“You need to crawl your tiny ass back into that bed. You’re not healed enough to be out of it yet. It’s only been three days since the attack. The poison from the wraiths held you in a high fever that only broke this morning. You need to allow your body to heal and rest.”
“I need to see them, Torrin,” I argued, but he ignored me.
He forced me into bed, lying on his side next to me. He gazed into my grief-stricken eyes with understanding, sending more pain rocking through my body to wrench my heart tightly.
This man led legions into battle, and while he’d probably lost thousands of men and women, my team was brought up together since the moment the Order took us away from our families. We were sisters, raised to fight together, to do everything together, so we were better together.
Torrin’s hand lifted, pushing the hair away from my face while slowly exhaling. One minute I was in bed with him, and the next, we were standing in the ruins of the house that had exploded. I shivered against the heat, touching my back, and turned, peering over my shoulder into a dark, angry stare, no longer the color of freshly frozen water.
“Tell me what you could have done to prevent this,” he stated, nodding toward the slow-moving wraiths converging on us from his memory.
My body was on the ground beneath his, and I winced at the sight. Torrin’s arm was twisted and mangled as the house peppered his back with fragmented pieces. He’d been wounded, yet he’d still fought to save us and protect me.
Torrin shoved aside my body as he rose to his feet, defending me while I lay unmoving, frozen in the terror created by the wraiths. The first one fell on me, gnawing on my arm, which made bile fill my throat, threatening to spew past my lips.
I stepped back, only to have Torrin wrap his arms around me, holding me tightly and securely. There was an entire army of wraiths, larger than any horde I’d ever witnessed before, moving around us. The sound of their feet sliding across the frozen tundra sent my blood pounding in my ears, thundering deafeningly.
Fear spiked in my mind, and the need to run from what was happening echoed through me. My mind gripped hold of the panic I’d felt lying unguarded on the ground, exposed during the attack.
“They can’t hurt you, Alexandria,” Torrin murmured against my ear. “I have you, and you’re safe with me. It’s just memories.”
His arms tightened more as I saw Torrin move to take the head from the wraith, sucking the light from my arm, mangling the flesh to get deeper. Torrin’s dark head lifted as one of his men howled, going down beneath several wraiths attacking him all at once. He didn’t move to save the warrior, choosing to take his head instead.
I’d faced that choice once before. It wasn’t an easy one to make, but Torrin hadn’t hesitated. He swung his blade while his men formed a circle around us, doing everything within their power to protect our prone bodies from being eaten. Wave after wave of wraiths rushed forward, and Torrin’s men continued fighting for us, and even though a few got through the circle, they held. We’d survived against insurmountable odds.
Torrin turned, his body twisting as he sliced through the wraith gnawing greedily on my torso. The swing of his sword was sure and swift, rushing down against the wraith’s middle. Light exploded, and my eyes swung to the body in the middle of the circle. Carla was conscious, a dagger protruding through her chest as she sacrificed her life for us. Light burst, forcing the monsters back as she shattered.
One of Torrin’s men dropped to his knees, dead on top of Erin. She took his blade into her blue, frozen hand and slid it into her chest as her eyes slid to the woman on the ground beside her. Kate grabbed the warrior’s other blade, exhaling as she forced her hand to close around the hilt before she thrust the dagger into her heart, pushing the wraiths further back yet.
All seven of my warriors had committed suicide to drive the monsters back, giving the warriors a chance to escape with our unmoving forms. Tears swam in my eyes as I watched them, making the ultimate sacrifice to provide us with time to flee and sustain life. A sob left my chest, seeping through my lips.
My chest tightened, compelling my throat to choke down the tears that tried to slip free. Torrin and his men lifted us, moving through the debris of the house that had crumbled beneath the starving wraiths. I’d seen enough and knew that there had been nothing I could have done.
Turning in his arms, I groaned at the sight of Torrin’s dark eyes, noting that he watched me taking in what he was. Torrin was of the darkness. He was a creature that had succumbed to the promise to live within the darkness by accepting its seductive lure. Thin, black veins covered Torrin’s fingertips that lifted, cupping my face with worry. His black eyes were surrounded by tiny veins that pulsed through his face, but where others looked evil, he looked—sexy.
