Page 21 of Courting the Fae Captain (Romancing the Realms #4)

‘Spell Weavers, most commonly residing in the Shadow Court, are masters of shadow and dark magics. Wielders from this court are widely renowned for their ability in combat and their prowess in clever magic.’

The Trials and Traditions of a Mithrian Fae

I blinked back at Raithe, silently pleading for him to let it go.

For him to pretend he hadn’t seen me. We’d developed some kind of alliance, hadn’t we?

He didn’t condone the Rite. Hated the very idea of it.

He could understand why I had to leave. But …

No, at the end of the day, he was a male and would see this as a betrayal.

If he didn’t have enough of a reason to kill me before, he did now.

As expected, the smirk on his face vanished, replaced by a darkness in his eyes and a clenched jaw. My stomach twisted at the sight of it.

“Gunnar,” Raithe said calmly without looking away, “one of your wheels is looking a bit wobbly. You might want to tighten it before you continue. Wouldn’t want to get stuck out here with one wheel with the storm coming.

” To me, he spoke beneath his breath, “Get out of the cart before I tear you out. Wait in the woods. If you even think about escaping, I will hunt you down, and you will not enjoy my mercy. But believe me, I will enjoy the chase.”

I looked him dead in the eye as he hauled me out of my box. “So, you really are just like the Pentad. Of course you are, you’re male. I will not forgive this, Raithe. And I certainly won’t forget.”

That charming smile returned for the driver, even if his eyes flashed at me with warning. “Good. Hold onto that anger. You’ll need it.”

He walked around the side to show the driver the allegedly loose wheel, which gave me the time needed to dash into the woods unseen.

I didn’t stop running, though. Fuck what Raithe had said.

He could kill me if he caught me, but I wasn’t squandering this opportunity.

I wouldn’t stay a prisoner in this fucking Rite.

As I ran, the birds chirped in branches overhead, and a squirrel dashed across the path, enjoying the sunshine before the storm and cold kicked in.

My boots sank into the muddied ground as I skirted roots and vaulted over fallen logs and the occasional boulder.

My breath was steady, despite the adrenaline racing through me.

I was doing it. I was escaping. I would find help before finding the missing females.

I’d help all of them—including the females still participating in the Wedding Rite.

Even that fanged bitch. We didn’t deserve to be treated like livestock, not even her.

I kept turning these thoughts, my goals, my mother’s goals, over and over in my mind.

It took me a few minutes to realise the forest had gone deadly silent.

I slowed and crouched next to a tree, palming the blade still hidden in my boot.

Then I froze, closed my eyes, and used my senses to truly listen.

He didn’t make a sound, but I felt his presence the moment he stepped out from behind a tree.

I whirled, tossing the dagger with precision towards him, the blade flying true to his chest. Raithe’s eyes widened, registering the attack with alarming speed before he shifted and plucked the blade mid-air.

Impossible.

He eyed the weapon, then those deep blue eyes drifted to me as he smiled. “You’re going to regret that.”

“Fuck you.” I could have run—should have run—but instead I charged, the anger I held for the mistreated females and myself fuelling my body. I jabbed once, twice, with my fists, then reared out with a high kick.

He blocked every move effortlessly, then grabbed my leg and spun.

I fell back into a tree with a snarl, his hand no longer wrapped around my calf.

I charged again, lashing out with a flurry of punches and kicks.

I was throwing everything at him, and yet I could tell he was holding back and still managing to deflect perfectly.

“You need to look for a weakness,” he said as he blocked and sidestepped another blow. “Simply striking and hoping a punch might land is futile.”

“Shut up,” I hissed. “I do not take lessons from my enemy.”

He shrugged even as he batted my arms away. “What a foolish thing to say. How do you expect to defeat your enemy if you know nothing about the way they fight? You can still hate someone and heed their lessons. The two are not mutually exclusive. I can help you.”

I stared at him, aghast. “You just took away my chance of freedom. If that’s the help you’re offering, I emphatically decline.”

Raithe’s face dipped into a frown. “That’s an odd way to say thank you.”

“You don’t get it, do you. This is just a game to you.

” Rage moved through me in rolling waves, heating my skin and electrifying my veins.

