Storm Princess Saga- the Complete Series

by Everly Frost

  Macsen continues. “I don’t know what that means, but judging by the look on your face, you do.”

  I think back to the day before, the way Baelen had flown me straight to my family, stepped back to give me time with them and then gave me space to reconnect with my Storm Command. And now he’s trying to show me that he will work all day and night if it means taking care of me and my people.

  But he’s got it all wrong. He is part of my world. I need him in my life. And I have to tell him that.

  “Please, Macsen. I need to know where he is.”

  He scrubs at his forehead, easing the frown that had formed there. He inclines his head toward the Rath mountains. “He said you’d know where to find him.”

  Where to find him? I spin and consider the distant mountain range. Does he mean the place where it all started?

  “Thank you, Macsen.”

  “Stay safe, Marbella.”

  I head for the cliffs behind the Rath home, but I stop in at the house on the way. If Baelen isn’t taking care of himself then I need to take care of him instead. I pick up a basket of food and flasks of water and top it off with a blanket since he’s probably sleeping wherever he lays his head. When Mom catches me and tries to stop me, I kiss her cheek swiftly and look her in the eye. “I love you, Mom. But Baelen needs me. I’m going to him.”

  Tears form in her eyes. “Okay, sweetheart. I understand.”

  A solid hour later, I arrive at the top of the cliff that was our secret place. It was the place where the Storm chose me. The place where the wind stole my blue ribbon and I thought I killed Baelen. So many memories flood back to me. Some of them are breathtaking. Others are heartbreaking. Rath land sweeps across the countryside below me. From here I can see all the way beyond the Rath boundary, far into elven country. It’s the perfect place for Baelen to stand watch.

  I find him leaning against the mouth of the cave, head tilted to its rocky edge, one shoulder wedged against it. The bristles on his chin are a growing shadow across his jaw. His chest rises and falls in a deep rhythm.

  He’s asleep where he stands.

  “Oh, Baelen.” I creep around him, wrap the blanket over his shoulders, and decide it’s time to test my strength. I moved glass shards with a wave of my hand, although admittedly they were a lot lighter than Baelen. I concentrate and draw on my Incorruptible strength and my Prime heart, surprising myself when I leverage him gently away from the side of the cave with my power without waking him up, laying him down inside it instead. He murmurs a little before pulling the blanket tighter and remains asleep.

  He must be exhausted.

  I take his place at the cave’s opening, keeping an eye on the horizon. Half an hour later, a talon crow soars across the sky a mile away. I wait for it to fly a little closer and then I stretch out my arm and let loose a little destruction, turning the beast into dust. An hour later, two more crows meet the same fate.

  Other than that… it’s peaceful. The view stretches in every direction so any attack will be easily visible. I have no concerns that something might happen on the ground without me. On top of that, I trust Grayson’s word. His message was honest. Cynical, that’s for sure, but honest. We have a week.

  I sense Baelen’s breathing change. I turn a little, remaining where I am, even when he jolts upright, disoriented to find himself wrapped in a blanket. “Marbella?”

  He squints at me, rubbing his eyes. His gaze shifts to check the position of the sun. His face falls. “What time is it?”

  “Don’t worry. I kept watch.” I shrug, keeping it light. “I killed a few talon crows but that was easy. You can get more sleep if you want.”

  “If I want?” His laugh is dry and scratchy. “What I want is…” He shakes his head, squeezes his eyes closed. Takes a deep breath. “Macsen told you where I was.”

  I turn a little toward the horizon, remaining relaxed against the rock wall. “I forgot how peaceful it is up here.”

  He rises to his feet, stretching his neck side to side and rolling his shoulders. He bundles up the blanket and drops it at the opening as he draws near to me. He moves at a prowl. I’m not sure what his target is until he swoops to the basket I brought with me and devours all of the wheat biscuits in a few bites, reaching for a water flask to wash them down.

  Exhausted and starving.

