Page 7 of A Tempest of Intrigue (Tempest of Shadows #4)

CHAPTER SEVEN

Ryker

When I settled my hands on the small of Ellery’s back, I recalled she was still nude from the waist up. I was so focused on helping her regain control and getting to her that I’d forgotten she was bared to them all. And in the light of the three moons above us, she was clearly visible.

A low growl rumbled up my throat as I shifted my hold on her to pull the buttons on my shirt free. While I worked, I glowered at all those gawking at her. When they felt my eyes on them, they looked away.

The leaves and straw I’d used to pad my shirt fell at my feet when I pulled it off. I winced at the blood staining the collar from the wound in my neck. It didn’t hurt as bad as it once did, but I loathed the idea of putting my blood-drenched clothing on her.

Her own blood streaked her chest from where she must have cut off her bindings. The wounds beneath had already healed, but scratches marred her skin.

“Someone give me a shirt,” I commanded. When no one moved, my irritation rose. “ Now !”

A few gathered in the clearing jumped as I tossed my ruined shirt aside and pulled Ellery closer to shelter her. Tucker glanced at his bloody, torn shirt before shrugging.

Keeping one hand on Ellery’s back, I pressed her close as I tugged the ties around my hood free. I pulled it off and tossed it aside as Ianto approached us.

While he walked, he unbuttoned his shirt and removed it to reveal the dark skin beneath. “Here.”

The giant held the shirt out to me but didn’t tear his gaze away from Ellery. I didn’t see lust in his gaze, but I still didn’t like it.

“Fuck off,” I snarled as I yanked the shirt from his fingertips.

Ianto’s warm brown eyes shot to me. Holding up his hands, he backed away and focused on the trees behind me.

I knew he cared for Ellery and she for him, but right now, I couldn’t have anyone near her… or looking at her. With care, I draped the shirt around Ellery’s shoulders, and she slid her arms into the sleeves that fell a good foot beyond her fingertips.

She looked so small and vulnerable in the giant’s clothing. I hated them on her, but at least blood didn’t soak them, and she was covered.

I tugged the front of the shirt closed, kissed the tip of her nose, and enveloped her in my arms again.

“How… how is she a lightning bearer?” Luna whispered.

Ellery stiffened a little before relaxing again. “I don’t know, but I am.”

“Yeah, no shit,” Ianto said. “I almost fell off the roof when you threw that first bolt.”

Having recovered a little, the giant offered her a tremulous smile. Ellery’s lips twitched toward one, but it faded when she shifted her gaze to all the amsirah gaping at her.

It was time to get her out of here. While I understood their curiosity and desire to know more, it had been a rough night for her, and she needed somewhere to relax and come to terms with what happened.

“We may not know why she has the gift, but it’s a miracle.” Tucker pitched his voice to carry over the clearing. “Nothing like her has ever existed before, and she’s on our side. Ellery’s fighting for us and our freedom.”

He was right about everything, but he also didn’t know the true depth of Ellery’s powers. I’d told him she was a lightning bearer, but I hadn’t revealed she possessed all five of the weathers.

I wasn’t sure what he would say, but I suspected I’d find out soon enough. The secrets were revealing themselves; it was only a matter of time before that one came out too.

And I’d prefer to tell Tucker in private. We’d been through too much together, and he deserved that much.

“We have something the aristocrats don’t have,” Tucker continued. “ Two lightning bearers. That’s a whole lot of power on our side. And with them fighting for us, we can win this war.”

A low murmur ran through the crowd. Before, I’d sensed their hesitation and uncertainty of the unknown. Now, I sensed their rising excitement.

When Ellery issued a low groan, my arms tightened around her. I wished I could shelter her from this, but I couldn’t.

While she deserved some time alone, we’d known one day, we’d have to use the fact she was such a rarity to our advantage. That time had come sooner than we’d anticipated, but it had come.

As much as I’d like to keep it from happening, we would have to start using her more to help build our army. And part of using her was exactly what Tucker was doing… motivating others to fight with and for her.

She was a powerful rarity who was on their side, and she was also the original Hooded Robber. Ellery had fought for them before anyone else did.

She was powerful, kind, willing to fight for and die for them, and could motivate others to sacrifice everything for her cause. She’d hate every second of it, but if we were to achieve freedom from our oppressors, she had to be their champion.

I’d hoped to prepare her for this better, but that didn’t happen. Now, she’d have to sink or swim, and knowing Ellery, she’d fly.

Some of the amsirah crept closer as they surveyed Ellery. Her discomfort beat against me, but she lifted her chin and stared back at them.

I resisted my impulse to take her somewhere they couldn’t treat her like a specimen in a jar. They had to see her to learn she was one of them and not someone to fear.

To them, I was still a member of the aristocracy, far removed from their lives and part of the problem. Some expected me to grow bored with playing rebel, return to my father’s castle one day, and never return.

They were wrong about that, but I still hadn’t built enough trust with them to prove it. I’d worked hard to establish myself here, but they’d lost too much and become too jaded to trust easily.

Ellery’s family was a long line of farmers, and while she had a manor and was in the class invited to some of the aristocrats’ soirees, she was more on the peasants’ level. Her family helped keep the realm fed; they provided some of the finest horses, and her mother taught some of them as children.

Before Ivan, Ellery’s family had a lot more than most of them, but they’d always been more like the local amsirah than the nobles. They trusted her more than they trusted me.

Ellery’s fingers dug into my back before she eased her grip and released me. She glanced at me before grasping the front of the shirt together and stepping away.

I ached to pull her back into my arms, but I had to set her free to face her destiny, even if I loathed every second of it.