Page 57 of Poisoned Kingdom
‘It won’t take long, I promise,’ I muttered, adjusting my hand to his cheek exploring the aethereal mesh trapping the poison. Reynard groaned, but didn’t move. Instead, his hands drifted to my hips, holding me in place. The artery in his neck thumped rapidly, his muscles straining, and I used my sleeve to wipe the sweat off his forehead.
‘I’m sorry. It will be better soon,’ I said, cradling his face in both of my hands.
‘Just do it, Roksana. I can take it,’ he said, the golden glow completely overtaking his eye.
His body shuddered under my questing touch. The enhanced contact helped me locate a flaw in the countless threads of aether interwoven to contain the caustic liquid.
That’s it! This is why Reynard is suffering.
It appeared the deadly mixture of nightshade, rosary pea, water hemlock, and wintergreen oil was seeping into his bloodstream, slowly killing him.
‘Gods, you’re a tough bastard. This would kill a bull,’ I muttered, pulling at a strand, trying to unravel the magic. His hands jerked, fingers digging painfully into my flesh, but if he could endure the pain, so could I.
‘I’m difficult to kill, but not immune to pain.’
His voice was barely a whisper, but I was astonished at the remarkable virility this man possessed. Every part of him was powerful. The life force I saw in others were mere wisps in comparison. Reynard’s body pulsated so strongly with life that I suspected it was destroying the delicate mesh that contained the poison.
Reynard Erenhart was something else, something I didn’t truly understand, but I was awestruck. I used his aether and my instincts as a guide, flowing with the primal force as it scoured the unnatural spell.
‘Yes!’ I exclaimed when I finally found it—the spell's anchor, a loose strand I could pull to unravel the healer’s entire mesh. Praying I wasn’t making a mistake, I tugged on the glistening thread.
‘Embrace me,’ I said, pressing my forehead to his, and when his arms locked around me, I yanked it loose. The lattice that protected the king from the horrors of my creation unravelled, Reynard’s guttural cry filling the room.
‘Roksana . . . please.’
The words, gentle and pleading after such an echoing shout, pulled at my heart.
Reynard fought against the agony, his face forced into a rictus of spasming muscle as the poison flooded his bloodstream, but I had no time for hesitation or mercy.
‘Come to me,’ I whispered, focusing on my aether in the poison. The familiar energy swirled and changed direction, flowing towards me, pulling the liquid with it. It seeped through the king’s skin, and I gathered it on my fingers—a thin translucent layer of death, coating them like a strange paint. I continued until I was sure there was nothing left. Only then did I tear its bonds apart, the residue dissolving on my fingertips.
Reynard’s head dropped to my shoulder, exhaustion in every panting, shuddering breath. I embraced him, gently stroking his back, laughing like a maniac.
‘We did it. You’ll live, Rey. I told you I could do it.’
My triumph was filled with an unhealthy dose of relief. A quiet voice in my head admitted that I’d acted rashly, but it was easy to ignore it. I’d corrected at least one of my mistakes and could feel a small sense of achievement.
As my laughter quietened, I noticed Reynard’s silence . . . and his arms as he pulled me closer, inhaling sharply.
Then I remembered where, and how, I was sitting.
‘It’s done, Your Majesty. You can let me go.’ His title slipped from my lips, a desperate attempt to place a barrier between us. Without a task to perform, this closeness felt like too much, felt too intimate.
My breath hitched when he raised his head and fixed me with the glowing golden gaze of a berserker.
‘No,’ he growled, arms flexing around me, pressing me closer.
Fear slid down my spine like a trickle of freezing water. I stilled, knowing enough about predators not to trigger him further with my fight. After a moment, the gold bled from his eye, and he exhaled slowly.
‘What am I going to do with you?’ he asked, reaching for a lock of my hair and twisting it around his fingers.
‘You can unhand me. That would be a good start,’ I said, determined to hide how his touch and the hunger in his gaze were affecting me.
‘I could, but I don’t want to. You are a surprising creature, my little Viper. What you did was . . . nothing short of a miracle,’ he said in an eerily calm voice. I exhaled with relief. This time, when I pulled back, he let me go.
‘I did what needed doing. Now, will you keep your oath? Tova and Lily—you promised to release them with no retribution.’
Reynard smirked, stretching out in the chair. ‘You know, I know someone just like you. She faced a goddess to save her lover . . . Tell me, are you in love with the dwarf? Was that why you tried to shield him with your body and gave your oath to protect him?’