  I hide my smile as the remainder of the food—apples, cheese, and bread—disappears within moments. No wonder he was cranky. He holds onto the water flask, carrying it further out across the cliff where he stops to assess the land below us. I remain quiet, unmoving from my station, while he places the flask on the ground, removes his shirt, and takes a knee. Dipping his head, he pours the rest of the water over the back of it, finishing up by scrubbing liquid across his face with his hands.

  He rises to his feet again, his broad back to me, water droplets following the curves of his muscles as he scrapes his hair out of his eyes. His chest expands and contracts as he draws in a deep breath, allowing his arms to drop to his sides. He remains in that position for a long time. I don’t feel as if he’s forgotten me, more that he needs the silence. The air up here is clean and fresh. Quiet. Far away from all the noise. Every inch of my body wants to go to him but I don’t want to break the spell.

  Finally, he angles toward me, his chiseled features a silhouette against the sun as he speaks carefully. “Have you… had the chance to spend time with your Mom?”

  “Yes.”

  “And your Storm Command? I know they are like sisters to you.”

  “Yes.”

  “Good.” He turns back to the horizon for another long moment. “What about your brother and Jordan? Elise too?”

  I leave my post, carefully covering the distance to his side. “Yes, yes, and yes.”

  “What about—”

  I interrupt him. “Baelen.”

  “Yes?”

  I bite my bottom lip, reaching up to brush my thumb across his jawbone. A tiny leaf was stuck where he slept on it. “You missed a spot. Right here.”

  He remains perfectly still.

  I brush my fingers across his lips. “And here too.”

  He doesn’t shift but his breathing increases, washing across my fingertips when his lips part.

  I say, “You gave me the time I needed with my family. Now I need time with you.” I allow my fingers to drop to the curve where his neck meets his shoulders, running my hand down his arm and pulling it around my waist.

  He responds by drawing me closer, his gaze falling to the ribbon in my hair. Cautiously, he slides it loose, careful not to tug as he loosens my braid, allowing my hair to float around me in the breeze. He folds the ribbon into his fist but a smile breaks across my face as I decide it’s time to set that ribbon free. The last time we stood on this cliff, the wind stole my ribbon out of his hand. That was the moment I raced after him to tell him I loved him, only to be struck by lightning that turned me into the Storm Princess.

  I capture his hand, easing the ribbon out of it. Then I let it go, watching it twist and turn in the wind, disappearing into the blue sky.

  “There,” I say. “Not stolen this time. Given.”

  He matches my smile with one of his own, his full lips taking on curves that make my heart miss a beat.

  I reach up on my tiptoes, very slowly, and whisper, “Baelen Rath, may I have your permission?”

  With a fierce growl, he tightens both arms around me, pulling me flush against him. His kiss is more intensely demanding than it’s ever been before. I respond with a ferocity of my own, arching up against him, sliding my hands into his wet hair, every part of my body responding to his. My skin tingles from the top of my head to my toes and my breathing becomes erratic. I can’t get enough of his mouth on mine.

  He growls at me when I separate from our kiss. “Come back.”

  But his breath hitches when I slide off my jacket and pull my top over my head, abandoning both on the ground. I’m wearing underwear but it’s an elven bra that revea
ls more than it conceals. I crash back into him, all of me burning.

  I smile against his mouth as I kiss him again. “It’s been a week.”

  His muscles flex around me as he hesitates, pausing, taking a deep breath, creating a small gap between us. “We don’t have to rush this. You’ve been through a lot.”

  “So have you…” I kiss his jawline because unless he dips his head, that’s as far as I can reach. My heart rate is slowing, because Baelen and I still need to have a conversation about Grayson. “Baelen… I… About what you saw…”

  He stops me with a kiss, a gentle one that demands nothing in return. Then he draws back to give me a serious smile. “You bound yourself to me.”

  I bite my lip, a half-smile forming and fading, not sure what he’s thinking. “I did.”

  An answering smile breaks across his face. A grin, actually. The first today. “Then nothing else matters.”

  My heart expands. I rise up as far as I can, drawing his face down to me so I can kiss each corner of his smiling mouth, tasting his skin with my tongue, sensing his body respond to mine.

