Page 16 of The Stolen Bride (Kings of Fury #2)

Chapter

Sixteen

When Nothing Adds Up: Nix the X to Solve For Y

–HOW TO TRAIN YOUR BERSERKER

By Elizabeth “Elle” Darcy-Bruce

V iktor steered me through the jungle. With an unofficial-official boyfriend I trusted and my heart no longer weighed down by thousands of emotion-filled bottles, I was able to do something I’d never done. Relax and soak up the ambiance. There were more flowers than I’d ever seen in one place. They scented the air with sweetness. Lush plants dripped with delicious-looking berries and razor-sharp thorns. Colorful birds and howling monkeys swung from vines.

Despite my ridiculous outfit, I had pep in my steps.

“Where are the shifters?” I asked, ducking under the branch he moved out of my path. I remained ready for an attack, but I saw not even a hint of the enemy.

“I think they realized they require a new strategy with you, now that they comprehend you are capable of a rage-trance. I’m certain they’ll regroup soon. I only hope we reach Deco’s fortress before it happens.”

I didn’t mean to, I really didn’t, but I smiled. The thought of powerful shifters—the enemy—needing to redo their war-plan because of little ole me, well. Talk about a confidence boost! On the other hand…

“I don’t want to break again.” I despised not recalling what I’d done. The loss of control. The endless icy cold, where every thought died before my opponents.

“What you felt, that is what the shifters experience all the time. Or so the Valkara explained to me long ago.”

I grimaced. How terrible to live out immortality in such a way. Never satisfied. Never experiencing joy or peace or love. Always hungry for the misery of others.

Grrr. Was I seriously feeling sorry for the creatures who had attempted to murder me? I switched my focus. “Is Valkara still silent?”

“Ja.”

Good. “And how do you feel about that?”

“I am…unsure.”

Well, that was better than before, when he’d only welcomed her.

He slung his arm around my waist and helped me over a fallen log. “I’ve never required her aid more, but even apart from you, the fog remains thin now. It is the mist that carries her voice.”

“You hate the fog,” I reminded him. Hint hint. If the fog was awful, it stood to reason that Valkara was too.

“Ja,” he repeated, “but it serves a purpose. Just as the fog you experience does, which may come from her.”

I heaved a sigh. “Yeah, I’ve had the same suspicion.” But did that mean I should ignore my dream? Treat it as Valkara propaganda?

Tension exploded from him, as if he’d been hit with a bomb. “I think, perhaps, she hopes to convince you to accept death by my hand. What I don’t know is what she will do when I refuse.”

When, not if. The reassurance brought a cascade of warm honey over my soul. “I won’t ever accept that death is the answer,” I assured him. “Not even for the greater good.” So yes. I should ignore my dream. “The two ideas aren’t even compatible.”

“Agreed.”

I beamed up at him, and a sharp, electric awareness turned even the air I breathed into a caress. I noticed the confidence in his stride. The glint of sunlight against the bronze hues of his skin. How he flared and fisted his fingers, as if imagining all the ways he yearned to touch me.

He must have experienced a similar reaction. In unison, we increased our pace, attempting to escape the growing cognizance between us.

Nature’s romantic serenade didn’t help. Distant calls harmonized with the gentle rustling of leaves and the low rasp of our inhalations, creating a carnal chorus meant for lovers. We came across many of Deco’s traps, but Viktor sussed them out before we tripped one.

Without warning, he spun in front of me. I crashed into his big body, bouncing back. His powerful arms shot out, slinging around my waist to keep me close and upright. For balance, I flattened my hands against his pecs. His heart raced, and the heat of his skin radiated through his shirt.

“Is something wrong?” I trembled with anticipation as he backed me into a tree.

“Ja.” He planted his hands near my temples, caging me in. His attention slid down the curves displayed oh, so vividly in my barely-there pink ensemble. “I haven’t yet marked you. But I want to.”

My breath caught, trapping his incredible fragrance in my nose. My head. Mom had told me about a mark between berserker mates. A cut on each person’s palm, the mingling of their blood, a kiss, and an unbreakable bond no other warrior could deny. The greatest gift a sentinel could give his woman, forever protecting her from other immortals if ever they were parted.

“Let me,” he demanded, letting his lips hover over mine. “I sense no threat in our vicinity.”

“I…shouldn’t.” The refusal required every ounce of strength I possessed. Gliding my palms up his chest, I said, “Creating a permeant tie when we’ve only just met is foolish.”

Far from upset by my response, he set his beautiful mouth at my ear to whisper, “Why delay the inevitable?”

In that moment, he was kindling; I was flames. Heartbeat a storm of thunder and lightning, I tossed caution into the wind. Forget waiting for the right time to enjoy him. Danger smanger. “Kiss me and I’ll think about it.” And probably nothing else.

