A Soul for Vengeance (25 page)

Varrik, please let me know when the pass is clear so I may retrieve her and bring her back to the Conclave where she belongs
.

Arden crumpled the letter up in her fist. Dev knew where she was, and her father was in on the plan. So much for his promise to keep her presence here a secret. Was there anyone she could trust?

“And here he was trying to make me look like the bad guy,”
Loku said.
“But don’t worry. I know a way we can clear the pass before Dev even knows to come this way.”

“Show me.”

The chaos god chuckled.
“Let’s go
.
”

Arden tossed the letter back on the desk, not bothering to smooth the paper back out. Let her father know she’d read his letters. Maybe then he’d think twice about deceiving her. She ran to her room, Cinder tight on her heels, and collected her things in a matter of minutes. But when she came down the stairs, Callix was there to block her escape.

“Where are you going, Soulbearer?”

“That’s none of your business.” She pushed past him. “Tell my father I know the truth about everything and I’m going home.”

The dark-haired elf grabbed her wrist and pulled her toward the study. “No, you’re staying here until he gives you permission to leave.”

Permission? The mere thought of that word awakened a stream of irate magic that flowed down her arm. This wasn’t Ranello where she was under the control of her blood, and she wasn’t a simple girl who was content to be ordered around by a stranger.

Callix yelped and released her. Tendrils of smoke rose from his reddened palm.

She glared at him without a shred of pity. “No one tells me what I can and cannot do, especially when my homeland is in danger.”

Once she’d slammed the door behind her, Loku added,
“Perhaps we should make sure they don’t follow us.”

“Brilliant idea.”
She pressed her palm against the door, sealing it shut. A new wave of yellow-green magic followed, surpassing her efforts and wrapping around the entire castle. Now all the exits were sealed shut.
“Thank you, Loku.”

“Anything for you, my little Soulbearer,”
he replied, his voice oozing affection now.

The grounds remained silent as she saddled her horse and rode toward the pass. Cinder loped alongside her like an eager pup, his tongue hanging out of his mouth as frost plumed around him with each breath. She stopped in front of the wall of snow wedged between the rock walls, blocking her escape.
“How are we going to clear this?”

“You have no idea how happy I am to hear you refer to us as ‘we’ again
.
”
A trickle of his giddiness danced through her gut.
“Please, allow me to do it for you
.
”

Which of course meant granting more control to him. She eased up her restrictions a little more, and a tempest of magic poured out of her fingers. She reined it in, steering it toward the remnants of the avalanche. Cracks fissured the hard-packed snow. A blast of wind followed, and as quickly as the avalanche had blocked her escape months before, the pass opened up.

Arden tapped her restraints back in place just in case Loku had more destruction in mind.
“Thank you again
.
”

“Any time
.
”
A pair of invisible arms wrapped around her in a warm hug.
“At this rate, we should get to Hebera just as storm season is ending.”

And once she found a ship to take her back to Ranello, she was going home.

****

Dev could’ve spotted Arden on the streets of Queembra even without Varrik’s tracking spell. She’d pulled the hood of her cloak down low to conceal her face, but he knew the grace of her movements, the pout of her bottom lip, the impatient way she tugged her horse through the crowded street.

Besides, very few people had the gall to travel with a fire wolf.

A brief moment of panic had seized him when he received Varrik’s letter telling him Arden had managed to escape Lothmore. But for once, Lady Luck had smiled down on him. She’d have to pass through Queembra to get to Hebera. That, combined with the tracking spell Varrik had imbued on her necklace, made his job simple. All he had to do was wait for her to come to him, and then he’d drag her back to the palace where he’d have an ample opportunity to reprimand her for running away. He even toyed with the idea of binding her in those mithral chains while he did it, but the temptation of her in bed might be his undoing. Even now, his pants grew uncomfortably tight at the image.