He might be a monster, or a creature I’d be forced to kill, eventually. Several rumors surrounded the Kingdom of Night’s people, whispers that they were derived from the darkness that allowed them to live while swallowing up those of the light. I’m guessing that Torrin was among those who had welcomed darkness in but didn’t feed on the light within others. Nightwalkers and similar creatures fed gluttonously from moon-touched people. The thing was, Torrin didn’t scare me. He excited me.
I cupped his cheeks, and his nostrils flared. His dark eyes watched me as if he expected me to scream or fight his touch. He’d saved us, and regardless of what he was, he was the reason we had survived. He’d chosen us over the lives of his men. He could have easily fled. Torrin had decided to stay and protect us and to save us.
I lifted on my toes, brushing my lips against his. He growled hungrily, watching me claim his mouth in a soft kiss. He didn’t move, didn’t react as I slowly kissed him with trembling, heated lips.
“You saved us, and for that, I am eternally grateful, Torrin,” I admitted, breaking him loose of whatever hold had restrained him, and he kissed me hard and fast.
Torrin bent, sliding his hands behind my thighs to hoist me up against his solid frame. I wrapped my legs wrapped around him and whimpered at the feel of his rock-hard form against my softer one. His hand snaked up, threading his fingers through my hair to control my mouth, and his tongue slid between my lips, tasting, and tempting mine to dance with his darkness. It swept against mine, daring me to cave into the hunger we both felt.
His teeth bit into my lip, causing me to gasp loudly, and I moaned into his kiss while my body melted into his heated embrace. Torrin’s strength supported me, and for a moment, I didn’t feel the weight of the loss or the pain of the grief trying to consume me. Torrin released my hair, which made me fear losing the bliss his kiss was promising me. I captured his hands and crushed my mouth against his lips again.
“Don’t stop,” I pleaded. Dark laughter echoed through my head as weightlessness filled me, and we were back in the bed with him silently watching me, waiting for the theatrics.
I peered into wintery eyes that searched mine, and I fought through what was fact and created from within his mind. Torrin sat up, looking at me as I peeled off the gown I wore, gazing down at the stitches that held my skin together. Dismissing it, I swung my attention back to him, sucking my swollen lip between my teeth before leaning over to kiss him slowly.
He allowed it, watching me straddle his hips while forcing him onto his back. His hands lifted, careful of the wounds covering my body still in stages of healing, while he gripped my hips tightly. Lowering my mouth, I slowly kissed his hungry lips, letting my body rock against his. I was sticky with sweat, covered in it from the fever I’d had from the poisonous bites.
I reached between us, searching for his cock, freeing it while he slid his fingers against the wetness between my thighs. The moment I leaned up to force him into my body, fully intending to let him take away the guilt from the losses consuming me and sitting heavily within me, he pushed me aside and sat up, staring down at me.
“You’re not using me to break your vow just to punish yourself,” he stated coldl
y.
“That wasn’t what I was doing,” I argued, watching him shut down. “I want to forget the pain.”
“Fucking someone doesn’t make it go away. You don’t get to fuck me, so you can punish yourself for failing your team. You don’t get to use me and make me your scapegoat for that anger you’re looking to direct at someone. I’m not interested, Alexandria. You need to bathe. You fucking stink.”
I exhaled slowly as he moved away from the bed. My head swam with the reality of what I’d just almost done. I deserved his rebuke because it was exactly what I’d wanted to do. If I could hurt myself, I’d feel better. It made little sense to most, but it was what I did to ease my pain. Craving pain and redirecting guilt at someone else worked for me. It was shitty, but sometimes the pain was too much to endure, like now.
Torrin went to the door while I covered my body. He spoke in the ancient language, which I realized more and more they all spoke around here. Whether it was to keep us from knowing what they said or throwing off travelers, it seemed the language they preferred. I listened while Torrin spoke to a woman at the door, her sultry tone slithering around every nerve within me, while his softened toward her.
