Page 4 of Risen (Love and Revenge #6)

Robin turned her head toward me, as if she could hear every thought.

She arched one perfectly-shaped red-gold brow and gave me a bored look.

Then her gaze dropped to where my hand rested on the hilt of my knife and she rolled her eyes, turning away from me again to pay attention to the naga, crossing her arms over her chest and popping a hip as if she was extremely underwhelmed with the entire encounter.

Don’t be an idiot, Martina. As if your alpha would lead you astray.

The naga might have numbers on us, but if they tried anything, we had an unhinged dragon shifter, a demon-blooded sorcerer, a bubak, a fae assassin, and a chupacabra shifter on our side.

No one was going to steal Ruya away from us. Message received.

I forced myself to focus on the conversation, rather than my paranoia.

Sadavir was arguing with the guards about waiting for an escort.

But eventually his alpha status and overbearing noble blood won out and he got his way.

He said—chin up and shoulders back with a sense of haughty command that reminded me of another alpha I knew—that he didn’t need to know the exact layout of this new enclave, because his royal blood and innate magic would lead him to his family.

I swear, the man seemed to grow several inches taller, just being near his people.

No one was willing to tell their prince no.

We followed Sadavir across an impressive underground waterway, tall lamps and mage lights casting warm, soft halos of light over the path.

No one talked much, except Queen Cat, who occasionally yowled from her perch on Robin’s shoulder, and Vlad, who flitted ahead with a series of little chitters, apparently excited about this new cave-like place.

Our path led us through some sort of long-forgotten access shaft reminiscent of a mine, then down a stairwell carved from slick black stone.

I had to give it to the naga, this place would be a nightmare for anyone who tried to attack them—the route to the heart of the enclave was filled with odd landscape features and multiple twists and turns.

The air grew cooler, damper—earth-scented.

My pulse thudded at the realization of just how deep under the ground we must be.

I could sense more people now, heartbeats and paranormal auras nearby.

The path opened suddenly into an underground cavern of unimaginable heights.

Bioluminescent moss lit the arches of the stone ceiling so far above us it looked like a starry sky, and delicate waterfalls trickled from rock faces into hidden pools.

The naga enclave lay nestled like a secret between worlds—part temple, part dark underground forest, and part city, pulsing with life despite the gloom.

A sharp trill echoed through the chamber where we stood overlooking the domed shape of some grand building, and three figures shimmered into view—one elder and two guards, all in naga form.

The elder moved forward, a tall woman with curved horns, and little bones braided into her silver hair.

Her serpent’s tail coiled behind her, sleek and iridescent.

She stared at us, taking us all in, measuring our intent.

Then her eyes landed on Sadavir and her cool expression disappeared as her eyes widened.

“Prince Sadavir? Is it really true, then?”

He bowed, then signed, “Yes, elder. I’ve returned.”

There was a long pause, then the woman moved forward and embraced him roughly—her strong arms flexing with muscle, scales glinting along the backs of them in the dim light.

“You vanished,” she murmured as she pulled back to hold him at arm’s length.

“We tried to track your lifeforce after you went away with that horrid creature, but... she hid you from us. We feared you were dead. And the council of elders was afraid any further interference would negate our bargain and bring the syndicate down on us again.”

“You did well,” he signed. “I have survived. And I am free now. But I need help. We all do.”

She looked up again, finally taking in the rest of the court.

Ruya, holding onto Yukio’s arm. Robin, stoic and watchful.

Dusek, shadowed and tall. Sanka standing at the ready with his sorcerer’s magic flaring through his aura.

A mismatched pack of rebels, wounded and wary.

Her gaze lit on Josh, still limp in Cicely’s arms, and her expression softened for a moment with recognition before she was all business again.

“We would welcome you and Josh with open arms,” she said slowly. “But you bring outsiders,” her voice was full of cold warning.

“I bring family,” Sadavir said. “War is coming, and with it, great change. Change that only these people can bring about.” He shot a meaningful look toward Robin. “But for now, we are hunted. We need sanctuary while we plan our next steps.”

She looked at him for a long, long moment, and we all held our breath as we waited for the inevitable rejection. Then she nodded once, making the bones in her hair rattle. “Come. Your family will weep with joy. And the other elders will want to have words.”

We followed Sadavir and the naga elder into the heart of the enclave, the beautiful domed building below where we had entered.

We passed under vine-draped archways dripping plants that somehow managed to thrive here in the dim light, through halls carved from stone with sparkling veins of pink and green.

Pale, glowing lilies sprouted everywhere, their scent delicate and strange.

Far from the earthen tunnel entry, this place was polished and posh, marble and gold, and what I suspected were real gemstones quietly decorating every nook and cranny.

Nagas paused their tasks to watch us as we passed—eyes wary, tails stilling in mid-motion. I caught snippets of whispered conversation. That’s him. He came back. With outsiders. And worse. Is that Josh? What have they done to him? He’s a monster. One of them.

I watched as Ruya brushed her hand against Sadavir’s arm, and a spike of discomfort rippled through me at the reminder of their bond. “Okay?” she signed to him.

“I don’t know,” he breathed, speaking aloud for her. “But this is where I stop running. Acacia can’t reach me here. And even if she could… I won’t let her take me from my home again.”

She smiled softly, her expression showing such tender, heavy understanding that I felt like I was witnessing something private. She squeezed his fingers. “Let’s hope not.”

