Page 194 of The Queen’s Shadow

I shot a look at K’yen, silently instructing him to keep an eye on the K’aalpa-kah while I was occupied entertaining Koda. He nodded at me with an amused grin on his face, and I knew I could trust him to make sure they ran their drills.

“She’s probably at Rhoan House keeping an eye on… well, let’s just go see if we can find her, alright? I have a lot to tell you.”

“I am sure you do, Little Cub,” he bellowed, and I winced at the nickname. I had forgotten he used to call me that, and wondered if that was where my nickname for Kyro had come from. I glanced over my shoulder at the panther in question, but he dutifully avoided my gaze, pretending he hadn’t heard Koda.

Smart kid.

“Why don’t you tell me everything over a nice cup of mead.”

“No one fucken drinks mead anymore, you weirdo.” I laughed and Koda just grinned at me.

“Whatever you can scrounge up will do just fine, Little Cub.” He said and I shook my head, still grinning like an idiot. Seeing him again did make me feel like a little cub, and I couldn’t deny that a weight had been lifted off my shoulders at his arrival. It made me feel like my father was alive again, and I had the luxury of relying on my elders to make the tough decisions for me.

I knew that wasn’t true, and I may very well need to disagree with Koda when push came to shove, but for now, I was just Rycon, and he was my big, bearish uncle Koda, and now we were going to have a drink and catch up.

It was a nice feeling, and one that I wanted to hold onto for as long as I could.

Kasha

“RHYALLA!” A loud, unfamiliar voice boomed through Rhoan House, rattling the door to my bedroom on its hinges. I jumped at the sudden explosion of sound and held a hand to my chest, trying to calm my pounding heart.

What in The Origin’s name…

“Koda!” I heard Rhyalla cry to whoever had entered the tree house. I listened at the door as they greeted each other, wondering who this Koda person was. Should I go out there? I wrung my hands together nervously, not sure if I was up for meeting strange males yet.

“Have a seat, Koda. I’ll be right back.” I heard Rycon say, then footsteps sounded in the hall beyond the door and I knew he was on his way to my room. I scrambled away from the door and crawled into bed, trying to look like I hadn’t just been shamelessly eavesdropping on their conversation.

In my defense, everyone had been nearly screaming at the tops of their lungs… it would have been difficult not to listen in. But still. No need to be caught with my ear pressed against the door.

Rycon knocked, but he didn’t wait for me to answer before entering, which made me scowl.

“Please, by all means, come on in.” I snipped at him sarcastically. He just gave me a smirk and I sighed. “What if I had been changing?” I immediately regretted even going there as his gaze darkened. I narrowed my eyes on him, but his smirk just widened.

“You’re a pig.” I snapped, and he stepped further into the room, closing the door softly behind him. His dark smile spread wider, and I caught a flash of his white, pointed canines as a deep rumble rolled through his chest.

“I’m not a pig, Kasha, but I am an animal, and I won’t apologize for it.” He said, and something about the way he said it made me feel like he was challenging me. What he was challenging me to do, I wasn’t sure, but the part of me that didn’t know when to quit wouldn’t let me ignore his tone.

“Fuck off, Rycon. I’m not in the mood.” I said, moving to curl into the covers, turning away from him. I knew dismissing him would piss him off more than any attempt to fight back. I bit back a smirk as my bait worked, and he was suddenly in front of me. I steeled myself as his hand snatched up my chin, forcing me to look up at him from where I sat on the bed.

I didn’t even flinch at the sudden movement or the touch.

Point for me.

“It’s not a good idea to turn your back on a predator, Kasha.” He warned, and though his eyes were filled with fire and amusement, there was something else under there too. Something more primal and intense. It made me shiver, though I couldn’t tell if it was with fear or excitement. Maybe it was both.

“Well, if I’m ever in the presence of one, I’ll try to remember that.” I snipped, pushing him off me and standing up. I moved to turn away from him, meaning to put some space between us when suddenly his hand was wrapped around my upper arm and he had me against the wall again.

What was with this asshole and throwing me up against walls?

Angry now, I moved my hands to his chest to push him off me, but he snapped up my wrists and slammed them against the wall on either side of my head, pinning my hips down by thrusting his leg between my knees.

“Rycon, let me go.” I hissed, my heart hammering in my chest at how close he was, and how trapped I felt. I looked up in his eyes and his pupils dilated, his own breath seemed to be hitched and I suddenly felt like I was drowning in his rainforest scent. A deep growl escaped his throat as I struggled under his unforgiving grip, still too weak to throw him off of me. The growl grew deeper, and he brushed his lips against my ear, sending a rush of gooseflesh erupting down my neck.

“Don’t move.” He whispered, and his voice sounded strange. It didn’t sound like an order; it sounded like a warning. I ran my aura over him and realized with a start that he seemed to be battling with the beast that dwelled within, and I wondered, for the first time, just how much of a slave shifters were to the instincts of their animal counterparts.

I fell still beneath him and waited until his breathing returned to normal. After a few moments, he seemed to snap out of whatever trance had possessed him. Looking down at me, his pupils contracted, and he let out a shaky breath, before swallowing hard enough that I could hear it.

“Unless you want me to chase you, Kasha, don’t ever try to run from me. I will hunt you down and I don’t know if I could stop myself even if I wanted to.”