Page 198 of Daughter of the Serpent

She fueled herself with the memory of last night instead - the hurt, the betrayal - stoking her fire higher.

He lied.

He betrayed.

He killed.

All those words about truth - and he was the one masked all along.

Rage clawed up her throat like bile as she stormed across the dock, fists clenched so tightly her nails bit into her palms.

There he was, at the edge of the longship, setting his pack down like he belonged - like he had every right to be there. The wind snapped at his cloak, salt spray catching in his hair. He didn’t turn.

"What are you doing here?" Her voice was low but laced with venom.

He looked up slowly, and when their eyes met, the impact was as startling. His gaze - usually laced with that infuriating glimmer - was shadowed, dulled, rimmed in fatigue, and now that she drew closer she could see the invisible weight that slung over his shoulders.

He sighed, setting another pack aside.

"I gave you my word, my bond Sylvie," he said after a moment, as if speaking to her aloud took effort, like seeing her at all was agony. "Whether I live or die, I will always protect you."

Part of her felt her heart soften, even though the other parts raged. Despite her anger, her hurt - she couldn't bury down nor temper the longing - the truth.

She wanted him here.

She wanted him by her always, never to part.

But she had to hold strong.

She stepped closer, summoning her anger, her fury so she could bury her pain in it. "You have already fulfilled your word. You trained me, you made me capable of handling myself. You never signed up for this.”

His jaw clenched as he straightened to his full height, burying her in his shadow. She swallowed hard, tilting her chin up to meet his gaze.

Damn him.

Why did he have to tower over her like that - strong, broad, impossible to ignore?

Heat sparked low in her belly, furious and unwelcome.

She hated the effect he had on her. Hated how her body betrayed her. Hated even more that he probably knew it.

Her pulse thudded wildly.

She wanted to slap him.

She wanted to pull him against her.

Wanted to wrap her hands around his throat and squeeze - then drag his mouth down to hers.

The war inside her burned hotter, fierce and maddening.

"Things changed the moment Bjorn tried to slit your throat," he said finally, cutting through the war raging inside her.

His gaze flicked to the boarding group - Bjorn among them, already whole again thanks to the healers' magic.

She sucked in a mangled breath at the sight.

Maybe she should have let Axel kill him.

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