  I inhale his sigh. “Baelen Rath, thank you for being so protective of me, but I don’t want to wait.”

  His response is a slow ignition of lightning around his torso as his burning gaze zeros in on mine. Above us, storm clouds gather in the sky, forming out of nowhere, darkening the cliff face. My eyes widen as the clouds descend, stopping fifty feet above us where they curve and seal to the rock face, creating a cloak over the space at the top of the cliff. Within moments, Baelen drops us into darkness, our own safe cocoon, lit by a gentle spider web of lightning flickering inside the clouds.

  His grin turns into a lazy smile at my amazement. “Come here, Marbella Mercy.”

  My lips meet his and each of my heartstones bursts into life, making me feel like time is slowing down around us. Baelen lifts me up against him but he doesn’t carry me inside the cave—only to its entrance where the blanket rests. I should take a breath but I can’t stop kissing him. Or dragging my clothes off. Or tugging off his clothing. He slows us down, beats of time to kiss me everywhere: on my lips, my neck, my stomach, my thighs. Spreading the blanket across the ground, he draws me down to lie beside him.

  By the time he’s done touching me, I’m glowing. Everywhere.

  He leans over me, his lips caressing mine before he pulls me upward again so I’m straddling him. When our bodies join, time stretches. I have no idea whether it’s been moments or hours. I’m not afraid of the lightning that sparks between us or the glow from my heartstones that reaches out to meet it, the two powers winding into each other like a lattice that settles over our bodies as we move together.

  Even though we’re as close as we can get, I want more of him. I inhale the scent of his skin, the storm, and the condensation in the air, and drown in the intensity in his eyes as he reads my reactions. I tip my head back as he winds his hands in my hair and strokes its waves all the way to my lower back. Raindrops fall from the clouds and glide across his broad shoulders, down his hard chest. Moisture drips down my cheeks and arms, making my skin glisten.

  The lattice of power around us glows brighter as the intensity builds, my breathing goes wild, but still I want more. More of him. More of the storm. More of… my storm.

  I gasp as the lattice of storm and heartstone power contracts around us, sealing hard against our bodies, binding us together.

  “Baelen!”

  To my astonishment, he smiles. “Let go, baby. Don’t be scared.”

  He kisses my mouth and I grip his shoulders as powerful sensation builds inside me, shivers racing up and down my spine. I hold on tight, knowing I have to let go of my control, that I have to trust him. I crash against him, meeting his movements, abandoning my fear as a bright spark builds between us, a ray of light expanding and growing.

  At the last moment, right before I lose control, Baelen closes his eyes. When he opens them again, they’re full of lightning, full of storm. He flattens one palm across my heart, the other against my temple.

  He whispers, “Yours.”

  He lets go and my world explodes.

  Lightning pours from his body into mine. I scream and cry, soaking it up, drinking it in, absorbing the storm while every other part of me splinters into a thousand rocketing sensations. I fall into his arms as we shudder and tremble. We may as well have survived an earthquake, we’re both shaking so hard. All we can do is wait for it to ease. I slide my arms around him, dropping my head into the crook of his neck, wanting to find my voice, wanting to speak, but I don’t know how right now.

  He strokes my back, his big arms gentle and calm. “Marbella, baby. Tell me you’re okay.”

  “I’m okay,” I whisper into his neck. “Are you okay?”

  “Very.”

  “Did I… just get my storm power back?”

  His vocal chords rumble against my forehead. “Why don’t you try it and see?”

  Without shifting my position, still snuggled against him, I lift my hand to examine my fingers, the back of my hand, my forearm. Lightning prickles under my skin and tiny sapphire pulses flicker along my fingers. Its familiar crackling reaches my ears before I shut it off. I exhale my amazement. “Did you know that was going to happen?”

  “I suspected it might. Everything was different in the deep springs, but this is where you got your power. It’s right that you should get it back here.”

  I sigh into his neck, nuzzling his ear only to find that my hair tangles in his bristles. “It’s time to shave this beard off, Baelen Rath. You don’t need it anymore.”

