Page 91 of Princess

King thought about it for a moment.“I want that fucking bastard.He can’t escape.”

“We need to head back to the harbor and find someone who knows where the hell Barnes is.”

“We need rest,” King said.

“I can keep going,” I told him.

“All of us need rest and calories, or we’ll be no good.”

He knew how to get to me.I nodded.“Not here.I want us further from the fake president.”

I turned and saw Terry.His face and those of his men were flushed.One vomited.

Terry had not betrayed us.It took only a few seconds to put the pieces together in my head.I waved him over and relayed what we’d seen.

Worry flashed in his eyes.“I know it was the president in the camp.If there’s a decoy now, Barnes is still in the area,” he said, looking defeated.“Are the soldiers on the road still alive?”he asked.

“Yes, we left them trying to figure out what to do.”

“The other two vehicles won’t make it far.With permission.Allow us to go after them.”

“You’re more exhausted than we are,” I told him.

His jaw hardened.“You were right,” he said, barely keeping the emotion from his voice.“We couldn’t keep up with you, and if you are going after Barnes, we’ll get there after the fight.The commanders in that convoy,” he pointed in the direction of the road, “gave the order to inject us with their shit.They also gave the orders to kill some of these men’s families to supply the semi-trucks with hellhounds.We want blood and we want our loved ones released from their hell.I’m asking you to give us a chance to pay them back.”

“Those two vehicles could make it further than you think.”

“I don’t care.”

“My Warriors need rest, and we need a place further away from here to do it safely.We won’t be able to come to your aid.”

“If we die, we die helping the cause.I’ll ask the men, but I know what their answer is.”

“Ask them,” I said.

Terry and his group left fifteen minutes later.We gave them two days’ worth of supplies.We found a location on higher ground an hour later.It kept us out of the swamp.King brought me a plate of food along with his own.

“I might be too tired to eat,” I told him.

He took my clawed hand and turned it over, examining my palm.“It looks like you, but I don’t think it is.”

“Ha ha.I don’t eat all the time.”

“It would be impolite for me to disagree.”

“Fine, I’ll eat,” I grumbled.

We began the ritual with our usual silence, though I didn’t feel hungry.“I miss her,” I finally said.“There’s a hole in my heart, and it’s killing me.”

King placed his plate on the ground and pulled me into his arms before I could set mine down.He then situated me between his thighs.

“Eat.”

The hole was still there, but the contact with my mate helped.He felt Nikayla’s loss, too.

We finished our food, and King leaned back against a trunk with his arms still around me.Shadow Warriors liked it warm, and even in the humid heat, the feel of his arms let my mind rest until I fell asleep.

I woke instantly when he squeezed me.

---