Page 5 of Dark Heart (Elven Kingdoms #2)

5

She was a slave now. Or she would be soon. Jai had abducted her. Jai . It just didn’t compute. There was a puzzle there, but she couldn’t focus.

Arya swallowed, fighting against the churning in her stomach. She tried closing her eyes, but it only made the pitching of the ship worse. She stared at the floor, the walls, the ceiling. Nothing helped. If only the swaying would stop. All she needed was a moment. When she couldn’t hold it any longer, she rushed to a bucket in the corner and emptied her stomach.

“ I take it you get seasick.”

Arya collapsed against the wall and wiped the sweat from her face with the back of her hand. She hadn’t felt great but had attributed it to the magical herbs. Then the windstorm came, and she went from not feeling well to being sick. “ Is that what this is?”

“ I think so.”

“ Are you not affected?”

“ Nay . At least, not yet.”

Arya groaned again. “ I think I hate you.”

She got an answering chuckle.

Arya had never felt anything so debilitating. If only the ship would stop moving. She tried to turn her mind to anything other than the nausea, but nothing seemed to work. After lying flat in hopes of calming her stomach, she said, “ Talk to me.”

“ About ?”

“ Anything . I need to take my mind off being ill. Tell me what made you decide to work at The Crossing . It isn’t a place many humans frequent.”

Reva hesitated. “ I wanted new scenery.”

“ Well , you certainly get it there. You don’t seem afraid of Dark Elves like humans usually are.”

“ I’ve never understood that. My kind fears Dark Elves but not Sea Elves . Why ? Because your class prefers to be underground while the others choose water? I’ve always been more terrified of Sea Elves . I can’t breathe underwater.”

Arya grinned. “ Good point.”

“ The two who took us seem to have quite a grudge against you. I take it you know each other?”

It was Arya’s turn to hesitate. “ We met a few years ago.”

“ Was it a love triangle kind of thing?”

Arya draped her arm over her eyes as the floor beneath her bobbed and rolled. “ What makes you ask that?”

“ The only time a woman hates another as much as that one seems to hate you, it’s because of jealousy. Usually , regarding a man.”

“ They’re friends. Have been since childhood. I once asked Jai if he and Priya had ever been more, but he told me she was like a sister.”

“ Hmm .”

“ Hmm ?” Arya asked as she moved her arm and opened her eyes to look at the wall dividing their chambers.

Reva sighed loudly. “ They look like more.”

An image of Priya putting her arm on Jai’s shoulder filled her head. That could just be a friend thing, but that wasn’t something males did. That show was something a female did to stake her claim. Arya had even done something similar. “ Aye .”

“ So , you and Jai were…?”

“ It was the beginning of something.”

“ What interrupted it?”

Arya looked at the ceiling. “ Work .”

“ His or yours?”

“ Both .”

“ And his anger toward you?”

Arya shook her head. “ I’ve not figured that out.”

“ Maybe you’ll get the chance while we’re stuck together.”

“ I take it you heard them talking?”

Reva grunted. “ That’s what clued me in on their hatred. They want you to suffer.”

“ Aye . I got that.”

“ I’m not sure what they have in store for you, but be prepared.”

It was good advice. The sound of approaching footsteps forced Arya to sit up. She was already at a disadvantage and didn’t want to show weakness. Particularly to Priya , who would likely take any opportunity to hurt her.

Arya had barely gotten her back to the wall when the door swung open. Priya stood in the doorway, smirking. She dropped a wooden bowl, the liquid sloshing over the sides while the bread inside soaked up the juices. Next , she tossed down a small waterskin.

Her gaze darted to the bucket, and a slow smile spread. “ Good luck keeping the food down.”

The moment the door was shut, Arya let out a weary sigh and closed her eyes. She didn’t move until after Priya had delivered food to Reva and walked away. No words were exchanged between Reva and Priya . It seemed only Arya had that honor.

“ Aye , she really hates you,” Reva said.

Arya didn’t comment. She heard the human eating and glanced at the bowl near the door. The mere idea of food nearly made her sick again. She would’ve liked the bread on its own. Arya lay down and tried to rest. Now that the herbs had worn off, sleep wouldn’t easily come. She had no idea how long they would be on the ship, but she suspected it would be days. If she lasted that long.

She didn’t think Jai would be back. The only reason he had remained in the room until she woke was to let her know her fate. He had wanted her to see him and know that he was responsible for her predicament.

The man who had stared back at her wasn’t the one she had known. Circumstances changed a person. She was proof of that. So was he. She had expected him to be upset at her deception of being undercover, but she hadn’t thought he would hate her to such an extreme that he would hand her over to those hunting her. Obviously , she hadn’t known Jai like she thought she had.

Maybe Dain was right not to trust others. Arya had taken Jai at his word about who he was. Perhaps she was the one who had been duped. He’d most likely fooled her about his feelings, too. Would things have gone the same if she had been a more seasoned agent when she first met Jai ? Would she have broken all the rules for him?

After coming face-to-face with him again, she feared she knew the answer to that question.

“ How are you faring?” Reva asked.

Arya groaned.

“ That good, huh? I think you should stay away from the food if your stomach is that queasy.”

“ I am. I’d rather not even see it. Smelling it is bad enough.”

“ I’d take it if I could.” Reva paused. “ I know my reality. No one is coming to look for me. What about you? Will the scarred Dark you were with notice your absence?”

