Page 103

“I do my duty, Vale. Myjobwithout bitching,” the leader, Sloane, countered, his shoulders pulled back. “Unlike you.”

“We have no idea where he came from, who he even is.” Vale stood up, grabbing food off the grill they set up.

“Doesn’t matter. He’s our ruler now.” Sloane let out a breath, setting down his mug. “I believe he will be better for our country. For our people.”

“Good thing since you helped him kill the other guy.” Vale laughed to himself.

“Sometimes sacrifice is how the world can move forward.”

“Including the people we’re following?” Connor downed the rest of his drink, the hair over my body prickling, telling me we were those people.

“If he orders us, then yes.”

Fingers pinched at the back of my neck, lifting me off the ground. Fear tore through my cat body, strangling a cry in my throat as my body shifted back to human in terror. A hand slammed over my mouth, a huge body pressing me back into a tree.

Croygen’s dark eyes penetrated mine, his finger at his lips, his frame hard against mine. My heart slammed against my ribs, fright still making me want to claw and hiss.

“Don’t make a sound, Kitty-Kat,” he muttered against my ear, his hand clutching my hip, holding me firmly against the bark, making me very aware of his clothed frame against my naked one. Terror turned quickly into something else, pebbling my nipples against his shirt. My body reacted without my say, salivating at the memory of his touch, the power he had over me. It was nothing I had ever experienced before, and as much as I hated myself for it, I wanted it again.

“You will do exactly what I say.” His lips brushed over the sensitive spot behind my ear. “Am I right, Kitten?” His teeth grazed down my neck, compelling me to swallow back my refusal, my head nodding. He dropped his hand from my mouth, gripping both my hips. His thumbs slid down low, hinting at how close he was to touching me again. “Follow me. We’re not going back to camp.”

“But-but my clothes,” I stuttered, forcing my body not to curve into him.

“I have them.” He lifted his head, his eyes capturing mine, as we both watched each other like we were waiting for the other to act, to give an invitation. There was barely a thread of logic left in my head, my willpower gone. The need for him overtook everything. I wouldn’t care who heard. Who saw us.

Croygen’s eyes trailed down my naked body, his jaw ticking, desire filling the space between us.

A loud pop from the fire jolted his body, his lids closing for a moment.

When he opened them back up, a different man looked back. He flicked his head, stepping back, moving quietly and quickly through the woods, not stopping until we were a good distance from the men. My clothes sat in a heap on a log, and I could smell our horses, Cooper and Annabeth close by.

“Here.” He leaned over to a pile of fabric, chucking my clothes at me.

“How did you even find me?” I grabbed for them, anger replacing my fear. “How did you know where I went?”

“You weren’t hard to find, Kitty-Kat.”

My lids tapered. “Yes, I was. There was no way you could’ve found me so easily.”

“I don’t know.” He ran a hand through his hair, tension riding his shoulders. “I just did.”

“Just did?” I yanked on my underwear. “I was in cat form, the size of a shoe. In the middle of the dark forest, hiding under brush. There is no way you should have found me!”

“That’s not important right now.” He headed away from me.

“Not important?” I pulled on my top. “What? You’re running from those three guys? Please, we could take them without even trying.”

Croygen glanced back. “They aren’t the only ones following us right now.”

“What?” Tugging on my boots, I followed Croygen through some thick brush to discover Cooper and AB waiting on horseback for us, all our gear packed up, Tootsie saddled and ready to go.

“Cooper found another group trailing us.” Croygen nodded at Cooper, climbing on his horse. “That man we met at the pub a week ago, the one called Kaptain? He and his group are camped only a half mile from us.”

“He’s human. He poses no real threat.”

“Not about them attacking us.” He pulled the reins, trotting Caramel out. “It’s about who gets to the nectar first. And I don’t want parasites attaching to us.” He heeled the horse, taking off down a trail, Cooper following.

AB handed me the lead to Tootsie.