Understanding the assignment, he swooped down and melded his lips to mine. I opened without hesitation, welcoming the thrust of his tongue. His groan of pleasure filled the air around us.

We devoured each other. His taste transcended perfection, and I couldn’t get enough. As little mewls and growls erupted in my chest, sublime power pulsed from him.

He liked my reaction to him.

“I want to make you mine in all ways,” he rasped.

“You are temptation itself.” Emboldened, I sank my fingers into his silken hair, clinging to his strength. He gripped my hips and yanked me closer, only clothing separated us.

The kiss turned fevered, spinning out of control, becoming a fiery exchange I never wished to end. Thoughts realigned, each centered on a single word: More .

But. Footsteps. Nearby. Shifters?

With a ragged roar, Viktor wrenched his face from mine. We both panted, breath sawing between us. Actual claws sprouted from the tips of my fingers.

“It’s only Bodi.” He traced his thumb over my cheek, studying me as if I were some kind of exotic creature worth more than anyone could afford. “At the first opportunity, we’ll pick this up where we left off.”

My claws retracted—something I’d consider later. At the moment, I was a little too drunk on him to do anything but nod.

When Malachi had found me and thrown me into this unwanted adventure, I’d been alone with no idea of my lineage. Now I had a sister and a possible firebrand within reach.

There. I’d admitted it. I might have a firebrand, too. Something else to consider later.

Bodi emerged from a thicket. Gashes littered his face and torso, and crimson streaked his skin. Leaves were scattered throughout his sandy golden hair. He stopped when he spotted us, grumbling, “If your goal is to cross the terrain without drawing notice, you’re failing. I heard you a mile back.”

“What happened to you?” Viktor demanded, releasing me. “I ordered you to go home.”

He had?

The prince swiped his tongue over a scab on his upper lip. “A contingent of shifters has chased me nonstop since the incident at camp. Rather than do battle at the traveling stones, I’ve gone in circles, slaying my tail one by one. I just killed the last shifter an hour ago.”

Poor Bodi. “Don’t worry. I’ll protect you if other shifters show up.” I flipped my hair over my shoulder. “Excuse my humble brag, but I’m kinda really strong now.”

The prince didn’t spare me a glance, but arched a brow at his brother. “She broke then?”

Guess the pair had discussed the possibility. “She did,” I answered for him.

Viktor’s chest puffed with pride. “I’m her firebrand. I calmed her rage.”

His delight affected me as staunchly as his kiss, and I nibbled on my bottom lip to halt a smile. So I’d only known him a short while. I wanted a chance with this man. Wanted to be with him today, tomorrow, and forever. He’d saved my life. Protected me. Peered at me as if his entire world orbited around me. Kissed me as if my lungs held the air he required for his survival. And look at him. A wild man with gorgeous white hair in total disarray, sparkling eyes, and lips puffy from my kisses. Even now, in conversation with another, he sought contact with me, pressing his hand on the small of my back.

I’d have to give up my spa, but I wasn’t exactly human and had zero desire to bottle my emotions again. Something that would be necessary around humans. Besides, berserkers had pets too. I could open a new shop. Legends and Lather? Celestial Pet Spa?

Bodi glanced between us, a tinge of disgust infiltrating his features. “We should go. The goal is still to reach Deco’s fortress, ja, and not be sitting ducks?” He marched ahead of us .

Viktor twined his fingers with mine and ushered me forward, staying near his brother. “Have you seen any others?”

“Ja, and I wish I hadn’t,” Bodi replied, his tone tight. “Kellan shifted, and we fought. I injured him, but I couldn’t bring myself to slay him. But leaving him alive cost me. He came after me with Deco’s men.”

Shoulders rolling in, Viktor sighed. “So less than a handful of us remain.”

Guilt pricked me. I’d killed four of them.

My boyfriend, for lack of a better word, sensed the direction of my thoughts, lifted my knuckles to his mouth, and kissed. “They attacked you. They deserved what they got.”

Bodi missed his next step, surprised, but I nearly floated out of my body.

Suddenly Viktor jerked as though struck by a bolt of lightning. He stopped, released me, and pounded his fists into his temples before pulling at hanks of his hair. “What, what, what?” he bellowed.

Concern punched me. “What’s happening? What’s wrong?”

“The Valkara. Something’s wrong. She’s trying to speak with me,” he said, his voice ragged. He swung around and slammed his forehead into a tree. Bang, bang, bang. Cracks spread through the trunk. “But she’s so quiet. Too quiet. Be louder!”