Arya started to answer, but her stomach revolted. She found herself leaning over the bucket again, dry heaving. Once the spasms stopped, she returned to the floor and closed her eyes.

“ Sidiq is a good boss,” Reva said, her voice moving about as if she were pacing. “ He was leery about giving me the job. I had to convince him to let me work there for a week without pay to prove I could do it.” She laughed softly. “ He comes off as a big brute of an elf.”

Arya raised her brows at the description of The Crossing owner. Sidiq was certainly a large male. He was like a silent sentry until things escalated in the tavern. With one look, he could stop humans and elves cold. There was a history there. Dain knew him, but Dain had shared nothing about the Dark Elf with Arya .

“ He’s really a softy,” Reva continued. “ He doesn’t know I’ve seen that side of him, and I’d prefer that he not know. Don’t ever tell him I said that.”

“ My lips are sealed.”

“ I know the Dark have this whole persona of being cruel and brutal.”

Arya grinned. “ Some are. Most aren’t. We are proud, but once you earn our trust, you have it for life.”

“ I learned that from Sidiq . He was all grumpy and cantankerous at first. Barely said two words to me. Then I told him a dirty joke. He laughed so hard he doubled over. After that, he stopped scowling at me. Getting him to talk is another matter altogether, though. I like him. He’s a good elf, and I’ve proven myself over the last few months, but I doubt he’d come looking for me. He’ll likely think I moved on as most who work there do.”

Arya didn’t admit aloud that Reva was probably right. “ What of your family?”

“ I don’t have one. I was hoping the Dark male you were with might search. I’ve seen him in the pub before.”

Arya placed a hand on her stomach in hopes of settling it. “ Dain ? He’s a work associate. He might become worried about my absence, but not for a few days.”

“ And your family?”

“ I’ve no doubt they’re already searching. I was on my way to dinner with them.”

Reva was silent for a moment. When she spoke, she sounded hopeful. “ So , someone is coming.”

“ My family doesn’t know where I work. They won’t know to find Dain .”

“ He’ll go to them, then.”

Arya hated to be the one to take away Reva’s thread of hope, but they both had to face reality. “ Dain had a lead on something and will likely head out of the city. I begged him to wait for me, but he’ll go on his own once I miss that meeting. It could be days or weeks before he returns. He’ll go to my family then.”

“ Which will be too late.”

“ Aye .”

Something hit the wall on the other side of the divider—probably Reva’s hand. Arya understood. She wanted to punch something, too, though she would prefer it be Priya’s face.

“ They’re selling me as a slave,” Reva vented. “ How is that even possible? Doesn’t my life mean anything? I’m less than because I don’t have magic or pointy ears?”

“ I know. I’m sorry. It is an issue.”

“ An issue that isn’t being dealt with because only the elves hold positions in office.”

Arya took offense now. “ That isn’t true. There are humans in office, too.”

Reva snorted loudly.

Arya didn’t bother continuing the argument. It was a weak case to begin with, and they both knew it. “ I’ll probably face the same fate as you. If they don’t kill me as soon as I’m handed over.”

“ Someone will eventually look for you, though. Maybe they’ll find you.”

Arya turned her head to the wall and studied it, wishing she could see Reva . “ One of the reasons I was kidnapped is because I was part of a team that freed slaves being held in the mountains. Stay alive. Do whatever you have to in order to survive. If I get free, I’ll come for you.”

“ And if I break free, I’ll look for you,” Reva vowed.

“ We’ll get through this.”

They were false words, but ones that brought a measure of comfort to them both. Just as knowing they had each other did.

Silence fell, and Arya thought Reva might be asleep. As for her, she couldn’t find any measure of peace. Arya managed to doze between bouts of sickness. She was drifting off when approaching footsteps roused her. Arya somehow pushed up onto an elbow when the door flew open. Priya looked from the uneaten food to Arya .

“ It warms my heart that you’re having such a hard time of it,” Priya said with a sneer.

Arya wasn’t going to have another conversation while looking up at her captor. She got to her feet despite her wobbly legs. Her stomach heaved, but she refused to be ill in front of Priya . Instead , she raised her chin.

“ You wouldn’t be so confident if you faced me without this,” Arya said, tugging on the necklace.

Priya grinned, halfheartedly lifting a shoulder in indifference. “ We’ve been looking for you for years. Waiting for payback.”

“ You were the one who chose the wrong line of work. It wasn’t a matter of if you got caught, it was when .”

Priya’s eyes raked over Arya with disdain. “ I always knew you were a condescending bitch. I tried to warn Jai , but you had him fooled. For a bit, anyway.”

“ My feelings for Jai were real.”

“ Of course, they were,” Priya said with a fake show of concern. “ The raid proved I was right.”

Arya had been studying her enemy. Reva’s words came back to her then. She needed to find Priya’s weakness, and there was only one way to do that. “ I think your hate for me runs a lot deeper. Because Jai chose me. Not you.”

Priya moved lightning-fast. She suddenly had her forearm at Arya’s throat, pressing her into the wall and obstructing her airway. Arya didn’t struggle. Instead , she stared into yellow eyes filled with loathing.

As well as truth.

Priya leaned close, shoving more weight into her arm to cut off Arya’s air. “ Your time is coming.”

Dots edged Arya’s vision. She couldn’t breathe, but she didn’t look away from her nemesis. Priya suddenly released her. The last thing Arya saw as she dragged in a breath was the fist coming at her.