My voice was low, my body still but ready.

“Are we all just names on a list for you to cross out? How much is mine worth, Captain? A fancy new ship? Or perhaps a new estate for you and your new bride, whomever she may be?”

He took one step closer. Shadows plumed at his feet, and I blanched, my spine locking up.

My body acted on instinct, locking up at the proximity of a threat.

I had been in this position too many times, cowering while I waited for the blow to land.

This was it. I’d disobeyed the captain, and now he was going to end me himself just as he’d promised.

But I wasn’t going to grit my teeth and take it.

Not today. Not anymore. “Don’t come near me. ”

“Do you really think I am so like them? So cruel as to shackle you and all the rest to this castle myself?” He stepped forward again, and I retreated until my back smacked into a tree trunk.

“It doesn’t matter what I think. It matters what you do …

and what you allow to happen,” I retorted.

The plumes around his feet snaked farther along the ground, and that rage inside me reared its head again.

Something else glimmered awake, too. Something deep, deep down. “I told you not to come closer.”

“Despite what you may think, I am not one of them. I will never be one of them.”

“If that were true, you would have let me go. You would stand up to the Pentad. But I guess the Windaire blood runs strong. You are your father’s son,” I spat back.

His eyes hardened to ice, and the cold fury in them was chilling.

I felt that ice and his shadows grip me, trying to make me cower into submission.

A muscle ticked in his jaw, and then he advanced slowly.

“So, because of my blood, I should bear the weight of my father’s sins?

Do I need to remind you of your lineage?

Or are generational sins only forced upon males?

You get a free pass for your victimhood. ”

I flinched at the verbal blow, but as he moved into my space, something inside me simply snapped. Any restraint I may have held thawed entirely, until that slumbering beast inside me woke and clawed through ice and shadow holding me, barrelling to the surface finally. Magic. Power.

“Stay. The fuck. AWAY.” My power burst from me, crashing over Raithe like waves in an ocean storm.

His shadows reared up to protect him, but mine sliced through them, bearing down on his body without mercy.

He stumbled back, and my jaw dropped at the ripple of energy that blasted from my core, leaving me a little lightheaded.

My shadows. Just as quickly as it happened, I felt them pull back and up into my fingertips, as if once again leashed.

I looked at my hands in awe, turning them over slowly, then looked to Raithe, who was panting.

“By the gods,” I whispered as our eyes met.

His face was full of cunning amusement. “So, you’re a Shadow Wielder after all. Welcome.”

I pushed off the tree and blinked at him. “That’s my power? It felt so strong. That was incredible.”

“That was your magic awakening. It always manifests at its most powerful. But you’ll need training to reach that level again … I didn’t realise you were a virgin, little lark.”

“I—what?” I stared at him indignantly. “That is none of your … I most certainly am not ?—”

He smirked, as if I’d walked right into his trap, which I realised I had. “Relax, love. It’ll be our little secret.”

I blinked at him again. At the too-familiar term and the casual calmness with which he spoke to me.

“You’re insane, you know that, right? I don’t understand you.

Don’t you want to kill me? I betrayed you.

I ran. We’re supposed to be fighting. How can you act like everything is fine?

I wanted to kill you for what you did. I should still kill you. ”

He put a finger up. “You couldn’t kill me, even if you’d actually tried.

I have a couple hundred years on you, and while your magic is spectacularly powerful for someone so fresh, it’s clearly tied to your emotions.

Secondly, if I wanted to kill you, I would have already.

Instead, I actually saved your life. All shipments from the castle are checked upon entering Domeratt.

” I opened my mouth to reply, but he waved his finger.

“Had you managed to escape before arriving, you would have been caught in the storm, which is predicted to be wildly dangerous tonight. There are no towns nearby aside from our seaport, and Domeratt closes its gates at sundown. Where would you have gone? Are you familiar with these areas at all? Did you consider any of this before your foolishly impulsive decision?”

His barely concealed anger took me off guard.

He seemed to be more affected by my leaving than was necessary for someone in his position.

“I … I would have survived some bad weather.” I lifted my chin and admittedly felt foolish for not learning more about the workings of this area before escaping to them. “You give me no credit.”