Page 20

Talon

Talon opted for the tunnel on the right. He was silently thankful the corridors were long and walls thick. He didn’t want to overhear anything going on between his friend and Rion. They deserved their privacy anyway. Both had more than earned it.

A short winding hall on his left led Talon into a small cavern with a pool at its center. He inhaled the crisp scent and felt his magic respond to the water. With Fiadh’s and Móirín’s rocky alliance, visiting had never been an option. He ventured a guess that this might be the last time for a long, long while.

Talon loosened his robe and folded it before setting it neatly on the floor by the entrance. He placed his weapons on top and leaned his sword against the rock before sinking into the hot water.

A flame in one of the sconces cracked. He eyed it then waded to the far side and let his head fall back against the stone.

A resistance group. It seemed too good to be true. It was too sudden. A blinding ray of hope in the darkness.

Conall’s explanations made sense even if Talon didn’t agree with them. As a commander, he knew what it felt like to lose his warriors. He understood that guilt and the burden one carried as they played through different scenarios that might have resulted in a better outcome.

But Conall had simply chosen not to fight. He’d gone into hiding with the sole mission of freeing those held captive while they waited on The Divine. Not to mention how the male had virtually ignored Rion through the years.

Talon shook his head. Could this Vairik’s influence really extend so far? Were they all still suffering from that male’s magic or had they broken it by learning the truth?

Talon clenched his fists. He didn’t like the idea of Rion or Arianna walking into Ashling. According to Conall, Vairik desperately wanted both of them. The best plan would be for the pair to return to Levea and lie low. Avoid the masses. Maybe even go into hiding.

But he knew neither would agree to it. Especially with Ellie in that male’s clutches.

A familiar sense of pain and longing washed through him at the thought. He wondered how she was doing.

Talon was no stranger to war or the hardships that accompanied it. He’d seen firsthand how horrendously the slaves had been treated. He’d witnessed bodies tortured beyond recognition. Fae begging for death with their final breaths. He’d seen others ripped open, their organs picked apart by the creatures of the forest. And he’d had no way of knowing whether death had granted them mercy beforehand.

Talon pulled the tie from his hair and slipped under the water’s surface, letting the heat wash over his face before emerging again. He stared at his reflection as droplets rolled down his face.

Defeating a ten thousand year old Fae wasn’t going to be easy. They’d gotten lucky with Niall. More than lucky and he was only seven hundred. Ten thousand—the number kept repeating in his head, but maybe that was the wrong thing to dwell on.

Talon could hear his old commander’s voice in his head yelling him to focus. He wished that male was here with him now.

No—he wasn’t a child. He could formulate plans just as well as his predecessor. He just needed a few hours of sleep, then he’d reconvene with Rion and then Conall’s generals once they arrived. They’d finalize the plans, rescue Ellie, and kill Vairik before their world could erupt into another war.

Quiet footsteps echoed down the passage. Talon pushed his wet hair back and inclined his head to listen. His gaze traveled to the weapons he’d deposited on the other side of the room. He had the water. It wouldn’t take but a few seconds to grab them.

But Talon nearly stopped breathing when Raevina strolled through the entrance. She paused just inside, eyes scanning the space before landing on him.

“You’re alone.” Her tone came out accusatory. As if she’d expected otherwise.

“What are you—” His words died when she loosened the belt of her robe and let it fall to the floor. She stared at him as she tied her hair on top of her head then stepped forward, her hips swaying as she walked into the pool without an ounce of modesty.

His throat had gone dry. Closed up entirely. He couldn’t form words. Thoughts were a distant memory.

“Do you always stare at women when they’re undressing?” She settled against the opposite side of the pool and closed her eyes, oblivious to the effect she was having on him.

Talon bit the inside of his cheek hard enough to draw blood. He tore his eyes away and stared at the water, his face burning.

“I don’t care,” Raevina said.

“Clearly.” His voice was too high. Talon heard her shift in the water, but he didn’t look up. “Why are you here?”

“The other pools were taken. I wasn’t about to join Rion and Arianna. Gods know that male’s moody enough. Saoirse is busy guarding the pool with the half-breed and the others are too small. I didn’t think you’d object.”

Object? He couldn’t even move. Gods, was this female trying to kill him?

Silence filled the space. Talon had wanted to unwind in the heat, but it felt like every muscle in his body had coiled in on themselves.

The water moved and Talon nearly jumped out of his skin when he looked up to find Raevina less than a foot away. She was standing, her torso fully exposed. He couldn’t help it, his eyes traced over her body. The luscious curves and dips. And the scars. So many scars. He counted each one, then lifted his gaze to hers.

Raevina tilted her head and smirked. The movement reminded him of a predator who’d ensnared their prey. “Are you so reserved that you won’t take a female who’s clearly offering herself to you?”

Talon licked his lips then tried, in vain, to clear his throat. “You made yourself pretty clear last time.”

She waved her hand. “I was tired and cranky.”

His lips parted. She was—

“Don’t play with me.”

Raevina’s smile widened. “It’s true then, you haven’t bedded a female before.” She cocked her head. “You don’t want the experience?”

