Total pages in book: 401
Estimated words: 390373 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1952(@200wpm)___ 1561(@250wpm)___ 1301(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 390373 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1952(@200wpm)___ 1561(@250wpm)___ 1301(@300wpm)
The wet, sucking sound and the subsequent slithering squelch turned my stomach.
It was a sound I never wanted to hear again.
Eather rippled through my veins, flowing from me and into the man. There was another sound, like raw meat sliding across a slick surface, as his flesh began to repair itself. Gods, I wished my hearing had stopped working. I desperately tried to ignore what I was hearing.
It took a couple of minutes to heal Harland—that was how grievous his injury was. By the time his breathing evened out and fused, shiny pink skin appeared, and my hands were trembling. I glanced at his face, no longer seeing the tight lines of pain.
“That’s enough.”
I looked up as Hisa rose, using a linen Casteel had handed her to clean her hands. My gaze shifted to him, and the air stalled in my chest. The intensity in his stare was blade-sharp, unyielding, and absolute as he stared down at me.
Mouth suddenly dry, I rose. “There are more injured.”
Casteel took a step forward. “Tell me something, my Queen.”
I inched back a step as Delano stood, his head cocking.
Casteel reclaimed the small distance I’d gained. “What was the point of showing Kieran how to heal if you’re just going to continue doing it?”
I edged back again. “There are still so many—”
“I wasn’t done.”
I snapped my mouth shut, fully aware of the attention on us.
Eather pulsed behind Casteel’s pupils. “Despite being close to passing out?”
I lifted my chin and clasped my hands behind my back, hoping they’d stop shaking. “Are you done now?”
His tight smile was a warning.
“I’m not close to passing out,” I argued.
“You and I both know that is not true.” Casteel looked down at the wolven between us. “Isn’t that so, Delano?”
He nodded his big, traitorous head.
Casteel’s stare returned to mine. “You have done enough. Kieran will handle it from here.”
I’ve got it, Kieran said through the notam.
Frowning, I saw him at the end of the row, his eyes on us as he bent over a mortal.
“Aye. ’is Majesty is right,” came a rough voice from behind us—a mortal whose broken arms I’d healed a little while ago. “Ya done enough.”
“You don’t need to call him that,” I advised.
“And you don’t need to hurt yourself,” another voice said. This time, it was a guard. I rolled my eyes. “Let him take you back.”
“I’m fine,” I insisted.
“Ya almost passed out before you fixed up Harland,” a different mortal said, an older man with deep lines in his features. “I saw ya.” He coughed and winced. “Never thought I’d see a god pass out—”
“I wasn’t about to pass out.”
“She was,” Hisa argued, and my eyes widened on her. She cringed, a rare expression for her. “Sorry, but you need to rest.”
“Traitors,” I muttered. “I’m surrounded by traitors.”
Casteel smirked.
“My Queen.” He extended his hand.
I stared at his open palm as if it were a serpent. Don’t make me pick you up and carry you out of here.
My gaze flew to his.
Because I will.
Even though he didn’t speak out loud, the message in his tone was clear. There was no room for argument.
Shoulders loosening, I sighed. “Fine.”
Casteel wiggled his fingers.
Rolling my eyes, I smacked my hand onto his with enough force that a few of the older men—the ones less moved by being in the presence of gods and wolven—chuckled.
“Ain’t she a fiery one?” one of them muttered as Casteel tugged me to his chest.
Casteel gave them a half-smile. “You have no idea.”
I’m going to hurt you, I told him while smiling sweetly up at him.
In the best possible way, he replied, wrapping his arm around my waist. I gasped as he lifted me into his arms. The chuckles came again, stroking the essence in me. Clutching his shoulders, I glared at him.
“Hold on,” Casteel said with a wink.
Eather rose in him, and in the next breath, we were in our bedchamber.
“I really wish we hadn’t discussed that you could do that,” I muttered.
“I would’ve figured it out anyway.” Pivoting, he started walking.
The bathing chamber door swung open before us. “You can put me down.”
“I will.”
A light flicked on, casting the space in warm, buttery light. I was pretty sure he’d touched neither the door nor the light. And I was also pretty sure if I used the essence to turn on a light, I’d probably accidentally rip the whole switch from the wall.
He placed me on the tub ledge and then leaned over me, turning on the tap. Water poured from the faucet. His gaze returned to mine. “Stay there.”
“What if I don’t want to?”
“What if I make you?” he countered, going where the towels were.
“I’d like to see you try.”
“I actually don’t.” He returned, dipping the hand towel under the water. “With as exhausted as you are, it wouldn’t be much fun.”
I snorted at that.