In the capital, Tristan moves stealthily through the upper hallways of the capital. He’d disguised himself as a guard to sneak past the capital walls, aligning himself with a troop as they entered. Quickly after, before he could be recognized, he broke away. He maintained a few connections in the
“I’ve heard him give commands to allow specific vendors to pass through the walls,” Bethany says. “Good,” Tristan says. “I can use that information.” “Then you should also know, that all of the soldiers inside the palace have been replaced with bear-shifters or wolves easily bought. The ones in
Rolling away from me, Caleb wakes up a while later. He stretches as he pulls himself out of bed. Since he’s naked, all of his bare skin is on tantalizing display. As hot as he is, though, right now, I’m not as turned on as I am disheartened. Caleb’s wounds are almost all the way healed, so much so
Though Caleb is amped up to return to the capital and reclaim his throne, Tristan and the rest of the soldiers are showing a bit of fatigue. In a quiet moment, away from the ears of the others, I speak gently to Caleb, “Tristan doesn’t look like he’s slept since he’s been gone. Perhaps leaving in
“Don’t stop,” I whisper in reply. “Don’t make me…” Dipping his head, he catches that same nipple with his mouth, lapping at it with his tongue. I squeeze my eyes and mouth shut, as I push my head back against the pillow. My back arches upwards, giving him more access. He hums, pleased. After a
Caleb and I, as well as most of the soldiers sit in the back of the truck, while Tristan and one soldier sit up front. The ride to the capital is long, especially without a seat cushion, but not a one of us complains. Without any light from outside, we are left in total darkness. As the trip progr
Caleb and I move to the center of the warehouse. The soldiers and other loyal citizens make room for use. When word gets out that we are going to spare, we earn ourselves a sizeable crowd. They should be getting ready for the fight ahead, but I suppose watching the king spar with a member of his har
“King Caleb,” Tristan says, materializing nearby. “It’s time to go.” Caleb looks at me a moment more, then turns without another word to me. With Tristan’s help, he straps on the armored vest, then, leading the soldiers, slips out through the side door with them following behind. The plan, as I
My heavy heart persists into the evening. I haven’t talked much since speaking with Kira, retreating to my room soon after. Not even Bethany could encourage me to speak. Kira’s words cut into me, straight down to the bone. I don’t want to believe that Caleb only wants me for sex, and that’s all he’
None of that matters now. Annabelle looks at me sharply. “What are you doing here?” I step into the room, Bethany following along, my silent support. Glancing away from her in my dream gown, I try to stoke my rage again. Remembering the letter, I retrieve it from my pocket. “I’m tired of being th
The next morning, as I lay in bed staring at the ceiling, dreading another day of doing nothing, I hear a swishing sound near my door. Sitting up, I look at the door and find a slip of paper laying near it on the ground. Did someone slide that underneath? Curious, I pull myself out of bed and walk
“I want to apologize to you for how I acted before,” Annabelle says. With her head down, she also droops her shoulders, seeming for all the world like she might drop to her knees at any moment. He really doesn’t need that kind of dramatics, so he’s relieved when she continues to stand. “I let my
She looks away. “While I cannot save those condemned to the coliseum, I can help prepare them to hone the best of their abilities. I give them the best possible fighting chance, so when they step into the ring, they might survive. Many do not, but some succeed.” Looking back at me, she continues, “
I awaken the next morning to a loud, confident knock on my door. Rising up from bed, I pull on my housecoat and walk to the door, opening it. I’m half-expecting Bethany, though she doesn’t usually knock quite that loudly. Instead, I find the Pitmaster there. Her expression is severe as always but d
Much, much later, after Caleb ravaged me on the stairs again and then twice more in my bedroom, once we are relatively cleaned up, though I still carry his scent all over me, Caleb sits on the edge of my bed, staring at me as I recline there, jelly-like and sated. We need to have a talk, and I know
Seeing Caleb rush towards me, fury in his gaze, I already know what’s happened here. Bethany. She might have seemed compliant when I told her to stay behind, but I should have known she wouldn’t just sit idly by while I placed myself in danger, even if I instructed her to do so. She is my friend b
“That is a terrible idea,” Bethany says, not holding back. “What could you even hope to gain by doing that? Best case scenario, Leah has no way of delivering the message. Worst case, Samuel lures you out somewhere and has you killed.” “He won’t kill me,” I say. Despite his threats, he cares for me,