Page 12

Chapter

Ten

I stand naked as the diurnal I was born while Nash kneels and examines my non-existent wounds in the least sexy way possible. I huff as he pokes my ribs.

“Astonishing,” he rumbles.

I arch a brow and grin. “Thank you.”

He straightens and drops a soft, lingering kiss on my lips.

Something dark moves in his gaze, and I wonder, not for the first time, if Nash Stirling is hiding something more sinister under his stern teacher exterior.

Hart warned me that his brother masks whatever demons plague him. Maybe it’s time I took more notice.

“Get dressed before you catch your death,” he murmurs.

“Ha. Death can’t catch me. I’m too clumsy for him to predict.”

Malachi holds out a red dress, similar to the one I had on before all the orgasms and stabbings, but this one is thicker, made to combat cooler temperatures. Theo dangles clean white lacy underwear in my face.

“White is misleading,” Hart murmurs as he leans against the cave wall with his arms folded and his gaze skimming down my body.

I yank the panties over my legs with a snort. “I was not a virgin,” I remind him. “So if you thought that, then you were delusional.”

His lips quirk. “Virgin no, but innocent, yes.”

I roll my eyes. “You are delusional.”

“You hadn’t even had an orgasm until us.”

That’s a good point, and if he’s trying to corrupt me, sign me up. “I don’t remember. I think I need a replay.”

Malachi shakes his head and wanders out of the cave toward the horses waiting to take us back. I asked if I could ride a dragon instead, given he’d ridden me, but no one found my statement amusing, so I guess I have to face off with the horses.

“Daphne, you can ride with Malachi,” Nash decides with a side glance at Theo, who opens his mouth to argue. “You need to get a grip on your dragon, and he needs to be reminded that he doesn’t own Daphne like a shiny toy.”

I’ve never been shiny. Or a toy.

“Fine,” Theo grumbles as he strides toward me. He grabs my waist and hoists me against him before covering my mouth with his and plundering my mouth with insistent strokes of his tongue. My insides melt, and my brain short circuits.

“Put Calamity down,” Hart drawls. “We need to head back to find the rabbit.”

Rabbit, schmabbit. That can wait.

“Plus, we left Gwyneth behind,” Nash adds.

I drag my mouth away. Okay, that cannot wait. It’s probably the only thing that can drag me from the arms of my knights. Possibly sausage, depending on how hungry I am.

I lead the way out of the cave and find Malachi already on his horse, offering me a hand.

Hart’s hands grab my hips, and in a flash, I’m saddled in front of the happy twin.

The other knights leap onto their horses with a balance and grace I will never possess.

We each have our strengths, and those things are not mine.

Malachi makes a clicking noise, and his horse breaks into a trot, the bouncing making me grimace.

“What’s wrong?” Malachi asks.

I squirm, trying to find a better position. “It’s uncomfortable.”

“Try straightening your spine but relaxing your shoulders.”

I do as he says, wondering why he thinks that will help. It doesn’t.

“Still uncomfortable?” he checks.

I nod and grimace as the horse jostles me around. “Yup, but it’s fine. I’ll manage.”

“It’s over half a diurnal back to the castle,” Malachi reminds me.

“I’ve endured worse.” I can’t think of what right now, but I’m sure I’m right.

The sun reaches its pinnacle in the cloudless sky, and an icy undercurrent in the air nips my skin and tugs on my hair.

I cast my gaze around, seeking something familiar.

An expanse of jagged mountains rises at our backs, which house the healing pools and crystal caves, and up ahead, a shadowy forest sprawls before us.

The weight of curious eyes watching us unsettles me, making me shiver.

“Where are we?”

Malachi fumbles around in the satchel hooked to the saddle and withdraws a red cape, settling it over my shoulders to protect me from the chill. “We are on the edge of the Forbidden Forest,” he explains.

“Never heard of it.”

“Why would you? It’s where the villainous rejects hide, the ones Far, Far Away won’t entertain.”

“It’s part of So Far Away?” I wonder.

“Yes, and if we had the time to take the long route around, we would. But between Malice stalking you from another realm, an Idol waiting on you to rescue him, and a sister with a capon and a rabbit problem, we thought it best to get back as soon as possible.”

I fall silent as Theo drops behind us. Hart flanks my side, while Nash continues to blaze ahead. They are surrounding me. I’d argue that they need not bother, but I’m learning that one, they wouldn’t listen to me, and two, I’m finding far more danger than I’m used to handling.

I press my lips together as I swallow a whimper of pain.

