Page 72 of Claimed By the Fae Lord

Gunnar spun, finishing off his opponent with brutal efficiency. The remaining enemies, sensing the turn of the tide, scattered like leaves in a gale.

"Mirrelle!" Raina cried out, raw and wrenching, as she knelt again and pressed down on the wound.

“Take them both to the infirmary.Now!” Father demanded as he ran by, chasing after those who’d ran on foot.

"Raina, we need to hurry." My words were a plea wrapped in command, but she ignored them, her hands pressing with desperate urgency against the deep crimson staining Mirrelle's leathers.

"We’ve no time for this," Gunnar growled, knocking Raina aside, his large hands scooping up Mirrelle's limp form with ease.

Raina screeched indignantly and I hoisted her up into my arms.

"Let. Me. Go!" She thrashed against me, her small frame deceptively strong. But I held her tighter still.

Gunnar met my gaze, a silent order passing between us, and with a twist of magic, he created a portal and stepped inside.

"Raina, stop." But she was beyond hearing me.

I stumbled through the portal after Gunnar with her kicking and screaming against me, her anguish a living thing. I’d never seen her behave like this.

We emerged into the hallway, just outside the door where I could see Mirrelle on the bed. Gunnar stood at her shoulder watching the swift movements of Thora and Loten, twin healers of opposite gender but identical temperament and talent.

Two more healers came running and I spun out of the way, taking Raina into the next room and covering her mouth. The little spitfire tried to bite me.

“I’ll plug your nose if you don’t calm down,” I warned.

She bucked and I did as promised, keeping my mouth next to her ear. “Be still and I will release you. Mirrelle needs you tocalm the fuck down. If you can’t, I’ll throw you in the brig until you can get a hold of yourself.”

Raina immediately stopped moving and I lowered her to the ground, blocking the doorway in case she needed another minute. Then I registered the amount of blood on her.

“Are you hurt?”

“It’s not mine.”

She took a slow, deep inhale, then another. Though she had a slight tremble, she had a hold of herself once again.

“Come on, she’s next door. Just stay out of their way.”

Raina ignored my outstretched hand and hurried to the bustling infirmary room where Mirrelle was being treated. She froze, eyes turning owlish as a bloodied hand covered her mouth.

The clamor of healers and tools faded to a dissonant hum as I watched Raina shrink into herself, her presence diminished to that of a wraith in the corner. She made no sound, asked for no one's attention, but her eyes, those violet pools I'd drowned in a thousand times, were torrents, spilling over with silent tears.

The healers swarmed around Mirrelle, their hands a flurry of urgency and light, yet Raina remained motionless. I wanted to wrap her in my arms, but I remained at the door, guarding it being the only way I knew to help.

Eventually, Thora assured Gunnar of Mirrelle’s stability and all that was left was for her to rest. A collective sense of relief filled the small room.

“I’m just down the hall all night if anyone needs anything,” the kind female healer reminded us before leaving with the others.

Once I shut the door, Raina moved like a shadow, her form folding beside the bed where Mirrelle lay still, lost in healing slumber. Raina's sobs were so quiet I wasn’t sure she was crying at first.

I’d never heard her cry before and I never wanted to hear the sound again.

"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry," she keened.

It was then, amidst her tears and whispered prayers, that the walls I had built around my perception of Raina began to crumble. She wasn't the emotionless opportunist I'd once judged her to be. She just had trouble showing what was inside.

I wanted to demand answers from her. Demand to know where this had been when we’d ended. Why hadn’t she shown this to me? Would it have changed anything? Would I have fought harder to keep her?

Gods. I didn’t fight at all. I expected her to do it, assuming she knew I was all in, no matter what.

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