"When I get my revenge for what they did to you," she said softly, her tone so at odds with the threat. "They'll regret ever being born."
He did not recoil from her violence but grinned. "You are vicious,minn eldr."
"Yes," she said again as she reclaimed his mouth.
Sooner than she would have liked, Herrick broke free from her lips.
"Will you have me,minn eldr? All my broken pieces are yours if you'll have me," Herrick whispered against her neck, his touch reverent as his fingers glided over the supple curves of her body, one that had only ever belonged to him.
Maude found control of her hands in time to place them on either side of Herrick's face, bringing his eyes to meet hers in the soft darkness of the cave that surrounded them. Shadows lingered in his eyes, which had never been there before, and she knew that they were only the start of what she would see from Herrick as he gave himself over to the same fury that ran through her veins.
He was joining her in the jaded darkness of those spurned by the fates and at last, Maude didn't feel so lonely anymore. The ragged edges of their damaged souls seemed to fit together easily, their rough pieces melding together until they were one again.
"Yes, beast," she breathed, a slight curve of her lips hinting at a smile. "You are mine, and I am yours. Broken pieces and all."
Maude tried to capture breath in her lungs so her next words would sound as serious as they were, but she failed.
Breathless, she whispered in Herrick's ear, "Whenweget our revenge, this entire world will feel it."
She lifted herself up and sank onto his length again, her hips grinding against his, groaning as he filled her so perfectly.
"The gods will feel our wrath."
She moved again, Herrick's hands gripping her hips so hard that she could feel the bruises already forming. She tipped her head back, long hair falling behind her in a wave as violent as the beginnings of her orgasm.
"And they will all regret the day they took you from me," she finished, the last word escaping as a soft moan as Herrick leaned into her to taste the skin on her neck, the sweat that was mixing with the steam in the air and the rage in her blood.
Their lips met again, silencing any other words that might be said in the heat of their passion. Maude rode him until her legs almost gave out, their frenzied joining coming to an end too soon as her muscles began to tighten around him.
"I want you to come for me,minn eldr," Herrick whispered roughly, lips tracing the shell of her ear. "I want you to surrender to me, to feel me every time you move."
She moaned at his filthy words, his words spurring her to yank Herrick's head back by his hair. He smiled at her control, his pace increasing even as she ran hertongue down the long column of his throat before biting the soft skin where his neck met his shoulder—marking him just like he marked her.
His thumb reached down to swirl around her clit again as she began to tighten around him, the size of him thinning the breath in her lungs with each powerful thrust. Her hands tightened around his shoulders, her fingers wrapped in his curls, pulling his head back further. Their lips hovered over each other until Maude went off like an explosion of colliding elements, her gasps escaping through parted lips that Herrick immediately swallowed as he kissed her, as if he needed to taste her climax again.
Following her orgasm, Maude gently bit his lip as Herrick's sawed breathing ended in a groan as he came. As their breathing started to slow and they found their voices again, Maude placed soft kisses over each of the burns and scars Herrick had suffered, and with every touch of her lips, she promised death to their enemies.
Later, Maude would reflect on how, for the first time since they had freed him from the palace in Logi, she felt that they were going to be okay. In the days to come, she would realize how wrong she was.
36
Dahlia, the Matron Elven of Healing in Nida, stretched her slender arms over her head as she breathed deeply before bending at the hips and placing her hands flat onto the soft ground. Black soil wove between her fingers and caught under her short fingernails, the feeling foreign but not unpleasant.
Slowly, she walked her hands forward on the soil, the vertebra in her spine popping softly every few inches as she exhaled. Keeping her back straight, Dahlia continued moving forward until her hips were resting on the ground. She tipped her head back to the sky, the warm evening sun cutting through the leaves until her caramel skin warmed. The orange rays that signaled the end of the day and the arrival of nightfall was her favorite time to connect with nature.
She smiled softly, her lips tipping up at the corners a bit. Hilgafell's serenity was unparalleled; no matter what was going on in Dahlia's life, she would find peace in these woods for a few hours.
Too soon, the sound of snapping twigs and boots slashing their way through heavy brush came from behind her.
Lowering herself onto her belly, Dahlia took one deep breath of the forest air and pushed herself onto her knees. She placed her palms on her thighs as she rested on her heels, breathing deeply a few more times and rolling her neck.
"Matron," a gruff voice came from behind her, his voice winded slightly from the climb.
Dahlia ignored the title—gods, how she hated it. The presence behind her chuckled softly, and when she thought he was going to speak again, she held up her palm to silence him. It was almost night; she wanted to be present when the shift came.
The sun dipped below the horizon, slowly descending and taking the last rays of warmth with them until only a golden sliver of light remained. This was her favorite time of day, the slow descent of night as the skies became a deep pink and then purple before the stars and the auroras blanketed the darkness that replaced the warmth.
Even with her eyes closed, Dahlia felt the shift— the moment the sun disappeared. The light in her blood winked out, replaced by the soft caress of her shadows. With the coming of night, the air chilled, but Dahlia radiated with the intensity of her connection to the almost full moon.
