Page 69 of Horns of Wicked Ebony (Deathcaller Duet #2)

Her cheeks flamed. She grabbed the water pitcher and poured herself a glass, keeping her attention firmly on her task. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“I think you do.”

She took a long drag, staring pointedly at the water when she spoke again. “He’s been helping me get over…” Her words fractured, but I didn’t need them to know what she meant.

Without hesitation, I rounded the desk and dragged the second chair closer to hers.

This wasn’t a moment for distance, not with how she’d been struggling.

Gently, I lifted the drink and set it to the side.

A small sob wracked her lithe frame, and I pulled her into my chest and held her there.

She had been so strong in front of Rokath and Xannirin, not wanting either of them to worry about her, and my heart ached for her suffering.

We both knew how horrific it was to be overpowered by a male and forced to do things against our will. We understood how nothing was quite the same after. The shame of not being powerful enough to do more to stop it.

“Rapp is a good one,” I choked out through a throat thick with emotion.

“He really is,” Kiira hiccuped. I stroked her silky hair, soothing what agony I could. Imbuing her with safety and support. She was protected here with me. Here with Rapp. Here with all of us.

“Why don’t we go get some fresh air? Take the dogs down to the beach?” I prodded. A change of scenery and the soothing sounds of the ocean would unburden her. I’d snuck away on more than one occasion for just that when it all got too overwhelming.

“I’d love that,” she said, straightening and drying her eyes.

“Wine?” I grinned, striding to a nearby cabinet. Hidden behind some leather bound books was a variety of alcohol. Because as much as Rokath loved his rules, we were always the exception.

“You know me too well.” She let out a watery laugh.

I grabbed a bottle of red, then some toys for Grem and Zeec.

The snoozing hounds leaped to their feet upon seeing them in my hand.

“Do you need a cloak?” She wasn’t exactly wearing the best attire for an outdoor adventure.

Nor was I, clad only in leather pants and a heavy sweater.

My jacket certainly wouldn’t be enough with how the wind howled today.

“I’ll run to my rooms and change. Meet you past the gates in ten?” she suggested, rising and smoothing out her skirts.

“Done.”

The walk to the beach was a pleasant one, especially once the sun emerged from behind the clouds.

We took turns throwing the ropes for Grem and Zeec, laughing as they misjudged the trajectory, their teeth snapping around nothing but air.

I wasn’t sure if they were truly off their game or if they sensed the heaviness clinging to Kiira and wanted to cheer her up.

I suspected the latter, especially as Zeec continued to careen into her, bearing the slobber-soaked toy.

Yet when we reached the tunnel that led down to the beach, the hounds dropped their ropes and bounded forward, nails skittering against the slick rocks.

I laughed and shook my head, grasping the makeshift bannister to steady my descent.

I’d have to bathe them both this evening after they plunged in the frigid water—because no matter the temperature, that was the first item on their agenda.

Last time, Grem had gotten seaweed stuck so deep in his fur it had taken me half an hour to untangle the mess.

I had nearly missed dinner because of it.

“Wait!” I shouted at both of them as I hit the sand. The dogs were only a leaping bound from the water’s edge. Per usual, they ignored me and dove the spray anyway.

“Great,” I muttered.

Beside me, Kiira huffed a laugh. She wrapped the edges of her cloak tighter around herself as a breeze swept over us. “It’s a good thing they have long fur. I wouldn’t dare touch the water this time of year.”

I slipped off my boots, leaving them at the entrance to the tunnel. The sand between my toes was a welcome change. I wiggled them into it, letting out a sigh. Then, I tipped my head toward the sun.

Zeec barked, drawing my attention forward again. He panted, water dripping off him, and looked pointedly at their toys waiting for them on the beach.

“Fine,” I told him, then heaved one toward the water. He barked again as he raced to catch it.

Grem burst from the deep blue ocean and beat him to it.

Kiira and I walked along the shore in silence for a few moments, listening to the echo of the waves.

Once we reached a suitable spot, we plopped into the sand.

Kiira uncorked the bottle, then pulled straight from the neck before handing it to me.

I took a long drink. The wine tasted like berries and chocolate with an undercurrent of bitterness that I thoroughly enjoyed. Licking the last drop from my lips, I snatched my opportunity to ask her about my suspicions. “I’ve seen the way Rapp looks at you. ”

My words came out more as a statement and less a question.

