar. Not me.”
“The future Magnar is whoever wins the battle in five weeks,” I gently reminded him. “As much as I pray he will be the one, I doubt that Keran will be recovered enough for the grueling fight he will have to face then. According to Krygor, the soonest a Veredian healer can tend to his wounds won’t be for at least three weeks from now. And as I understand it, the extent of his injuries will leave him weak for a few more weeks after that as he rebuilt his strength from the healer using up all his internal resources to mend him.”
My heart sank at the troubled look that settled on Gavin’s handsome face. Despite knowing the facts I had just laid out before him, a part of me had hoped he would have had counter arguments to put my fears to rest. I didn’t care whether Keran became a king or not. That had never been the source of my attraction to him. However, he had devoted his entire life preparing to play that role to the best of his abilities and for the benefit of our homeworld. In the weeks spent by his side, I had come to admire the man and a leader in him. I didn’t doubt that he would make the perfect Magnar. For his sake, I wanted to cling to hope.
The door opening spared Gavin from giving a response he didn’t seem to have. At the same time, the synthetic voice of the ship’s artificial intelligence announced our imminent landing. My stomach knotted once again, the tension that had receded during this conversation with Gavin coming back with a vengeance. The young man excused himself, leaving me with Orin.
The chief medical officer immediately busied himself around Keran.
“Are you sure it’s a good idea?” I asked Orin when he prepared to press a hypospray to Keran’s neck.
He gave me a sympathetic look, temporarily pausing his action to answer me. “In an ideal world, my dear Dawn, no, I would not awaken him. But everyone has heard what happened on Haven. If the Jakar returns home on a stretcher, it will give his detractors all the ammunition they need to convince others that he is unfit to rule. Our people are all about strength. Keran must be seen walking by his own power.”
I pinched my lips, totally unconvinced. I fully understood his arguments, but at this point, Keran’s health mattered more to me than whatever any naysayer might want.
“Do not fret,” Orin said in a soothing voice. “He has recovered enough that he will be fine, so long as we keep the civilities short. He must simply walk out, let his clan and the Council see him, and then he can retire to his chambers.”
I nodded stiffly while he proceeded to awaken Keran before administering him a powerful painkiller. With Orin’s assistance, I washed Keran’s face, helped him dress, and combed his hair. Despite being a little pale, he hid his pain remarkably well. Apparently, I wasn’t doing a good job of hiding my own distress. He reached for my cheek and gently caressed it.
“I’ll be fine, Dawn,” Keran said in a reassuring tone. “So long as you are by my side, all will be well.”
My throat tightened upon hearing those words. It had been an eternity since we’d had any type of romantic or private time together. In that instant, I realized I had ached to hear that he still needed and wanted me.
“Always,” I whispered, annoyed by the light trembling in my voice. “So long as you need me, I’ll be there.”
“I willalwaysneed you, Dawn.”
My heart melted when he drew me into his embrace and gave me the most wondrous kiss we had ever exchanged. It was tender and filled with respect and devotion that had me melting from the inside out.
Orin clearing his throat reminded us that we had an audience.
“We have landed,” he said with a sheepish expression, which clashed terribly with his fierce features.
Keran chuckled while my cheeks burned. Despite his weakened state, Keran took the lead as we headed to the exit of the ship. If I didn’t know better, he could have fooled me into thinking he was in full health.
As we approached the opened doors of the ship, my nervousness went into overdrive. Krygor had tried to reassure me by stating only a very small party would greet us, but at least fifty people stood outside the vessel. On the right side—which also had the largest group—the people standing appeared to be clan members and staff. On the left side, I recognized the faces of some of the more famous members of Magnar Ravik’s Council. My innards twisted painfully when my gaze glided over my sire’s face.
Although I had known that moment would inevitably come, I wasn’t as prepared for it as I had believed myself to be. Next to the Council, a stunning Guldan female with silver-white hair and black horns stood with a younger version of herself, as well as a beautiful hybrid child, half-Braxian, half-Guldan. They were Krygor’s wife Hope and their daughters. I couldn’t help giving the oldest daughter a second look. Beyond the fact that she was breathtakingly stunning, I wondered how such a sweet-looking young woman would fare married to the Sarenian Prince Zerien. My recent encounter with his people left me wary.
However, the striking couple standing directly before us reclaimed all my attention. Ravik Xeldar was even more imposing in person than in the images and recordings I’d seen of him. Even though Keran matched his father’s height and size, and despite being his spitting image, the Magnar’s inner power and aura of authority seemed to dwarf everything and everyone else. His brutish features testified that the purest Braxian blood ran in his veins. His smile as we walked down the ramp made me want to run for cover.
But his mate took my breath away. Dagna Mercy was the embodiment of feminine perfection. Like with all Veredians, her body had been sculpted by the Goddess herself. Dark spots, typical of her species, graced the sides of her arms and neck, those on her legs hidden by her long black skirt. Her raven hair fell down to her ankles in a single braid. Her black horns, marking her as a Guldan hybrid, sat on her head like a crown. She, too, exuded an aura of power, with a hefty dose of ‘don’t-fuck-with-me-if-you-know-what’s-good-for-you.’ And yet, the pitch-black depth of her eyes contained nothing but warmth as she watched us approach.
“Welcome home, my son,” Ravik said to Keran, meeting us at the bottom of the ramp.
He pulled him into his embrace, giving him a single manly tap on the back before releasing him. At a visceral level, I believed he had ached to hold him longer but forced himself to step away because we were in public.
“It’s good to be home, Father,” Keran said, his voice filled with a world of affection.
Mercy stepped forward kissing him on the cheek and caressing his hair in a maternal fashion that also moved me.
“Welcome home, Keran,” she said in a throaty voice that would have any man falling all over himself.