“Daphne,” Malachi utters in my ear. “I can sense you are hurting. Riding is tough when you aren’t used to it.”

“It’s not the riding that’s the problem,” I grumble.

“No?”

“It’s my floof.”

Nash’s head snaps around. His gaze drops to my belly before flashing at Theo. “You did hurt her.”

“Hey, there was no pain,” I grumble. “Don’t start fighting on my behalf. It’s just that my floof was unused, and now I’m asking it to bear my weight.”

Malachi chuckles. Nash’s head swings back around, drawn by something shuffling in the thick brush covering the forest floor. Probably a mouse. I’m good with rodents.

The genie poofs in front of us and does a quick spin, checking out our surroundings.

“You survived,” he points out.

“You sound surprised.”

“I am, but I’m also glad. New masters are tricky to get a handle on. Are they evil? Do they want realm domination or to alter the course of their destiny?”

I smile at him. “That sounds difficult.”

He nods as he looks around again and frowns. “Why are you in the Forbidden Forest?”

“Not by choice,” Malachi mutters.

“It’s a shortcut,” I tell the genie.

“To doom,” he replies with a mock shiver.

“Well, aren’t you a cheery being this diurnal,” I muse and then yelp as our horse jumps over a log.

The genie frowns. “Are you still injured? Did the knights not heal you?”

“Yeah, sexual healing,” Hart grumbles.

The genie blinks, lifts his finger, and snaps his mouth closed. “So, if you are healed, why are you in pain?”

“The sexual part caused a little unhealing,” Malachi says.

“It was to distract her from the pain of being in the healing pool,” Theo snaps. “Stop judging me. I didn’t take advantage.”

“Sure,” Malachi drawls. “A distraction.”

I elbow him in the ribs. “Less judgy, please.”

He grins down at me before bopping my nose. “You’re cute when you are mad.”

“I think we need to break,” Nash declares. “There’s a stream up ahead. The horses can rest for a turn and get a drink.”

“Daphne’s floof will also appreciate that,” Hart adds.

A laugh escapes me. Hart saying floof is my new favorite thing in the world. “The rest, yes, but I don’t believe my floof needs hydration.”

There’s a current of amusement around me, and I feel more settled knowing my knights aren’t about to fight over things like me and Theo getting dirty in the healing pools.

Six tempos later, I tumble off the horse and settle under a tree, resting my back against it. Malachi shares his packaged dried meats and cheese with me before suggesting I wash it down with a good amount of berry wine.

“It will help with the pain,” he coaxes.

I narrow my gaze on him and snatch the flask, giving it a sniff. “Are you trying to get me drunk, Malachi?”

He shakes his head. “No, never, but I hate seeing you in pain.”

“I could help with that,” the genie says. “You could wish it away.”

The pain is oddly nice when I’m not being jostled on the back of a horse. “Not worth it,” I grumble as I take four generous swallows of the sweet fruity wine.

“You know you have to use me or lose me,” the genie declares.

“Wait, what?” I snap. “There’s an expiration date on my wishes?”

Genie lowers his head. “No, I lied. But I feel if I don’t stretch my powers, I might get rusty. So when you really need a wish, I might be off.”

“Can you do magic without wishes?” Hart asks as he strides over to where I’m sprawled on the ground, keeping all the pressure off my floof.

“A little, yes. I am the genie.”

“Then stretch your magic that way. We have enough chaos happening without suffering the consequences of your wishes right now.”

The genie sighs. “Fine.” He flicks his fingers and tiny tendrils of pink glitter skitter across the ground and explode into a flurry of pink flowers.

“Pretty,” I muse.

“Thank you,” the genie says with a bow.

War cries break through the air, making me and Malachi jolt to our feet. Okay, he jolts and I fall, but he catches me, so that’s a win.

“Who goes there?” Hart snaps as we back into a circle.

Whispers of dread curl around me, making the chill in the air sink into my bones.

“It is I, it is us, it is we. The forgotten, the frozen, the fearsome creatures that make the hairs on your arms rise. We are the ones your mother warned you about.”

“My mother warned me about men with perfect hair and witches offering sweet treats.”

“Maiden fair, maiden strong, maiden of the song.”

“Got to love it when they speak in riddles,” Hart growls. “Makes them seem so scary.”

He doesn’t sound in the slightest bit scared. In fact, he sounds amused, which is a worry given he’s rarely amused.

Something launches into the air, and a split tempo later, a sticky net covers us. Malachi growls and tries to drag it from him, but it only clings to him tighter.

Theo shifts at my back, and I sense he’s about to dragon out.