She took the bottle back from me, staring out over the waves like she was trying to see to the next continent. “We’ve been friends for centuries. I don’t know. When I started tending to him after we arrived, and when I told him about Ollmund…”

At that moment, the hounds trotted up, Zeec having finally won the game of tug they’d been playing. He plopped the wet rope at Kiira’s feet. She made a face as she picked it up and threw it for them again.

“So gross,” she commented as they raced away.

“It really is,” I laughed. We lingered in silence for a moment before I said, “You can talk to me, Kiira.”

She glanced around us, like she was ensuring we were still alone. “I can’t, though.”

I cocked my head to the side. “Because of Rokath?”

“Yes,” she whispered. “I don’t want him finding out. And with your bond…”

“I can keep this from him. What are our tattoos for if not to show that we will always stick together?” I teased, hoping my ease would bring some to her as well.

“Something like that,” she half-grinned, some of the tension in the corners of her eyes relenting. A long exhale followed. “You promise not to tell him?”

I knocked my shoulder into hers. “On my life,” I swore, seriousness threading my tone.

Kiira tipped the wine to her lips again. “I think I’m falling for him too,” she admitted, her voice barely audible over the sound of the ocean. She handed the bottle to me, and I took another drink, savoring the taste of it on my tongue.

She swept her long hair over her shoulder and fiddled with the ends of it.

“When I saw the wound across his chest…I don’t know, something inside me snapped.

I couldn’t walk away wh en he was barely able to move about, you know?

And watching him struggle to breathe that first night.

It was more than an obligation…it was need.

It was desire. I’ve spent so long putting others before myself, this just felt more right than anything else has in centuries. ”

“I get that,” I told her. “Sometimes when we’re being selfless, it’s still for a selfish reason.” Like part of my intention when I wanted females to be in the army too.

“Exactly,” she breathed.

Grem and Zeec returned, and they had the audacity to shake out their fur right in front of us.

Salty, wet dog spray coated us despite throwing our hands up and leaning back in a desperate attempt to avoid it.

“Great, now we’ll smell too,” I groaned.

I snatched their toy and threw it away again before it could get any worse.

Kiira’s unburdened laugh lightened my soul. She snatched the bottle back from me. “It’s a better excuse that we were taking them out for some exercise rather than drinking between lunch and dinner.” A conspiratorial glimmer shone in her vibrant expression.

“Rokath would be irritated if he knew we were out here shirking our duties.”

Kiira rolled her eyes. “Everything irritates him.”

I snorted and reclaimed the bottle. “Tell me about it.” I took another pull, smacking my lips together. “So what’s holding you back from admitting all of this to Rapp?”

She braced her hands behind her and dug her toes into the sand. “Rokath. Xannirin. After what happened, they’d lose their minds.”

I couldn’t imagine Rokath taking the news well. I’d secretly dug around in his mind after Kiira’s revelation to weigh his thoughts on it. While he wasn’t quite as violently protective of Kiira as he was me, he still dreamed of the way he’d torture Ollmund Varrir for what he did.

“So that’s why you can’t tell him. Plus, Rapp is part of our circle, and if it doesn’t work out…”

“You don’t want it to be awkward,” I finished her thought for her.

She nodded. “Or for Rokath to banish Rapp after. We’re all he has.”

“He may not bear the Vrak name, but he’s family,” I stated with conviction. Then, what I said caught up to me, and my breath caught.

I have a family again…

It was true, knitted into my bones. Rokath, Rapp, Kiira…they might not have been blood, but they all loved me. And I loved them. Rokath, obviously, because he was my mate. But Rapp and Kiira, I cared deeply for them, like I had my sister.

As if she sensed the direction of my thoughts, Kiira elbowed me in the side. “I never had siblings, only my cousins. You are part of our family, Assyria. Even if you don’t officially bear the Vrak name. Yet,” she added with a sly grin.

I shifted, dusting some errant grains of sand off my pants. “Honestly, I’m fine with just our bond,” I told her. “I don’t need a royal wedding.”

“It’s uncanny how you and Rokath are so similar and yet so opposite,” she sighed, playing with the ends of her hair again. “He wouldn’t want one either. And Xannirin will never marry.”

“Which means you and Rapp have to,” I giggled. The wine was nearly empty, and I tipped it to my lips before handing it back to her.

