Before I can make a move, he kicks me hard, sending me sprawling onto my back. Rage surges through my veins as I snarl and curse at him. He merely laughs in response. As I get to my feet, he growls, and his fangs poke out from behind his upper lip.
He lifts his gun and fires two shots straight into my chest before I even have time to blink. I stare down at the feathered darts, pulling them out. Poison. My throat feels tight, and I gasp, choking on the bitter taste in the back of my throat. A burning sensation spreads through my limbs as it hits my bloodstream.
The world spins as pain radiates from where the darts punctured my skin. My blood feels like it’s turned to lava, and darkness slowly descends all around me making me collapse. As everything fades into darkness, my last thoughts are of Zirah.
Chapter Thirty-Three
My eyes snap open to take in the room. Sitting up, I find Gnash sprawled out on the balcony, his head propped on his front paws as he stares out at the rising sun. I can’t help but wonder if he can feel the potent guilt and regret churning inside me for Regan or if he just misses his owner and that is why he looks so depressed.
Forcing my body out from under the warm covers, I notice Zeke isn’t on his side of the bed, making me wonder where he went. Grabbing the sheet, I wrap it around my naked body. I make my way to the balcony and open the door. Stepping outside I wrap my arms around myself to fend off the morning chill. I spot Hunter and Shadow watching Gnash with worry. They instantly move as I wander over to him, stepping aside and giving me room to kneel next to him.
“Gnash.” My voice floats into the crisp morning air, barely more than a whisper. My fingers meander through his thick fur, searching for a sign that he heard me. He seems detached, not even bothering to lift his gaze to me. I grab his huge furry head, forcing him to look at me.
His tongue flicks out, licking up the side of my cheek before he huffs and pulls away, staring back out to the morning sun. “Are you alright, boy?” I ask him, but he just whines loudly, and the sound tears me apart. He sounds like he is grieving. Hunter edges closer, and I step back as the wolf lays at his side, resting his head on Gnash’s back.
With a heavy sigh, I step over both of them, my fingers grazing through Shadow’s fur as I move back to the sliding door. When I open it, I can hear a quiet voice seeping from somewhere within the room.
“Barely, asshole. You better have a good reason for waking me at this ungodly hour!” Zeke snaps at someone. My brow pinches as I wonder who he’s talking to.
I slip back inside the bedroom, and my eyes lock onto Zeke’s figure standing just outside the bedroom on the landing. He’s caught in a sliver of soft light from the skylight above, turning him into a hued silhouette.
He’s holding a phone to his ear, and his posture is rigid “That gutless bastard . . . That means he waited until we were gone. We’ll head back to the castle and meet him there,” he says into the phone, followed by a brief pause.
“Wait, you’re coming here?” he asks while I try to figure out what is going on. Pulling the door open slightly, it creaks. Suddenly, he spins around, his intense gaze pinning me like a deer caught in the headlights. My throat tightens, a wave of guilt washing over me for eavesdropping. Zeke smiles, and motions with his hand to come to him.
“Wait, she just woke up,” he says into the phone.
“Who’s that?” I mouth, and he places the phone on speaker.
Lyon’s voice fills the quiet hallway as Zeke presses his lips to my temple. “I’m almost to your kingdom. I am only about an hour and a half out, if that, but I am about to hit the dead service area, so I’m going to hang up before I lose you,” Zeke tells him.
“Righto, I will see you soon,” Zeke states before cutting the call and slipping his phone back into his pocket.
A playful smirk creeps onto his face as his eyes lazily scan my body, and he hooks a finger around the edge of the sheet I’m wrapped in, trying to pull it loose. I clutch the sheet tighter around me, trying to ignore the butterflies swarming in my belly. “Is everything alright?” I ask Zeke.
“It will be, Regan will handle it,” Zeke assures me, and I chew my lip because, from what I heard, it didn’t sound alright.
“You’re hiding something,” I insist.
Zeke sighs heavily then cups my face in his hands. His lips gently brush mine. “King Slavic took Malachi, and Regan believes my father is injured.”
I stare at him wondering why he is not more concerned about this.
“We should go check on the High Kingdom and the people in the city,” I tell him, moving toward the bedroom door to get dressed. Zeke’s arm wraps around my waist and pulls me back.
“Regan will handle it. Lyon is on his way here,” Zeke tells me, but that doesn’t make my unease settle.
I shake my head. “No, we need to help Regan and your father,” I argue, tugging away from him. Zeke groans looking annoyed. “What? I can’t just sit here and do nothing, and what about Malachi? We can’t just leave him with the Vampiric King,” I state, turning to face Zeke only for him to step closer. He looks at me, tucking a loose strand of hair behind my ear.
“I know, Zirah. We won’t leave him there, but we need to be smart about this and not just rush in blindly,” he says. “If Regan said to wait here, that is what we’ll do. He knows what he’s doing, and he has dealt with this sort of situation before. King Slavic is known for such tactics when he is trying to get what he wants.”
“But this time is different, and he is doing this as revenge for his son being killed, not over treaty arrangements.” I remind him.
Zeke presses his lips in a line. “He also knows killing Malachi will start a war. Let Regan handle it. Until he says otherwise, we don’t leave here,” he tells me. I don’t like it, but I am also not used to their royal games, and clearly this is something they’ve dealt with before, so I nod, trusting that he’s right.
“Regan can handle it. I promise,” he says, sauntering closer, his arm snaking around my waist as he pulls me flush against him.
“But—” I start, only to be cut off by him gripping my face.