“Don’t,” Nash advises. “We are too close. You’re more likely to hurt us than save us.”

“I wouldn’t struggle, it only makes my web shrink to contain you.” Out of the forest, a spider twice the size of me crawls out, its many many eyes scanning over us with delight.

“That is not creepy at all,” Hart says.

“I don’t like spiders,” Genie mutters before disappearing.

“Coward,” I mumble.

“Now, I do so hope you’ll stay for dinner. My children are starving,” the spider declares.

That doesn’t sound so bad.

“It means we are the food,” Theo corrects me.

I blink at the spider and fold my arms. “That’s rude. I’m hungry, and I didn’t threaten to eat anyone.”

“I volunteer,” Malachi drawls.

I roll my eyes, and the spider hisses. “Have you no self preservation?”

“Us, yes,” Hart answers. “Her, not so much.”

“I have the four of you preserving me,” I point out.

“That’s an unfortunate word choice,” Theo muses.

“Silence,” the spider shrieks. “Bring them.”

The spider turns and scuttles back into the forest, while an army of smaller spiders march out of the brush.

“That’s a lot of arachnids,” Malachi says.

They crawl over the web, tip us over onto our sides, and drag us across the ground. Somehow, I end up on top of Hart. He grabs my hips and raises a brow.

“You know, if you wanted me, you just needed to ask. I could no more deny you than the sun can deny the sky.”

“No sexy time in the evil web,” Nash mutters.

The genie poofs back in, shrieks, and disappears again.

“No counting on him for a rescue then,” Theo says.

“There are five of us,” I point out.

“And five thousand of them.”

“Fair point. But they’re super tiny, so probably have super tiny brains.”

We emerge into a small village filled with small and tidy huts. The stream we paused at runs down the center of the main thoroughfare. The spiders pause in a circular clearing, outlined with curved stone benches.

The giant spider waits, its front legs jerking in the air like it’s excited to see us. The tiny spiders scatter over us, gobbling up the web and freeing us. We tumble to the ground before rolling to our feet.

“You won’t take us down without a fight,” Theo snarls as he releases a puff of smoke.

The tiny spiders scatter to the edges of the circle as Genie reappears with Sir Sweeps-A-Lot before disappearing again with a whimper, leaving my magical broom behind.

I hiccup. The berry wine seems to have gotten the better of me. Probably because I rarely drink.

My broom dusts a few brave spiders away, flinging their tiny bodies to crash against the stone benches.

“What is that?” the spider demands.

I glance at Sir Sweeps-A-Lot. “A broom?” It comes out like a question because I don’t understand why the spider is confused.

Theo’s body ripples in warning. My head swims as I eyeball the shiny metal pitcher next to the stream and hold my hand up.

“Before we get to the fighting, I just need a drink.” I stride over to the stream and run my hand through the cool water.

That’s strange—it’s not running in any direction.

I swirl the pitcher through the water and take a drink.

The spider sucks in a breath. Oh Bunkum poop, is it magical water that is going to turn me into something horrific? I hope not.

“You are a maiden?” the spider snaps.

“I am. I’m also a mistaken damsel, the queen of the ocean, and the girlfriend of these fine knights.”

“The ocean?”

“Technically, I’m the Lady of the Lake, but I got an upgrade while stealing the trident.”

The spider inches forward, and the knights draw their swords in readiness. “So you can control water?”

I skim my fingers across the surface of the water, and it pulses around my flesh, making the still brook bubble.

“I think control is a strong word. Persuade, perhaps.” A fallen leaf floats away.

That’s more like it. I take another mighty gulp of the water.

It’s thirst quenching but not combatting the giddy drunkenness claiming my mind by the tempo.

“And you command a broom?”

Not sure why Sir Sweeps-A-Lot is being dragged into this. “I do.”

“Then you are her.”

I am her, who? I shake my head as I stand. “No, I cannot be anything more to anyone else.” I have enough going on.

“You cannot choose who you are,” the spider declares. “It is destiny.”

Theo swings his sword in a wide arc. “Screw destiny.”

“What he said,” I agree.

Even though I have no training, I miss my sword. The technique appears simple. Point and stab worked well for me last time.

Excalibur materializes in my hands, and I groan. Destiny seems to enjoy being screwed and gives as good as she gets.

Hart snorts as he glances at the sword in my hand. “You were saying?”

I drag in a breath and step forward out of their protective circle. It’s time I stopped hiding behind others.

“What are you doing?” Nash mutters.

I lift the sword in front of me, feeling its comforting power flow through my veins. “Embracing destiny.”