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I nodded my thanks back to him. Just this short interaction reminded me how tired I was and my body was still healing, so I went back to bed. I fell asleep quickly, waking only when my dreams turned to tables laden with food, and my stomach started growling enough to wake me up. Nadine was reading a book next to the fire when I woke. She looked up and smiled as I sat and stretched.
“Good afternoon,” she said pleasantly. “Food is on the table. I’m sure you’re hungry.”
“Thank you,” I said as I staggered from the bed.
I felt like I had been asleep for a week, my mouth parched and eyes bleary. Food and drink took care of that quickly, though. Mhrandir joined us shortly after and took a bath for me. She and Nadine chatted lightly about the goings of the palace while I soaked my sore muscles. After I was finished and dressed, I turned to the two women, “I’d like to exercise a bit and explore the palace. Care to join me?”
“I have to attend to some of the guests,” Mhrandir said as she took care of the bath. “But if you need me, you can find me.”
“Thank you,” I said to her. Then I turned to Nadine. “I have memories of reading for hours and hours on end, but I can hardly read. Can you take me to the library, so I can practise? Children’s books would be the best place for me to start.”
“Of course.” Nadine stood gracefully, brushing her long hair over her shoulder. She led me out into the hall, keeping to a moderate pace. We took the opposite direction from the stairs and soon reached another door. Through this was a small library. It was cosier than the one where Araki and I had read the storybook about vampires, the bookshelves more tightly packed, with a lovely skylight that lit the entire room. A kingdom map was intricately made from woods of various colours on the floor.
“This is the queen’s library,” Nadine said as she approached one of the bookshelves.
My forehead creased. “Thebe never married.”
“He wasn’t the first king, either. These are his mother’s books. It’s probably why I could find the tome about the Dhajork here. For all his monstrous ways, thebe loved his mother and sealed up this room after her death to ensure her treasures were never touched.”
I shivered at the mention of the old king. It was strange to know now that I had never been related to him. I had no royal blood flowing in my veins.
“Go ahead and get comfortable,” Nadine said as she selected a thin, well-worn book. “You look like you’re about to fall over. I’ll read to you briefly before we start our lesson.”
I smiled as I found a couch to stretch out on. I was weary, although I was annoyed at being weary. As Nadine started to read, I let my eyes close. She was a true friend. Nobody had ever looked after me this way. The Nightshade just didn’t do that for anyone. Certainly not the children… Children like Nala.
My breath caught in my throat as a stab of pain flooded my heart. For a moment, I forgot where I was. Nala was still in the Nightshade’s clutches. Now that I no longer had this mission to kill Araki… I had a new mission.
It wasn’t long before Araki entered the library. Whether he was looking for me already or had sensed my sudden distress, I didn’t know.
I flew from the couch into his arms even as Nadine stopped reading, a startled expression on her face.
“I’m sorry,” I said embarrassingly as I buried my face in Araki’s shoulder. “Can you—?”
Nadine interrupted with a chuckle. “No need to apologize. I know.”
She slipped from the room and shut the door quietly behind her. Araki’s arms tightened around me as he pressed his face into my hair.
“I need to get Nala away from the Nightshade,” I said. I feared for her, of what the priestess might do to her.
Araki tensed. His arms tightened. “Of course. We’ll get her out, Reilyn. And we’ll take down Opaline so she can’t harm anyone.”
Araki led me back to the couch, and we sank into the soft cushions together. My voice was hoarse with unshed tears bythe time I was finished, but Araki’s arms were solid and warm, giving me strength. I found myself telling him all about Nala, from the first time I was assigned to teach her sparring to how she’d fought tears when I was sent on this mission.
“How?” I whispered, “She’s so powerful. I don’t know how we can face her.”
Araki kissed my forehead. “Together, we’re stronger than she is. We’ll bring her down, Reilyn. I promise you.”
I pulled back and stared into his beautiful violet eyes. Heat swept through me, and I kissed him before I knew what I was doing. Magic flooded my body. But rather than overwhelming and drowning me in a turbulent stream, it filled me with strength.
“Araki,” I moaned into his mouth.
He already knew what I wanted, his hands roaming over my body. “Reilyn.”
“Take me. Please.”
His hands slid under my blouse, setting fireworks off on my skin as he touched me. His wands felt warm and good on my skin. The magic igniting between us was so powerful it almost made me cry. Nobody had ever loved me like this. Nobody.
His touches were gentle, a promise in his caresses that I would never be alone again. I welcomed that promise, letting my fingers play over his body. Our kisses grew more fevered and ardent. Araki undressed me and then allowed me to undress him. We explored each other’s bodies. The pleasure that coursed through me was returned in kind. He cupped my breasts and licked my pebbled nipples. A long moan erupted from within me.
