Page 88 of In The Dark

“You’re already so wet for me,” he says, rubbing me in taunting strokes. He slowly pushes in two fingers, his thumb swirling against me, causing my back to arch and?—

A faint knock at the door interrupts, forcing us both to freeze at the sound of it, and I almost groan—every fucking time.

I pivot into him with wide eyes, catching Rydian’s stare when he cautiously shakes his head.

“Don’t say a word. I’ll quietly get dressed and enter the Veil to stay here with you.”He pushes the thought out.

I’m suddenly hoping that whoever stands outside doesn’t scent Rydian on my sheets while he waits in the Veil. But I might kill them before they get the chance to.

“Isa! Open the door,” Ren calls out.

I groan—he ruins everything.For a moment, I entertain the idea of not opening it at all before my stomach sinks to the floor.Ren is now captain.I either have a mission or he’s turned me in.

Shit.I fly out of bed, searching for…. my night slip—ripped right down the middle from last night. Double shit. I lift it, shaking the tattered clothing in front of Rydian.

“You ripped my only night slip!”I say, but his laughter rumblesin my head just as he disappears into the Veil, dressed at record speed.

“I’ll get you a new one so I can rip that one too,”he says as Ren pounds on the door again.

“Hold on, you impatient brute!” I call out and rush to my wardrobe, quickly throwing on a tunic and pants.

With a heavy breath, I finally open the door only to find him dressed in black and armed to the teeth, every weapon of his in sight and missing his cloak.Is he not cold?

He looks terrifying as he towers over me, standing a few inches taller than Rydian. His black hair is raked back as he glowers at me with gray eyes, the color of stone.

“What took you so long?” he grumbles, pushing himself into my chamber. I try not to panic when I stumble, easily pushed to the side. He’s never been in my chamber before, and he just pushed open my door with ease, as if I were a mere insect and not a part of the brotherhood.

Rydian’s irritation flares across my mind, growling in my head at Ren’s forcefulness to push himself in without so much as a warning. But he should know better than anyone that Ren’s ruthless, especially after Sylvanor.

“If he touches you, I’ll kill him,”Rydian warns, sending a wave of burning heat through me.

“I hate you right now,”I reply, throwing Ren a tight smile at his back.“But I guess now would be a bad time to tell you he caught me searching for a tunnel?”

“What?”His growl echoes in my thoughts, and I wince, the sound reverberating across my mind.

Ren turns to me when I spot the king’s seal on a white envelope, but then he pauses with a subtle sniff to the air, and I catch the small scrunch of his nose.

“What?” I snap, knowing exactly what he’ssmelling.

“Are you alone?” Ren knits his brows.

“Yes, I’m alone. What do you want?” My words are lacedwith pure annoyance, but his expression shifts into something between confusion and amusement.

“Are you sure? You don’t smell… alone.”

Heat flashes behind my eyes, my hand moving to rub the inside of my wrist where the ache pulses, but I catch myself, forcing my fingers to still. The small movement draws his attention anyway, his gaze flicking to my hands.

“Who I have in my room is none of your business,Captain,” I bite out, emphasizing his title with sarcasm. “I’m alone now. Can I help you?”

“Yes, actually. There’s a mission you need to attend with me. It’s in Nymara, and we leave in a few hours.”

“Nymara?” I repeat, my irritation flaring. “That’s a four-day trip.”

Meaning I would be gone for eight days, pushing us back from searching the tunnels and finding my mother. Time we can’t afford to lose. And I would be separated from Rydian. After last night, I’m not sure Iwanta mission. My fingers curl into fists, and I give him a tight smile.

“Which is why we’ll be leaving shortly.” Ren smirks, crossing his arms. “And here I thought you’d be happy about receiving a mission.”

I force myself to relax, even as I mentally groan because he’s right. I should be happy for a mission, but I’m not. All it does is stir up more questions. Who are we sent to kill, and why? I’ve never dared to ask—fear of Theron’s wrath keeping me silent—but ever since I learned who I’ve been killing all those years, the questions only grow.