“She’s awake. Bring in water for her bath. She stinks so bad I can’t stand it, so soap would be most welcomed,” he continued.
“I imagine she smells like death and is offending your senses with her presence, my brave Lord. If you’d like, you could join me while she rids her body of the offending stench. You would be more than welcome in my bed, Torrin. I miss what you do to my body, and I hunger for their light with so many of them around.”
“I may help you out later tonight, Kat,” he said huskily. “For now, let’s get the bitch bathed, so she is ready to travel in the morning. The king is rather tired of waiting for her arrival. I’m over babysitting her and dealing with her mouth, among other things.”
“Does he intend to share her with you as you’ve done with me many times before?” she asked, a pout entering her tone.
“She’s too thin and too much work to even try to bed, Katherine. She’s simply a mission, and once I reach the palace, I can be rid of the bitch.” Torrin exhaled slowly, pushing her hair behind her ear. “Get the staff to bring in water and have a light meal sent up.”
I turned away before he faced me once more. My stomach flipped before flopping, and angry tears pricked my eyes. I was such an idiot. As much as we were working to seduce them, they were returning it tenfold. He moved toward a large leather pack and pulled out a silk gown, placing it onto the desk before a knock sounded at the door.
My mind wandered back to everything we’d done and how he’d acted through those things. He’d been turned on, or so I’d thought. This was Torrin, the legendary warrior who led his king’s armies into war and had never lost a single battle. He was a notorious rake, known for enjoying women and leaving them the next morning.
“Your bath will be here shortly. I’ve set out clothes and a drying cloth for you. Tomorrow we will reach the palace. I don’t want to chance another attack, so we will travel fast enough to reach it before nightfall. There’s more tonic on the table. It seemed to ease your pain and keep the fever down. Use it; it’s laced with moonflower dust, but not enough to make you lose your willpower. You won’t have to ask me to get you off again.”
“I don’t think that will be a problem anymore.” I breathed in sharply, pulling the sheet with me while moving to the edge of the bed.
I ignored the look that passed through his eyes, dropping my head into my upturned palms while I considered how stupid I’d been of late. I’d let my guard down because, admittedly, I’d wanted him. He was deliciously wicked, and yet those men always turned out to be huge pricks. I knew that, but unlike Amo, Tabitha, and the others, I hated meaningless sex with strangers in taverns.
“The pain of their loss will pass,” he stated from behind me.
“I’m aware. I don’t need a pep talk from you, Torrin. Thanks, but no thanks,” I stated as the door opened and several young women entered, batting their lashes at the larger-than-life male while barely noticing me.
Once the water was full to the rim, I stood and dropped the sheet before sinking into the large round tub. Grabbing the soap, I made quick work of scrubbing my flesh raw to get the stink off before washing my hair. My eyes stared off into the dancing flames, and I replayed the last moments of the girls’ lives, forcing myself to memorize it visually.
I stepped from the tub, wrapping my body in the drying cloth without turning to look at the brooding, dominating male, who watched my every move. He probably thought my anger was from being rejected when, in fact, it was at allowing him to slip between the walls that encased my emotions. I was usually pretty good at hiding my feelings or protecting myself from getting attached to anyone. I dressed but chose not to return to the bed, lying on the floor in front of the fire instead.
The door opened, and I listened as he issued orders. I struggled to get better control of my emotions as tears slid free from the tight hold I’d had on them.
I felt emotionally and physically drained from being feasted on by the wraiths. While it wasn’t Torrin’s fault, at least not entirely, he still shouldered some blame because he’d drugged us and tossed us into wagons. He’d left us exposed and then rushed us into a decrepit old house that was one strong wind away from being firewood, which it had become.
Torrin wasn’t faultless, but we’d probably have been attacked by something else on our way here. I’d planned on getting captured before reaching the border so they would bring us into the kingdom. I’d never expected to be captured by the head of the army or a legendary warrior.
“Get onto the bed, woman,” Torrin growled, and I closed my eyes, ignoring him as the fire heated my face.
