Page 243 of A Soul to Embrace

“I know if I try to describe her, I’d only piss you off,” Merikh muttered to Jabez, since he’d probably spout something rude.

“Although her name is Zylah now, you probably know her as Fyodor,” Jabez answered coldly. “The rabbit-skulled, antlered Mavka.”

“Fyodor?” she rasped, before her eyes bowed in anguish. “Delora’s daughter? That’s justcruel.”

Merikhfinallyremoved his weight from Jabez, just so he could fold his arms. “Regardless, I’m demanding that everyone put their problems in the past.”

“And who are you to tell us what to do?” the male human stated, twisting his axe at Merikh. “You were a prick in the Elven realm, and I’m not particularly inclined to trust you.”

“Well, if you don’t, I’ll take it out on these two.” Merikh hiked his thumb towards the twins beside them as he and Jabez both turned back-to-back to see everyone in their peripheries. “Currently we are collecting everyone and taking them to Magnar’s ward. I have a bride who wishes to meet you all, and unfortunately, I needed Jabez’s help to do that.”

“What if we don’t want to go with you?”the raven-skulled Mavka asked.

“Ingram is right. Although we trust you, Merikh, the Demon King is not our friend.”

“I told you I should have stayed back,” Jabez muttered, cocking a brow at the foolish Mavka. “You could have convinced them andthenintroduced me.”

“I really do hate it when you do that,” Merikh bit as he unfolded his arms and scratched at the side of his neck. He turned around to face his brothers. “Look, you two, I understand better than anyone that he deserves to have his entrails shredded to pieces, but what has happened cannot be undone.He is now a bride, and this day isn’t complete if four of our family members are missing. Raewyn wishes to meet you both again.”

“Raewyn?”Ingram asked with his head rearing back in surprise.“The Elf with stars in her eyes?”

“Yes,”Aleron confirmed for him as he sat back on his haunches to cup his bony bat chin.“That’s right. I met her again in the Elven realm. How is your little youngling, Lehnenia?”

“He has a youngling?”Ingram asked, darting his beak in his twin’s direction.

“She is here as well,” Merikh stated.

“For what it’s worth,” Jabez started as he turned to face the twins fully, “I am sorry for what happened. I was angry when I made that order, and I rescinded it long before your skull was crushed, Aleron.”

“Are you seriously seekingforgivenessafter everything?” the female sneered.

“Actually no,” Jabez stated as he glanced at her over his shoulder. “I don’t give a shit if none of you forgive me, but it’s an apology all the same. Isn’t it better than me continuing my war with their kind until I managed to crush every single one of their skulls? You sought peace and to be left alone, and now you have it. Be grateful I had a change of heartbeforeit came to further bloodshed. Had I not called off that order when I did, other Mavka may have perished.”

Her lips flattened disapprovingly and her gaze narrowed further. She said nothing.

The male human lowered his axe and slammed the handle into a loop around his waist before brushing his black pants of non-existent dust. His brown boots gave a single squeak when he pressed off the ground to go to Aleron’s side. Since the sleeves of his light-grey tunic were rolled up to his elbows, his strongforearms visibly flexed when he momentarily clenched his fists before releasing them.

“Look, I’ll do whatever Aleron wants,” he offered, brushing back the two-inch-long, caramel-coloured hair on top of his head before scratching at his stubble. His green eyes flicked to Jabez, then Merikh, then back to Aleron. “But what they’re doingdoessound harmless. They wouldn’t take us to more Mavka if they intended anything bad, and I would like to meet the others again.”

The female produced a scream behind her teeth and walked over to Ingram, just as the Mavka with short goat horns was rising to his feet. As if they’d shared the same thought, both Ingram and Aleron shifted into their more humanoid forms.

Both were naked, and Jabez almost wanted to throw his hands forward to gesture at their nudity.See?he thought, arguing with his past self.These two are naked and I don’t want to stick my dick in them.So why had Zylah’s nakedness eaten away at him so fiercely?

It was an answer he always knew he’d lack.

“What do you want to do?” she asked Ingram softly as she leaned into his side.

Aleron and Ingram turned their skulls towards each other and tilted their heads in opposite directions.

“I’m not giving you a choice,” Merikh bit out firmly. “The only difference is howdifficultyou make this. Your brides might be harmed in the process byme.”

Both twins growled and whipped their skulls towards Merikh.

“Fine.”

“We will go.”

Finally,Jabez thought, as Merikh explained what was about to happen. He cracked his neck one way and then the other before rounding his shoulders, preparing himself for how much this was about to exert his body.

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