By Jessup, he missed everything about her, from her hot temper to her sassy retorts to the way her breath always seemed to catch every time he came near her. He missed the music of her laugh, the gentle touch of her hand, the clean scent of apples that seemed to cling to her skin. He even missed the way she completely spoiled Cinder and had stolen the fire wolf’s loyalty away from him. And as soon as the Empress selected his replacement, he was going to come clean about everything.

He ducked back into the shadows as she drew near, holding his breath until it was the perfect moment to spring. His hand clamped around her mouth, muffling her scream while he dragged her into the narrow alley. A set of sturdy teeth bit into his gloved hand, and an elbow jabbed him in the ribs. His breath exited in a hiss of pain. He whirled her around and pressed her back against the wall. “That’s enough.”

Her eyes grew into perfect circles. The familiar yellow-green ring around her irises flashed. “Dev?”

“Just be thankful it was me. Now come along—you’re coming back to the palace.”

He tried to pull her with him into the street, but she jerked her arm free. “I refused to be jailed again, especially when Kell needs me.”

A stab of pain followed by a rush of jealousy coursed through him. He’d finally gotten her back, and all she could think about was that pretty-boy prince. He managed to grab ahold of her wrist, squeezing it until she stopped resisting him. “Do you seriously think you’d be able to sneak back into Ranello all by yourself without getting caught?”

She lifted that stubborn little chin of hers. “You forget what I’m capable of doing.”

He replied with a one-note laugh. “The whole empire knows what you’re capable of doing, Trouble—they’re still cleaning up the mess here from your last disaster.”

“Don’t call me that.” Her upper lip curled into a snarl, and she wrestled even harder against him. “Besides, why should you care what I do? You resigned as my Protector, remember?”

It was almost too much to bear. The angry flush on her cheeks. The unconscious way her curves rubbed against him as she struggled, teasing him in ways she’d probably never intended. The disdain in her voice that challenged him to prove himself. With the exception of the one night he’d accidentally drunk too much, he’d held his desire in check. He’d forced his feelings for her under the surface for fear he’d let his guard down, and she’d pay the price for his negligence. But now was the time to let her know the truth.

He backed her against the wall again, cupping her face in his hands, and kissed like he’d been wanting to do from the moment he’d first laid eyes on her. Her breath caught when his lips met hers, her body stiffening under him. He pressed on, deepening the kiss, silently begging her to open herself up to him.

And when she did, a moan of pleasure replaced her hotheaded protests.

The last time they’d kissed, he’d held back for fear of losing control. Now he held nothing back as his tongue danced with hers. He wanted to show her the depths of his feelings, from the way his blood warmed with arousal with each caress to the way his soul hummed in peace from holding her in his arms. He wanted her to know why he’d resisted so long, and why he’d finally chosen her over his duty. He wanted to show her how much he loved her so there would never be any doubt about it.

But with each dizzying spiral, he came closer to losing the last shreds of restraint. If he didn’t stop now, he’d risk making an ass of himself in public and doing all the things he’d pictured doing to her in bed. He broke away, his hands still holding her cheeks. “Later,” he said, as much a promise to himself as it was to her. “Right now, you need to come back to the palace and have a bath.”

Her brows pinched together, her blue eyes still glazed. “A bath?”

“Yes, a bath. You’re covered in mud, in case you haven’t noticed.”

She glanced down at her splattered boots and cloak before hiding her grimy hands behind her, her cheeks reddening more over that than their very public kiss. “Please, Dev, I can’t afford to waste any time.”

Neither could he, but for an entirely different reason. Even after he’d shown her how much he cared for her, it wasn’t enough to sway her from her desire to return to Ranello. Perhaps he’d waited too long and had lost his chance to claim her heart. He sighed and took a step back, trying to hide the pain in his voice as he said, “And you won’t. If you want to have any impact against the Thallians, though, you’ll be much more effective if you can convince the Empress to send forces with you.”

“As if Marist would even be willing to listen to me.”

“You won’t know until you try.”