He lifted me without warning, and the sheet dropped from my body. I tensed, inhaling to release the anger that rushed through me with his touch. Torrin set me down gently, his eyes skimming over my body before he stepped back, turning on his heel to move to the bag he’d gotten the clothes from earlier.
Returning, he sat on the bed, staring at my impassive face before twisting the lid from the jar he held. Dipping his fingers into the salve, he leaned over to rub some over my side where the stitches were itching. I breathed past the lump in my throat, ignoring him while he tended to my wounds. He was gentle, slowly working the salve into my skin, which made it slowly numb from the pain and itching of the flesh that healed.
“I can do that myself,” I muttered under my breath, feeling his fingers pause before he pushed them into the wound on my arm, causing me to cry out.
“Be a good girl and shut up,” he growled, holding my stare before his lips tipped into a cocky smile. His finger pushed back into the wound, and I shuddered from the delicious bite of pain while he watched. “You like to be hurt. Don’t you?”
“Leave me alone.” I fortified my emotions, turning away from him.
Torrin shoved me down onto my stomach on the mattress. His elbow pushed into my spine before his mouth slowly hovered over my back. His body held mine down, somehow managing not to cause pain where I’d been injured. Lips brushed over my spine, sending heat rushing through me. Fingers slipped between my thighs, and his dark, husky laughter rumbled through me.
“Is this what you want from me?” he growled hoarsely, pushing his fingers against my sex that clenched for more. “You need to hurt, so it’s easier. It won’t make it any fucking easier. You lost them, and they’re gone. Hurting yourself won’t help you or numb the guilt. You’re a fucking leader; act like it,” he snarled, telling me what he told me when my seven sisters were lost. Then he pushed his fingers into my body hard, spreading them wide before slowly withdrawing them. “Sleep, because we leave at dawn.”
He lifted from the bed, grabbing his cloak before exiting the room. I closed my eyes, caving to the weakness of sleep that demanded I succumb to it, and eventually, I did. Nightmares met me when I entered my dr
eams, wraiths feasting on my body while I watched helplessly as the girls died. Tossing and turning, I gave up on sleep, dressed, and left the room.
Outside on the porch, I watched the stars that shot across the skies as the full moon approached. The closer it got, the prettier the darkness became. It also made my body ache with the coming call to breed. Swallowing the groan, I sat on a chair and looked at the stars, enjoying the cover of darkness that hid the silent tears burning my eyes.
A scream sounded from the woods, forcing my attention to where it had originated. Noting the eeriness of the darkness, I searched the surrounding forest. Exhaling, I grabbed one of the rusty swords from beside the chair and started from the porch. When I entered the woods, the scream sounded again, and I sucked my lip between my teeth, inching forward.
Rounding past the thicker trees and shrubs, I stopped cold at the sight that met my eyes. Torrin had the woman tied between two trees. Her body was covered in angry red welts from the branch he held in his hand, slapping it against her exposed back while she pleaded for more.
I fought down the unease that slid through me, watching as he whipped it over her back and ass. He moved around her, grabbing her throat before lowering his head against her shoulder, looking directly at me.
The blindfolded woman whimpered as his fingers danced over her spread sex, dripping with need. My air wouldn’t escape my throat as I studied the way he pushed them into her body. My heart beat loudly, unable to tear my eyes from him, slowly bringing her toward orgasm.
I stood there, shell-shocked, while he spread her legs further apart, allowing me to see more. Withdrawing his fingers, he pulled something glass from his pocket, pushing it into her body hard and fast. His eyes never left my face as my lips parted, and heat flushed through my body. He wasn’t gentle, using the thick, glass, penis-shaped object on her, forcing it deeper while she begged him to fuck her.
She shouted, screaming for more, and I stepped back, unable to look away as he watched me through fiery eyes. His eyes held mine, the object moving steadily into her body while his smile turned cold, his eyes dragging down my body as if it were me he was imagining defiling. My body heated, and his nostrils flared as though he could sense that I wanted her to be me. I ripped my eyes from him, noting the black lines that spread over her face as she whimpered.
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