“We’ll see,” she said, polishing it off. The hounds returned once again, but instead of their toy, they brought a bloody fish. Grem’s red eyes danced with pride and excitement as he spit it at our feet. It flopped wildly against the sand, its mouth open and gasping.

With a startled yelp, we scrambled backward.

“I think it’s time to go before these vicious beasts steal all the fisher’s wares for the day,” I laughed. The two watched me, tongues lolling, as I rose and dusted the sand off my legs and bottom.

“Where are your ropes?” I asked them, searching the beach. Grem cocked his head, while Zeec spun in a circle. “Well go find it so we can leave.”

Zeec barked and sprinted off, kicking up sand. The moment Kiira made an attempt to rise, Grem shook out his fur, spraying us both again.

“We definitely smell like fish now,” Kiira groaned. She smacked her cloak like she could rid it of droplets, scowling at Grem the entire time.

“At least we won’t notice it so much after draining the wine,” I pointed out, my head swimming as the alcohol worked its way through my veins.

“But everyone else definitely will,” Kiira replied, wrinkling her nose and giving up at last. “Maybe we return to our rooms instead of the office.”

“I think you’re right,” I said as Zeec returned with his absolutely drenched toy. Grem seemed nonplussed about finding his, which meant on the beach it would remain.

Zeec noted the direction of our travel, an excited whine slipping through his teeth. Haunches bunched beneath him, and then he bounded ahead and raced up the tunnel. Grem followed. Because where one went, the other had to follow.

I groaned. “Guess we better hold tight to the handles on the way up.”

True to my prediction, the tunnel was soaked and slippery. The vicious beasts waited at the top, staring down at Kiira and me like we were preventing them from having even more fun. I shook my head, and the moment we touched the top, they took off at a run through the grassy hills.

“Do they ever run out of energy?” Kiira asked as I yelled at them to return to my side.

“Never.” We walked in companionable silence the remainder of the distance.

When we ducked into the academy, we tiptoed down the halls, doing our best to remain unnoticed.

Thankfully, no one was around, yet whispers ghosted across the tapestries and reached my ears regardless.

I grabbed Kiira’s arm and tugged her to a stop after the honorifics for Rokath and me drifted our way.

“You really need to stop by the training area when they are working together. It’s like nothing I’ve ever seen. Like, we all know they are mates, but this? This is a different level. With the Szélhámos’s power, she can be anyone, do anything! And the Halálhívó?” a feminine voice gushed.

“He’s terrifying. One of him is bad enough, but two?” a masculine voice added.

“The Angels will turn around and run when they see him in duplicate,” another male commented with a mischievous laugh.

“When do they normally train?” a second female asked.

“In the afternoons. I’ll cover your shift in the kitchen so you can go. Everyone needs to see this. Honestly, I was frightened about the prospect of battle until I saw them fighting in tandem,” the first female promised. “Now? I’m ready.”

My heart warmed and a wide smile spread across my face. I couldn’t wait to tell Rokath about this. Kiira gave me a nudge, drawing my attention. “All we needed was the myth of you two. And it’s working.”

“It is,” I replied, tears burning my eyes .

Who would have thought this was where we’d end up after our bond snapped into place and we were unwillingly thrust together?

“Let’s get going before they catch us eavesdropping. I want them to keep talking to everyone like this,” I told Kiira. She nodded, and we dipped down a different hallway, avoiding the four.

Though it was a longer route, we eventually ended up at the base of the towers at the rear.

Before we parted ways, I dropped my voice and stepped in close so the sentries wouldn’t hear me.

“I swear, Kiira, I won’t tell Rokath about you and Rapp or let him snoop in my mind.

When you’re ready to announce your relationship, you’ll have my full support in dealing with whatever flares inside Rokath’s thick skull. ”

She giggled, then threw her arms around me. “Thank you, Assyria. I’m so lucky to have a cousin like you.”

When she stepped back, I had to blink rapidly to prevent the tears pricking my eyes from falling. “See you later,” I managed to choke out before yanking open the door to the tower and sending the semi-dry hounds up the spiral stairs toward our rooms.

So many emotions.

It was a good thing my nose was stuffy from holding back tears of happiness, otherwise the smell of Grem and Zeec might have been my ruin. And the whole time I bathed them, I basked in the joy the day had brought.