Page 32 of Adtovar
Maddie stayed immobile as I tucked the blanket around her shoulders. “Stay with me?”
I had no intention of leaving her side. Not now, not ever. “Always.”
Maddie shifted slightly, creating space for me on the narrow cot. I lay down beside her, gently pulling her into my arms, her head finding a resting place on my chest. We remained motionless and silent for what felt like an eternity, wrapped in a cocoon of quietude. Above us, the muffled sounds of the arena signaled the end of the fights, and a cacophony of footsteps and voices signaled the gladiators returning to the underground, marking the passage of time. We dozed, but the bouts of sleep were fitful for both of us.
I came awake fully, later in the night, listening intently for clues that Melakor’s death had been discovered. The stillness of the underground held nothing but peaceful silence. Despite Maddie’s stillness beside me, the rhythmic rise and fall of her breath betrayed her wakefulness. Each inhale and exhale a soft whisper.
“You should sleep, my sweet,” I urged, pressing a kiss to her forehead.
“My mind won’t settle.” She shifted, moving her head to rest on my bicep, so she could gaze up at me.
“Don’t,” I admonished softly, pressing a kiss to the tip of her adorable nose. “Don’t let Melakor take anything else from you with the memories.”
Her lips pressed together, and she gave a short jerk of her head. “It’s not him. I was just thinking that... in a couple of days, we will all be free.”
“Yes.”
“What’s going to happen to the females?”
Her question caught me off guard. Primarily because I had spent little time contemplating what lay beyond our escape. Her safety and that of the other females was paramount. Once they were aboard theHistoria, away from the threat of harm, then I would contemplate the future. Her dark eyes studied me curiously, and my heart stuttered at the uncertainty painting her expression. I understood wanting to know what one’s future held—more than most.
“We will return them to their home planets if they wish.If not, there are other places that offer sanctuary.”
“What about me?”
You will stay by my side, as my mate.I yearned to say, to claim her as mine. Yet the words froze on my tongue, refusing to be spoken. Despite the intensity of my desire to keep her with me, I could not bring myself to prevent her from returning to Earth, if that was what she wanted.
“Our healers will see you, and if you haven’t been altered, then you can return to Earth.” My voice sounded rough, the words choking.
I felt the deep breath Maddie drew with the rise of her breasts against my chest. “What if I don’t want to return to Earth?”
My heart pounded erratically, each beat resonating with a surge of hope. Yet I restrained myself from indulging in dreams just yet.
“There are several places human females can be safe,” I told her. “Tau Ceti. The Ardeese Valout space station....”
“What about theHistoria?”Her question interrupted my recitation of choices, slicing through my words like a sudden gust of wind that scatters a carefully arranged pile of leaves.
“You—you would wish to remain on the ship?” Uncertainty weighed heavily on my tongue, each syllable reluctantly escaping my lips, a swirl of thoughts vying for clarity in my mind.
Her dark, soulful eyes met mine. “You’ll be aboard, right?”
“You would wish to remain… with me?” I fumbled over my words, feeling like a wide-eyed youngling receiving a long-awaited, most cherished gift, which perfectly captured the overwhelming sense of joy and wonder flooding through me.
Maddie’s full lips quirked upward in the sweetest of smiles. “Melakor said something, and it got me to thinking.”
Melakor?“You should take none of his words to heart,” I grumbled, resenting the intrusion of his presence into the moment.
“Hopefully, I can,” she murmured. Maddie shifted, raising upon an elbow, putting her gaze even with mine. “Melakor told me that for an Aljani like you, having your horns itch is a sign that you’ve found a mate.”
“That is true,” I whispered. If my heart’s desire came to me because of something Melakor said.... Well, I still didn’t regret killing him, killing him quickly didn’t chafe quite as bad.
“When we first met, it seemed like your horns itched a lot.” As she spoke, I felt the gentle trace of her finger circling thebase of my horns, like a streak of lightning sparking across my skin. “Was it because of me?”
I swallowed hard, feeling the lump in my throat tighten, aware that my next words held the power to bring about either my most profound joy or my deepest heartache.
“Yes.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?” Maddie let her fingertip trail from the base of my horn, down along my cheek. Her touch felt like the warmth of a crackling fire on a chilly night. Her gentle caress whispered a promise, invoking the sensation of arriving at a place where my heart could find peace at last.