His jaw clenched. “Some of us want the experience to mean something.”

Raevina stepped closer and reached for a strand of his hair. She let it fall between her fingers before looking at him again. Her gaze heated. “And what do you want it to mean?”

His heart was going to beat right out of his chest. “More.”

“More,” she echoed the word, letting it roll off her tongue. Talon wasn’t sure how his body remembered to breathe. “I don’t do more.”

Their gazes locked again. It’d be so easy. So, so easy to let himself have this. To take her in his arms. Run his hands over her body. To satisfy the cravings plaguing him since the first night they’d danced.

But he also knew he’d be left disappointed when she walked away. He’d be nothing to her, just another notch in her belt.

“Then the answer is no.” His words were confident despite how he felt.

Her gaze traveled down his torso and peered through the water before she looked up at him through her lashes. “Your body tells me otherwise.”

Talon didn’t respond. She stood there, staring at him, waiting before Raevina finally sighed and pulled away. She sank back into the water and seated herself on the adjacent side of the pool. Her arms rested on either side and she tilted her head back.

“Shame,” she said. “I was looking forward to a pleasant evening.”

Talon could hardly draw breath. He peered at her from his peripherals, then averted his gaze at the sight of her bare chest. His heart was beating so fast. He’d barely maintained control and was already kicking himself for it.

“Will you seek that company from someone else?” Anger burned through him at the thought of another male’s mouth anywhere near her.

Raevina lifted her head and quirked a brow at him. “Would that upset you?”

“About as much as it’d upset you,” he countered.

She smirked. “What?”

“I saw the way you walked in here. You were looking for the Weaver.”

Raevina tilted her head back again. “I didn’t want to disturb you if you were occupied.”

“You hardly seem like the type to care.”

She shrugged. The silence stretched. Water trickled down from somewhere nearby then she finally said. “Would it be so outlandish if I were a touch concerned for your welfare? We’re in unfamiliar territory and after all that nonsense about you being one of them—” She waved a hand.

“It’s true.”

Raevina didn’t lift her head. “Were a few parlor tricks all it took to convince you?”

“I felt the difference in my magic.”

She scoffed again. “I thought you and your companions were smarter than that.” She lifted her head and Talon could see the fire in her eyes. “Trust no one, no matter what they tell you.”

“Is that why you don’t do more ?” Talon asked. “Because you don’t trust anyone?”

The flame in her gaze flickered and for a split second, Talon thought he saw shadows cloud in her deep golden eyes. They disappeared as fast as an extinguished flame. “I’ve learned many lessons the hard way.”

He opened his mouth to push but stopped himself when she sank her shoulders into the water and rested her head against the rock. Talon changed the subject instead. “I trust that these people despise Niall and Vairik as much as we do.”

“And how far do you think they’re willing to go to destroy him? Do you believe, even for a second, that they care about Evelyn’s fate? Do you think they wouldn’t leave her to be tormented if it meant getting what they want?”

“Would you?” The question slipped out. Raevina had given her loyalty to Arianna, claiming to do whatever it took to protect her. She was the wild card in their group. The new comer. The only one they knew absolutely nothing about.

Raevina was silent for a time, breathing deep before she said, “I would find the best solution for whatever situation arises.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“It means none of us know what we’re walking into. If young Evelyn can be saved, then I’ll save her but if I’m presented with an opportunity to kill Vairik and free this entire continent, then I’m willing to sacrifice a few lives to make it happen.”

“Arianna won’t like that.”

She shrugged. “Most don’t like tough decisions but they still have to be made. I swore to protect The Divine and that’s exactly what I intend to do.”

“So that’s your loophole? You’d go against her—”

“I’m not against her,” Raevina interrupted. “I’m here to ensure she lives, which is more than can be said of my predecessors. If they had done their jobs, we wouldn’t even be here.”

“You mean those who guarded the previous Divine?” She nodded. “That was centuries ago. We don’t even know what really happened.”

“They made a mistake and she died. That’s all I need to know. I don’t intend to do the same. We’ve waited centuries for her, who’s to say we won’t have to wait centuries more for the next one? What happens if we’re not given that kind of time? Vairik is hell bent on revenge and that kind of rage is unpredictable. I won’t see this land destroyed.”

Talon’s lips parted, then closed again. He’d never heard her say so much in one breath and as much as he was loathe to admit it, Raevina was right. If they failed. If Arianna or Rion died, Vairik could decide to do away with the continent altogether.

Talon clenched his fists. But if he had to lose Ellie in the process. He knew he wouldn’t make the same decision. If it came down to Ellie or Arianna or any of them, he’d choose his friends first.

“Consider your own values and prepare yourself for the hard decisions.” Her voice shifted to a whisper. “Others have died trying to be noble only for it to mean absolutely nothing in the end.”

“You sound like you speak from experience.” Raevina stared at the water for a long moment, then stood. Talon looked away, trying in vain to keep his heart from spiking all over again. “Where are you going?”

“To one of the smaller pools. Turns out they might be more pleasant after all.”

She grabbed her robe and walked out without even bothering to put it on.