  I sense his jaw shift as he smiles. “Okay, Marbella, but first…”

  He lifts me up, muscles bunching, keeping my legs wrapped around him. A fat raindrop lands on my cheek a moment before he says, “Look up.”

  I tip my head back. A gentle rain shower patters down around us, rinsing the sweat off our bodies. I squeak as the river of water runs toward our clothing, but Baelen laughs. “Don’t worry, they’ll dry.” He lowers me to my feet, letting the warm water wash over both of us, following it with his hands, making me sigh all over again.

  I ask, “How did you get so good at this?”

  He raises an eyebrow at me. “Good at what?”

  I blush. “I mean controlling the storm.”

  “Practice.” He grins, water droplets running down his face as the rain shower eases. He shakes his head, splattering rain drops across the space between us, making me laugh. “Lightning is your strength, rain is mine.”

  Acid rain.

  I lean into him. “I want to try something… Do you remember when you were asleep? We combined our power without realizing.”

  “I remember.” The depths in his eyes pull me in. “I waited a long time for you to call me.”

  I entwine my fingers in his, closing my eyes, listening for his heartbeat like I used to. I sense the connection almost straight away. Sooner than I expect, his whisper reaches me as if from a distance, a rumbling laugh drawing me back to myself. “I don’t think we’re doing our clothing any favors.”

  I open my eyes. Crimson raindrops rise upward from our bodies, lifting into the cloud cover: raindrops in reverse. One of them loses altitude, drops to the rocky cliff, and sizzles right next to my jacket. I break the contact with an “Oops.” Baelen might be able to dry our clothes off but it would take a miracle to sew them back together.

  He pulls me close, brushing the hair out of my face. He exhales a long sigh. “Do you really think we have a week before the elves attack?”

  “I do. Grayson is unpredictable, volatile sometimes, but when he gives his word, he keeps it.” Sometimes for the worse.

  “Okay, then. I’ll reduce the patrols. Keep everyone rested.”

  It’s my turn to take a deep breath. “There’s something I need to do now that I have my storm power back. Senturi told me that my future depends on it.”

  “Yes?”

  “I need to see Elyria.”

>   30. Marbella Mercy

  Before we leave Rath land, we head back to the house to let everyone know where we’re going and to pack supplies in case we’re gone longer than expected. I consider testing out my new storm skills to fly to Elyria’s location, but only the Phoenix knows where she and Jasper are. After I call the firebird to me, we detour down the border where Baelen points out our defenses from his position sitting behind me, arms wrapped around my waist.

  I’m impressed to find that most of the outposts aren’t visible from the sky—which means they will be even less detectable from the ground. I remember the day we came across Llion after we rescued Talia: he’d camouflaged himself against the rock so we didn’t know he was there until he chose to reveal himself. Male gargoyles are particularly good at blending in to their surroundings. When Baelen points at the fifth invisible outpost, I squint back at him. “How do you know it’s really there?”

  His answer is to drop a tantalizing kiss on the side of my neck. He seems to be enjoying the fact that I’m snuggling up against him right now. He’s definitely a lot more relaxed now that he believes we have a week before we go to war. “Ask the Phoenix to take us down. I’ll show you.”

  The Phoenix circles a few times, finally locating a place to set down on a precipice at the top of a ravine. The firebird hops impatiently from side to side as if it’s standing on hot potatoes until Baelen and I slide from its back. Then it rapidly returns to the air. I’m not sure what all that was about until the ground shifts beneath my feet.

  “Whoa!” What I thought was solid rock isn’t rock. Instinctively, I harness the breeze around me, lifting myself and Baelen up and away from the surface.

  He seems pleased that I moved him instead of the other way around. “Look at you,” he says. “Taking a crash course in flying.”

  “It’s about time,” I growl, circling the structure and trying to find an opening, because one step on it told me that I was standing on a building, not a rock face. Baelen circles around with me, clearly amused at my bewilderment. He glides in close, slipping an arm around my waist. “You won’t see them until they want to be seen.”