But despite his confident words, I saw the way the naga alpha glanced over at Josh’s unconscious form. Acacia could still reach him here. In worse ways than a simple physical attack.

When we entered the audience chamber, Sadavir stopped, riveted to the spot, signing to us with hasty motions. “My brother. Arif.”

The other naga prince was slightly shorter than Sadavir and not quite as broad, a younger version of him, barely out of his teens, with storm-colored scales and an aura like tempered steel. He raised an eyebrow, looking unimpressed.

“Took you long enough, brother,” he said aloud as he signed.

Sadavir came unfrozen and grinned. “You always were impatient, snakelet.”

Arif stepped down and Sadavir met him half-way in a crushing hug. They pounded each other on the back in that annoying way males tend to do. Then the younger brother stepped back to study the rest of us. “They’re yours?” he asked aloud as he signed.

“They’re ours,” I Sadavir corrected aloud. “They are clan.”

Arif’s gaze lingered on Ruya, no doubt sensing her strong omega nature. Then he nodded, slow but respectful. “Then they are welcome—pending elder approval, of course. And I have news of my own, just so you don’t think you can steal all the attention—I’ve recently announced my own engagement.”

Ruya tilted her head, polite but unreadable. “Congratulations. And thank you for your hospitality.”

“Oh now, thank you , omega,” he said, ingrained respect for her designation obvious before his tone became more teasing once more, though still laced with an undertone of remembered hurt.

“We all assumed Sadavir had perished playing the hero to save me. And I have carried the weight of that with me for years. Thank you for not letting my idiot brother get himself killed playing the martyr.”

I snorted. “Give it time,” I muttered under my breath.

Arif summoned a servant, and we were led to a suite of connected guest chambers carved from quartz-veined stone.

The beds in the individual rooms of the suite were sunk into the floor and piled with thick cushions, pillows, and fur throws, like nests.

Ambient light radiated from crystals set in the walls and ceiling, warm and softly glowing.

Sadavir helped Cicely lower Josh onto one of the beds.

Then the faun collapsed on the cushions beside the limp vampire with a relieved groan.

Robin stalked the perimeter with Queen Cat at her heels, checking for threats.

Vlad and a couple of rats curled up in a smaller nest of pillows, while Odin perched on Dusek’s shoulder, the two of them standing sentinel at the door.

Ruya stepped up to Sadavir with quiet pride in her expression. “You did it. You found them.”

“Barely,” he murmured. “And with Robin’s help.”

“Still counts.” I turned away as she leaned up on her tiptoes to press a kiss to his cheek. Ugh. Newly bonded true mates were apparently sickeningly cute. I was surprised Yukio wasn’t retching right now.

Outside the chamber, I heard the soft hum of naga voices.

Of old songs. Of history echoing through stone.

How could a place feel so ancient, when it had been such a short time since they went into hiding?

Around nine years, from what I’d gleaned from Sadavir and Josh in their time with us.

That wasn’t long enough to establish all of this.

I took a breath and closed my eyes, letting go of a little bit of my constant tension. Curiosity could wait. For now, we were safe—or at least far safer than we had been in the last two days. Rest and food were our next priorities. We could sort everything else out later.

I opened my eyes again and fought through my fatigue, forced myself to execute the role of security officer, checking the suite for any dangers, securing the locks, and setting up a rotation for someone to guard the main door to the suite at all times.

Still, that stupid discomfort in my gut slowly churned, turning into full-blown anxiety.

My gaze kept drifting to the two other alphas in the room.

Ruya and Sadavir gravitated to each other.

She was attuned to him like a flower constantly turning toward the sun.

Sadavir fairly glowed, his power stronger now that he was among his people, his confidence and his alpha influence drawing the others like a magnet.

Meanwhile, Robin’s energy only grew more subdued, suppressed, as if she was pulling away from not only Ruya, but from all of us. As if she was willing to let Sadavir take from her without a fight…

Our alpha princess was always a step ahead of the rest of us. Maybe Robin already saw what was coming, and was trying to prepare herself.

What if Sadavir wanted to stay here with his people? My chest clenched. I couldn’t lose Ruya. I couldn’t choose between her and my alpha and court. But it might come down to that. And if it did... I would lose someone no matter what choice I made. Ruya, or Robin.

And quite possibly the others as well. I knew Cicely would go with Ruya if she chose to leave our rebel court and join up with the naga.

He had always made his allegiance to our omega very clear.

But I’d also noticed how Dusek hovered closer to the naga these days.

How Sanka seemed to respect him and look out for him.

Even Yukio wasn’t as frosty as he had been toward the snake.

What if Sadavir decided to rejoin his clan and he took more than just Ruya away with him. It would tear our court apart.

“Martina?” Sanka said, the impatience in his deep voice telling me this wasn’t the first time he’d tried to get my attention.

“What?’ I snapped, whirling to face the sorcerer.

He lifted a dark brow at me and made a swirling gesture with his finger. “If you’re taking first watch, I think you should let me cast a wakefulness charm on you. You’re as braindead as the rest of us right now, goat-eater.”

I huffed. “Fine.”

Right. Priorities. Our safety. Getting rid of the cult. Murdering the emperor and burning the syndicate down. Severing Acacia’s stupid fucking head from her body and tap-dancing on her ashes. Then I could worry about my loyalties, and my future, and my feelings.