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“Because without me, you would perish out here.”
The awful pallor of her skin was gone, replaced by a healthy flush. Her body had rid itself of the poison during our coupling, although she might feel soreness in other areas.
I shut that thought down quickly. She was not for me, even though the memory of her moans and how tight she felt when I entered her would torture me for a long time.
Besides, my orders were clear and enforced by the dead king’s magic. I could not risk Beth discovering my true nature, nor let her die before the geas was lifted.
I made sure none of those thoughts showed on my face. “I am glad I found you when I did. But now that you have recovered, I must return you to safety beyond the wilderness.”
A look of utter panic widened her eyes. She blurted out, “You can’t take me back to Emlyn. You can’t.”
I could not tell her that was exactly my plan. Then I would hand her over to the royal guards. It had to be in Emlyn, because out here in the provinces, they would just as easily rape and kill her to save the new king the trouble.
So I raised an eyebrow in apparent amusement. “You seem well enough to travel on your own, then?”
She scooted to a sitting position, only wincing slightly as her joints popped. “Maybe, but I don’t know my way around. And there are still dangers...”
Her voice trailed off as she struggled to find the right words. I studied her for a long moment as she held my gaze, silently pleading. Even though it had not been my plan, the very idea of leaving her alone in the wilderness squeezed my stomach. There were dangers here that could take her out within seconds. Our lives were immutably connected.
“You are right. Without my protection, you likely will not get far.”
Relief relaxed her face. “So you’ll come with me?”
“For now,” I replied, my tone brooking no argument. “But you must listen and do as I say. No more reckless behavior. There are worse things in this forest than those blood vines.”
“Of course, anything you say,” she agreed quickly.
I shouldered my pack and held out a hand to help her up. “Let’s get moving. We are not safe here.”
Grasping my hand firmly, she rose to her feet. It would be easy to turn her around until she did not know we were back on our way to Gwerin.
Why then, when my plan was working, did it feel like I was the worst cad for betraying the kingslayer’s trust?
Chapter seventeen
DAEARY
Somethingwokeme,somethingthat seemed out of place. I slipped from under my cover and carefully lifted the canvas flap. My tent was situated away from the main camp since Jared did not want me too close to his warriors, lest I lose control of my incubus powers.
My eyes were accustomed to the darkness. The camp fire flickered some distance away, not enough to break my night vision.
Something moved in the shadows.
I held still, not breathing, and as I watched, black figures crept through the night. There were many, and before I could raise the alarm, somebody screamed. That was when all hell broke loose.
“Eryr Ei—!“ The shout ended in a gurgle as the man died.
I had heard enough. Prys’s legendary forces, theEryr Eira, had found us. I rushed back to the tent to grab my weapon. I would not be taken prisoner without fighting to the end.
The rebel Fae had become my friends over the last days. They looked up to me, even though some of them would never trust me. But claiming Beth as my mate had made me her stand-in among the Fae of Gwerin. I would not let them down.
Wrapping my compulsion around me like a cloak, I rushed into the fray. Prys’s warriors were enormous, the most powerful creatures his ill-gotten magic could produce. But even though I was not as big as them, I was quick as lightning, slashing a leg here, a neck there.
My incubus power made them falter for a split-second, distracted by a sudden blast of lust for me. As their cocks sprang to life, their souls were lost to my blade.
But I was only one demon against the magic-powered killers who had pledged their very existence to the family of Llwyd. The people who I had come to know and some to love fell like wheat under a harvester’s scythe. Many turned tail and fled to save their lives. I did not begrudge them. Better to survive tonight and reassemble than to die here.
The moment I decided to do the same was the moment fate caught up with me. A giant of a Fae blocked my retreat so suddenly, I bounced off his breastplate and fell. Only a quick roll to the side prevented me from being speared like a fish in the river. I pushed my powers at him, but he laughed.
