Page 28

Behind Ashana crouched one of her chambermaids, and only my wife acted as a shield between her companion and .

.. a creature from the Abyss. Two men’s bodies had merged, joined by their abdomens, to give birth to a four-legged monster.

Its head—just one—was monstrously deformed, and had a gigantic mouth equipped with sharp teeth.

Its four feet were hooves, those of a goat, and it had a feline tail.

With only one arm, the creature rested its three fingers on the flat of the dagger my wife held with both hands.

Ash glowed red, and in the air, I could smell the distinctive scent of burning skin.

When I saw that Ashana’s cheek was cut and bleeding, something inside me broke under the flood of powerful anger.

Even the ground seemed to tremble beneath my footsteps. I approached them, sensing that my humanity, the one I’d acquired over time, was unravelling and giving way to something older and far more dangerous.

“Eezyr, mu saval ur kaes. 1 I growled, pointing my sword in the creature’s direction. No persaam afa lé stiib dar ghul myr Shana. No persaam if mu.

The creature reacted to the sound of my voice, and when its single eye met my gaze, it knew that its adversary was not Ashana, but me.

With a deafening shriek, the monster turned from my wife to face me, sweeping the air with its single arm, moving it from left to right as it lumbered towards me with heavy steps. I got into a guard position.

When it was close enough, I slashed at it diagonally, from top to bottom.

Flame, my sword, briefly set it ablaze. A gleam of astonishment crossed its gigantic eye, and it finally fell to the ground with the acrid smell of death.

My ancient words had pleased my sword, and it had responded with its power.

Slowly, I lowered my weapon until its bloody tip touched the sandy soil of the dunes.

“I’m ... I’m sorry, Dovah.”

My gaze met my wife’s.

“You should be, my wife. You risked your life and that of your chambermaids to satisfy your curiosity. There is no stupider reason to die than this.”

I was furious, it was true, but mostly because I’d been afraid of losing her. Whatever form I took, I was eternal—not her. Ashana looked away sheepishly.

“I was wrong,” she whispered under my agitated gaze.

“What’s going on?”

It was Kynnen, followed by my men. When I didn’t reply, my brother nudged the monster with the tip of his shoe to make sure it was truly dead. Half-sliced in two and burned by Flame; for my part, I had no doubt.

“I’ll escort these ladies back with the Osacan soldiers. I will leave you to take care your wife.”

She didn’t look too pleased. It was at this precise moment that I noticed her strange outfit, which hugged every curve of her body.

“What is this outfit?” I asked her in a dry tone.

Here, I was mostly annoyed because part of me, the part that didn’t need to think about anything, was enjoying the view.

Ashana straightened up, rubbed her hands together, then cleared her throat.

“I wanted to be discreet, to blend into the night landscape.”

I raised an eyebrow. Really? She’d thought she would “blend into the night landscape” with clothes so tight they revealed every detail of her busty anatomy? Her appetizing hips and breasts, all of it cleverly illuminated by the full moon? We could see her as clear as day!

“It’s not quite right, but I find your attire ... interesting.”

I knew there was nothing tender or polite about my smile. It was that of a man who was hungry and ready to feast, there in the dunes, on the eve of his official wedding.

My wife’s face lit up so brightly that I felt I was becoming as blind as my brother Paivrin while admiring it.

“Let’s go home, Ashana. There are no more creatures here, but I don’t want to come face to face with grave robbers. All I want is to know that you’re safe.”

A short silence passed before she spoke to me again.

“Grave robbers?” she repeated, accepting my hand.

While my fingers were burning, my wife’s were ice-cold. Nice outfit, but it doesn’t keep you very warm against the cool night air of the Osacan desert .

“Those of the Dark Gods. They loved gold, and so do the looters,” I said in a colder inflection than I would have liked.

“Ah. And, um ... these creatures, what are they? There aren’t any in Muvaria.”

I paused to examine her carefully. She had tied her hair up in such a way as to tuck it under a bard’s hat.

A hat far too big for her head. I flicked the brim, the one above her forehead, to better appreciate the features of her face.

Ashana plunged her gaze into mine without blinking as I stared at her perhaps a little too harshly.

I wasn’t really mad anymore, but I didn’t want her to realize it.

The more she thought I was still angry, the more she’d avoid putting herself in such a dangerous situation in the future.