On instinct, I wedged myself between him and the tree to prevent his next blow. Jagged cuts dripped blood all down his face, and the sight hurt me . I cupped his cheeks, cooing, “Breathe in, baby. Good. Now out. Yes, yes. Now, picture yourself throwing your frustration out of your head through your ears.” Something my father used to say to me before I learned to bottle. “Go on. Picture it.”

He frowned but gave a clipped nod. “Done.”

“Now listen.” I didn’t want him talking to the woman, but he had to want to sever their tie. If he desired a relationship with her, well, that was on him. I refused to protest again. I just knew our relationship wouldn’t last, and the mark I’d just decided to take wouldn’t happen. The choice was his.

A moment passed in silence. Two. His nostrils flared. “I hear her.”

I waited several moments more before saying, “Focus on her words.”

His eyelids narrowed to tiny slits. “She’s telling me…” He cursed beneath his breath. “She is the one Deco imprisoned. He’s harmed her. She’s weakening. Perhaps dying.” Viktor pounded at his temples again. “If I do not reach her—I must reach her.”

Ice spread over his expression. He looked to Bodi, to me. “Try to keep up.”With no other words, he took off in a mad sprint through the jungle.

Bodi and I shared a look before leaping into action, trailing him. Though I was faster than ever before, I lagged behind. The prince hung back, keeping both his brother and me in his sights, but something gnawed at my gut.

“Your outfit is an…interesting choice,” the prince said, all casual-like, as if we were merely taking a stroll in a park.

Twin circles scorched my cheeks. “Blame your brother. He picked it.”

The prince flashed a smile, there and gone. “You are good for him.”

“I know.”

He chuckled at my swagger. I comprehended the man responded to bravado. And Bodi hadn’t even heard the half of it! I’d done the impossible and made his brother smile. “But, um, maybe be on the lookout for turul-shifters, since he’s forgotten everything but his precious Valkara.”

A grunting sound escaped him. “As if I’m not always on the lookout.”

I scanned the canopy above our heads, through the teak and banyan leaves, unable to shake an uneasy feeling. “This could be a trap. I don’t trust her.”

“You are not the only one,” Bodi muttered.

We experienced a surprising beat of comradery.

“She’s powerful, right? Knows the secrets of the Starfire that turned mortals into berserkers. Can use a set of keys to unshift a shifter. This whole ‘Deco has captured me, and I may be dying’ feels a little too convenient.” Something didn’t add up. Maybe my suspicions revolved around Viktor’s feelings for the woman. Maybe not.

Rushing off with barely a second glance at his one, true firebrand to rescue another woman in distress…

Plus

A centuries long connection…

Equaled

Some part of Viktor might love Valkara, who may or may not be in love with him, too.

Finally, the math worked out. I’d believed my hold on him was stronger than hers. And maybe it was. But any hold she had tainted mine. She wanted me dead so badly that she’d sunk to invading my dreams to convince me to willingly accept death at his hand. And she’d done this since my childhood!

Though Viktor had promised to refuse her instructions, he might change his mind. I didn’t know what power she possessed, the strength of her influence, or the depths of his feelings for her.

My stomach churned. For too long, I’d missed the signs that Benjamin and my ex-best friend Kami bore an attraction to each other. And yet, the calculation had been right there in front of me. Stronger variables lay before me now. Otherworldly ones!

One thing was for certain. Viktor was a man with divided loyalties, and I was an all or nothing kinda girl. I had major feelings for him. I liked who I was with him. I liked him period. But I needed total devotion. Deserved it because I gave it.

An agonized groan echoed up ahead. Bodi and I shared another look before kicking into a supernaturally charged higher gear. We reached Viktor, who had stopped at the edge of an abandoned campsite.

I took in the destruction. A smashed shelter composed of mud, limbs, and leaves. A torn, bloodstained gown of multi-colors, from the darkest gray to the palest white, hung from a branch.

A dented canteen on its side, the lid several feet away.

“She was here, however long ago,” Viktor rasped, balling his hands. “There are no footprints but hers. They took her from the air.” He stalked about, ransacking the camp. On the hunt for something specific? “Why did she come here? For me? Did she find my key? Did Deco?” Roaring, he punched his fist into a tree trunk. His knuckles drove through the bark, leaving a gaping hole.

Bodi motioned me forward. “Well?”

I blinked at him. “Well what?”

“Calm him.”

What, I was a dancing monkey on a string now?

I didn’t calm Viktor because this wasn’t a berserkerage, but a tantrum over his precious primordial guardian. I crossed my arms over my middle and waited.

The king was panting by the time he finished.

“May we go now?” I asked.

“We may, but you should prepare yourself.” He squared his shoulders.

As if I hadn’t already prepared for the worst twenty times over since finding Malachi Cromwell sitting in my bedroom. Still, I had to ask, “Prepare for what?”

“I won’t stop until Deco is dead, or we are.”