Page 26 of Damned and Broken Gods
His voice was a rumble, speaking the language I didn’t understand. His hands moved in the air, drawing patterns, the combination like a melody, the meaning just out of reach. The children were enraptured.
Araz paused for a beat, and the sweet voice of one of the children filled the silence. Laughter rippled around the circle, and Araz smiled, wagging his finger in a mock chiding way before continuing his story.
A hush fell once more. I lost myself in the rhythm of his words, the cadence and the rise and fall of his tone.
He was beautiful, hypnotic, everything I wanted. Desperately. Achingly. I took a shuddering breath and exhaled, hoping to expel the emotions that would cripple me if I let them.
“You okay?” Vick whispered close behind me.
Shit, I’d forgotten he was here. I nodded and whispered back, “I’m fine.” I was more than fine; I was enraptured by Araz, by the fact that the sword-wielding, grumpy asshole that I’d come to know had this paternal side. That he took time most evenings to come here and provide these children with a little magic. Children that were being raised as weapons in a war that wasn’t theirs.
He was giving them a semblance of a childhood…giving them a little of something that he’d had, far away from here with his family before…
A vise gripped my chest. There were depths to Araz that I wanted to explore. Depths that I would never get a chance to dive into. The vise tightened, and I exhaled, letting go of the wanting that could never be fulfilled.
A figure broke from the shadows on the other side of the room. A drohi female with high cheekbones, eyes like starlight, and skin like sunset. She wore a flowing smock and flat sandals, and she moved without making a sound. She crossed to us, giving the story circle a wide berth.
“Can I help you?” Her gaze flicked between Vick and me.
“I…uh…I came for Araz.” I glanced past her at Araz, who had a finger to his smiling lips as he leaned in toward the children.
The woman’s brow furrowed a little. “You’re his demigod?” Her inquiring warm tone had gone flat. “I’ll tell him you came by.”
She reached for the door, clearly intending to close it on me, and irritation spiked in my chest. I stepped forward, over the threshold, and pressed my palm to the wood. “I can tell him myself.”
Her eyes narrowed a fraction, the echo of my irritation rippling over her strong features before she masked it and inclined her head. “I understand. But I would respectfully ask you not to interrupt the story. The children do so enjoy Araz’s visits.” She looked across at him, her expression softening.
Looked like it wasn’t just the children who enjoyed Araz’s visits. Nope. I didn’t like the way she was going all misty-eyed while looking at my…nothing. He didn’t belong to me. I had no right to act as if he did.
Still, the urge to poke her eyes out remained.
“I can tell him you stopped by, of course. He may be a while.” Her expression was smooth and devoid of any annoyance now.
I wasn’t fooled. I fixed a tight smile on my lips. “I can wait.”
She stepped away, muttering something under her breath that sounded suspiciously like,Of course you can.
“Looks like someone has a lady boner for your drohi,” Vick said in a low voice. “I mean…I don’t blame her.”
I arched a brow his way, and he shrugged. “What? The guy’s hot. But you know that.” He gave me a cheeky grin.
Back in the room, Araz had stopped speaking, and the children were gathering their things.
“So much for it will be a while,” Vick said.
The female drohi had either overestimated how long this story was or she’d lied to get rid of me. Pretty sure it was the latter.
She glided over to Araz as he stood, claiming his attention before he could look my way. Her hand on his arm made my skin crawl. But Araz merely smiled and nodded.
What was he agreeing to?
Fuck this.
I strode into the room, and his head whipped my way, nostrils flaring, eyes brightening. He stepped away from the female drohi. “Leela? What are you doing here?”
“I’m sorry. I wasn’t being nosy, but we have a message from Guru Chandra. Escorts will be arriving shortly to take us to the Shahee Kshetra.”
Araz looked across at the female drohi. “Another time, Valina.”