It was her curiosity about the creatures of the Abyss that prompted her to behave so recklessly, and that was my fault. When I had mentioned them, I had remained evasive, thinking that, as long as it wasn’t useful for her to know more, ignorance had a blessed side.

I certainly didn’t know my wife well, and I’d just learned my lesson.

After a long sigh, I pulled her towards me to let her know that we had to resume our walk to Vulcan, who was waiting for us with exemplary patience.

As we did so, I told her what I knew about these creatures, the Abyss, and the mysteries that surrounded them.

Ashana listened to me without asking a single question.

When she did, I had unfortunately put my hands on her buttocks to help her onto my horse’s rump, and my mind forgot everything except the pleasant aspect of this contact.

My mouth went dry, and I could feel my blood migrating to a specific part of my being.

“Dovah?” she called out to me once we were settled on Vulcan.

I looked up at her with eyes probably glistening with lust, although I hoped that wasn’t the case.

“Yes?”

The range of my voice was much lower than usual. I lowered my eyes to my spread fingers while still feeling the sensation of her buttocks pressed against my palms.

“Why don’t these monsters come to my country?”

It was an excellent question that deserved an answer. What was it about Muvaria that didn’t attract the creatures of the Abyss, even though they were so prevalent on other continents?

“I will ask Paivrin to look into the matter. In fact, we’ll be leaving for Gulan as soon as the ceremony is over.”

“Oh.”

The tone of her voice caught my attention.

“Would you prefer us to stay in Tarnton?”

“No, no, no,” Ashana hastened to reply.

I loved feeling her body pressed against mine.

“We could also see your family sometime, once the post-war tensions have settled down a little,” I announced, tormented by the imperious need to please her.

I wasn’t usually this kind of lover, and even Nadrisse had complained about me and my lack of desire to please her.

To make her happy. Ashana really did have a strange influence on my character.

It was with relief that I welcomed the huge towers of Baal Castle into my field of vision.

I felt a little too acutely that my wife’s breasts were pressed against my back with each supple movement of Vulcan.

“I’d be delighted, thank you!”

Her intonation vibrated with ill-contained emotion, and I immediately felt a smile full of tenderness tugging at the corner of my lips.

“Massim, after you’ve taken care of Vulcan, could you ask some of the servants to prepare a bath for me, please?”

“Of course, Lord Dovah.”

The young Muvarian was the only page by whom my stallion agreed to be pampered. It was a real time-saver for me to finally be able to entrust him to a third party.

Once on the ground, I helped Ashana down from my horse. She made a clumsy movement that forced me to catch her in my arms. I let out a muffled grunt.

“Ah! I’m sorr ...”

She didn’t finish her sentence. My gaze locked on hers while my body made a point of communicating the delicious tension it felt from holding her like that.

I wanted to kiss her. Ashana must have read my intention through the open windows of my soul, for she gently closed her eyes in agreement.

Slowly, with a precaution whose only purpose was to help me contain the passion my wife inspired in me, I closed the small distance between our mouths.

Her soft lips trembled a little at the rougher contact of mine. Perhaps my growing beard embarrassed her or was unpleasant; I suddenly wondered if I should keep it clean-shaven ...

I hadn’t had anything but a chaste kiss in mind, but a sudden impulse animated me to burn my blood in the network of my veins, especially when I felt her mouth mold to mine.

My tongue traced its own path through the gap of her lips to find hers.

It curled there with passionate enthusiasm and Ashana moaned. The sound set me ablaze entirely.

Someone coughed. This was enough for my wife to signal that she wished to pull away from me. I turned my head sharply to Massim, who blushed with embarrassment. Did I seem so angry at being interrupted? Quite possibly.

Without uttering a sound, he mouthed the following words: “A thousand apologies, my lord ...” Vulcan. Yes. He was waiting for my horse. I reluctantly released my wife, who hastened to put her outfit in order to gain composure.

Once in our room, Ashana slipped behind a screen to change. For a brief moment, I studied the five wooden panels covered in embroidery and macramé.

“Since when do we have a screen?” I asked.

I didn’t like this thing.

“I asked Luanda to find one for me. I thought it would be a good idea to preserve our, uh ... privacy.”

So, yes, clearly, I hated this thing!

“I don’t really see the point,” I objected, pulling my shirt over my head.