Page 110 of Shadow Kissed

“They are fine,” he assures me. “Thankful to be rescued, and they are resting at the mansion. We have let their families know they are safe and sound.”

“And their captors?”

“In their cells, awaiting trial.”

“Go get some rest,” I tell him. “Will you check on Saveya? And update me if she wakes up. I’m still intrigued about how they both came to be out in the woods and how they got out of the valley undetected.”

Jasiel chuckles. “If anyone could do it, it would be your mate. She’s a resourceful young woman, that’s for sure.”

He’s right. My mate runs headfirst into danger and never thinks about the consequences afterwards. Whilst I admired her strength, it also means she puts herself in dangerous situations. I’d failed once to protect someone I cared for and I won’t let it happen again.

Jasiel leaves us and I join her back on the bed, lying on my side to watch her. I’ll have to remove the obsidian tomb before morning when she wakes as to not alarm her. Gods, she is beautiful, and she is mine. I’m not sure how she’ll feel about being mine, but there is no way now I’m letting her go now.

42

REYA

Iwake up with a start. The voices calling to me again—drawing me to them. The urge to go to them and find out where they are coming from is a dominant force in my mind. I look around me and recognise Raegal’s room. How did I get back here? Did he come for me?

“You’re awake!” He appears in the doorway that leads into his bathing chambers. He’s dressed casually in a white shirt, open and showing off that sinful, muscled chest of his, and tight trousers that cling to his thighs just perfectly.

I sit up and wince, feeling like a bus has hit me. My head feels like it weighs a tonne. He’s at my side before I can blink, pressing a hand to my forehead and scanning my face to check if I’m okay.

“I’m okay,” I assure him, gently pushing his hand away. “Saveya?” I ask as the memories from last night assault my mind and ramp up my heart rate.

“She’s fine,” he says, brushing a lock of hair from my face. “She’s resting in the infirmary. Jasiel is ensuring she is getting the best care.”

I blow out a steady breath. “Thank crystals! I’d never forgiven myself if anything had happened to her.”

Raegal’s brow furrows in concern. “Eretreya, what were the two of you doing out in the woods?”

I look down at my hands and chew on my lip. “Can I trust you, Raegal?” I ask, daring to look up into his eyes.

He places one of his hands over mine to stop my fidgeting. “On my word, Terror.” He doesn’t blink once or pull his eyes away from mine and I believe him.

“You came for us last night?” I ask him, needing to confirm a few things before I share my innermost thoughts.

“I did. I heard you call for me and when I found you…” he chokes out, closing his eyes and shaking his head. “When I first saw you slumped over your friend, I thought you were dead. Those mutts were surrounding you and protecting you from me. They wouldn’t let me anywhere near you both at first.”

I nod my head, remembering how they encircled us and at first, I suspected they had been preparing to attack us. How wrong I was. Can I trust this man before me? I’ve always viewed him as my enemy, but he’s shown up for me time after time and proved to me otherwise.

“Raegal, this is going to sound crazy,” I tell him, and I pause and look out of the window across the valley. “I suspect I may be of Night Borne descent.” I study his face, needing to see his gut reaction to my words.

He doesn’t seem shocked.

He nods his head and squeezes my hand. “I know.”

I do a double take. “You know?” Wait. What did he mean he knows? “How long have you known?”

He holds his hand out as if to ask me to hold off on my anger. “Finding you last night confirmed everything, but I’ve had my suspicions something wasn’t right from the moment we met.”

“So, you thought I may be of Night Borne descent and you never considered speaking up until now?” I ask him, pulling my hands from under his and hugging my waist.

He shrugs his shoulders at me. “What was I supposed to say, Eretreya? That I suspect you could be related to a long-lost realm of people that no one has seen or heard from for over a hundred years. I didn’t believe it for so long because it seemed too crazy to be true.”

He’s right, it is crazy. Even when I had my own suspicions, I denied it for some time due to how ridiculous it seemed.

“Why did last night confirm it for you?” I ask him, chewing anxiously at my bottom lip.

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