When Sydni steps into my line of sight, positioning herself between Brice and me, I take in her appearance—shortened dark blue hair, those unnervingly light eyes, and pale skin. My body aches for her. This happened because of me. As angry as I am at Niyla for turning her, and at Brice for reasons I don’t fully understand yet, I should be angriest at myself.
My hands rise slightly, but I hesitate, stopping just before I can reach her.
It’s not that I don’t want to hold her—it’s the part of my mind that has always been far too dominant. The part that now analyzes every action of physical affection, is halting me from reaching for what I want most: to hold her.
Dropping my arms to my side, I turn from her and stalk away. “You.” I point up toward the cockpit where Alaric has his one good arm leaned against the railing. “You, I’m going to kill.”
Before I go further, I turn to Kairhyse, who has since got himself to his feet. He has blood all over him, but I can see that he is at least healing.
Has he fed…?
When he meets my gaze, he smiles, and I can sense his want for me to come back to him. I want that, no, I needit, but I can’t?—
Wait.
Why can’t I? I’m no longer captive by my mother, chained in a cage at the bottom of the sea, or the girl that freaked out over his affection that put us into this position.
My step to him is met by his quick advancement to me. As though he was waiting for me to confirm that was what I wanted. His arm is around my waist, the other grabbing behind my neck and smothering me into his chest.
He leans his head down, nuzzling against my shoulder and squeezing me so bloody tight, I know he will nevereverlet me go.
A heavy release of air comes from him, and I can feel the ache in it. He came for me. Searched… forme,again.
“Thank you,” I whisper, squeezing my arms tightly around his torso I’d encircled the moment he grabbed onto me. “Thank you for not forgetting about me.”
His hand comes to thread up through my tangled hair, pulling me away from him just enough to where he can press his forehead to mine. I stare up at his eyes that are somber, but the smile he offers tells me he’s anything but sad.
“How in the Beyond could Ieverforget about my girl?”
Warmth fills every crevasse of my being, and I take a deep breath of him. The smell of familiarity and being at home begins to sew up the tears of my world that had been torn apart.
“Can I borrow a shirt?”
Kairhyse hashis hand wrapped around Alaric’s throat, pushing him down against the cushion of the bench seat. While I feel it should be me killing him, I do revel in his anger at him touching me.
“I fucking warned you, Fallen.”
A Fallen…I’d not heard of them until I got a quick crash course from Sydni thirty minutes ago.
After slipping on one of Kairhyse’s shirts and putting some distance between myself and my former place of captivity, I told him what happened in the moments after waking up.
“It was to bring you back quickly.” Pfft. Please, piece of shit liar.
Where do men get the audacity? I couldn’t care less if it was to “heal me” as he so conveniently claims.
“He’s telling the truth.” Brice groans, and under his breath hemurmurs, “It could’ve been done without kissing, but that’s a pointless argument.”
Alaric just lets out a strained laugh. “Let’s be… civil.”
“Kai.” Saying his name and knowing it’s directed at the man himself, fills me with a buzz I can’t quite explain.
He turns his head to me. “Yes, little demon?”
“I can kill him, thank you.”
Before releasing Alaric, he lifts him and thrusts him back down hard enough that I’m certain the wooden piece beneath the seat cushion snaps.
As much as I loathe this man, who now casually drapes his arms over the chair like I’m not actively debating killing him, I can’t deny a sliver of appreciation for him. I feelgreat. While I still need to feed to fully settle my Amoro back inside me, having control of myself again is a phenomenal feeling.