She stared at him as though she were trying to gauge his honesty. The ring in her eyes glowed, further adding to his unease. Despite Varrik’s assurances that Arden had managed to successfully control Loku, the chaos god still whispered thoughts in her mind. Loku was undoubtedly thrilled at catching Dev in his moment of weakness and would use it to manipulate Arden in the future. But for now, all he cared about was getting her off the streets and behind the safe walls of the palace. He held out his hand. “You’re the one who said you couldn’t waste any time.”

Her gaze traveled from his hand back up to his face. She slid along the wall toward where her horse waited, her eyes never leaving him. “I suppose I could risk staying there one night.”

“Thank you.” All he needed was one night, and he was determined to make the most of it.

****

Arden ran her fingers through the tepid bath water, recalling the first spell Dev had challenged her to perform. Tendrils of steam rose from the once still surface as her magic heated it to the temperature she preferred. She stripped her mud-caked clothes, wrinkling her nose at how dirty she’d become during her ride, and sank down into the tub.

“That was a rather interesting turn of events, wasn’t it?”

Arden yelped at the unexpected question from Loku. Her nerves were already rattled enough as it was from Dev’s kiss. Sweet Lady Moon, what had gotten into him?
“You didn’t cast another one of your spells on him again, did you?”

The chaos god chuckled.
“No, my dear little Soulbearer, that magic was all you. Seems you’ve managed to make Dev forget about his duty for once. And don’t pretend you didn’t enjoy every second of it.”

Enjoy was putting it lightly. If he hadn’t stopped when he did, she would’ve ripped his clothes off and done things to him on a public street that would have everyone around them convinced that Loku had finally driven her mad.
“I won’t deny it, but I’ll also add that I’m still confused by his kiss.”

“You’re dumber than I thought you were if his kiss left you confused.”

“Perhaps I’ve become suspicious of everyone’s motives after all the shit you’ve put me through.”
She pulled her knees up to her chest and rested her cheek on them.
“As much as I’d like to believe Dev might feel something for me, I suspect he only kissed me to shut me up.”

“My dear, if I still had a body, I’d kiss you to shut you up. And then I’d follow it up with all sorts of naughty things, starting with taming that wicked little mouth of yours.”

A flush rose from the pit of her stomach clear up to her temples.
“Well, thank goodness you don’t have a body.”

“We can still remedy that, you know. I’m sure there’s a way to find out where your father hid my ashes.”

She rolled her eyes.
“Not going there, Loku.”

“Too bad. You don’t know what you’re missing
.
”
A set of invisible fingers danced down her spine, sending shivers through her with each step.
“But then, perhaps you don’t want me to know that you know what kind of power you wield over Dev.”

“Power?”

“Don’t pretend you didn’t notice how aroused he was
.
”

As if she could forget. The last time he’d kissed her like that, he’d been under a spell. Today was different. She could actually taste his hunger, but it was tempered with something else that left her warm and pliable in his arms. She’d known simple desire with Kell. This went far beyond that.
“I’m not going to use sex to manipulate Dev.”

“Then why don’t you use it to enjoy the moment? I can’t guarantee you’ll ever have a more perfect opportunity to get him off his high horse and buried deep within you.”

Arden gasped at Loku’s crude insinuations, only to catch herself lingering on the thought more than she ought to. How many times had Dev refused her under the guise of his role as her Protector? How many times had she opened her heart up to him only to be rebuffed? Her eyes stung.
“I’m sorry, Loku, but I’m too scared to take another chance on him. It’s not worth the heartache.”

“Perhaps this time will be different
.
”

She was about to ask him what he meant when the door creaked open. She glanced over her shoulder as Dev stepped into the room, his eyes downcast. Loku’s presence faded from her mind—a small blessing since she didn’t need his voyeuristic commentary right now. She shifted so her back was to him and hugged her legs even more closely to her chest, trying to ignore the warm fluttering in her stomach. “You could’ve at least knocked.”

“Yes, I could’ve.” He strolled toward her, each thump of his boots quickening her pulse. He knelt beside her. “You haven’t washed your hair yet.”