Page 21 of The Bone Doll
“No!” he shouted and then, suddenly, the bedroom had returned. He was lying on the floor, shaking, while the Bone Doll sat across the room, glowing faintly blue.
Syra – therealSyra – knelt over him. Gently, she ran her hands along his face and throat, then across his chest, before examining his hands. Viktor held his breath to stop himself from doing or saying anything stupid, but damn it, he wanted her to touch him like that again – andslower. “Are you hurt?”
“I’m fine,” he stammered, though his heart was beating so hard he thought he might die.
“I told you not to touch it.” She cupped his face. “It could have burned you or worse.”
Viktor would have taken a burn over what he had seen. But he didn’t mind Syra touching his face. Reluctantly, he sat up. “I think I got the ‘or worse’ part.”
She glanced across the room, where the infernal artifact flickered brighter for a moment as though recognizing her gaze. “Don’t believe anything it tells you. It’s not true.”
But what the Bone Doll had told Viktorwastrue.You ruin everything you touch.He placed his hand on her collarbone, slipping his fingers beneath the cool beads encircling her throat. Her pulse fluttered beneath his thumb.
“It’s late.” Taking his hand, she stood and then guided him to his feet. “And we both need rest.”
Viktor swallowed. He had come to tell Syra the truth, and now was the time. He squeezed her fingers, willing himself to be brave. It would only take a few simple words.
But then Syra unfastened his belt, letting it fall to the floor. Next, she easily undid the buttons on his caftan. Shrugging off his undertunic, he stood before Syra, who ran her hand appreciatively up his bare chest from navel to heart. Heat bloomed across his skin.
It was then he knew he couldn’t tell her. He held his breath, afraid even the slightest movement might ruin this. He wanted her to touch himforever.And if he told her the truth, she would be upset. She would be angry at him for lying. She might even leave, returning home without his help. He couldn’t risk any of that. He needed her hand on his naked chest, resting above his racing heart.
She kissed him on the cheek and then led him to the bed where they slept chastely side by side, half-dressed.
Chapter 14
The Screamer
Viktor was already buttoning his caftan when Syra opened her eyes. She stared at him a long moment, trying to reconcile the warmth in her bed and the almost fully-dressed man before her.
“Zoldrovya is three days south of here.” He adjusted his sleeves, avoiding her gaze. “I’ll help Yefrem pack the supplies.”
She cocked her head to the side. No Sarnok man would sleep chastely beside his new woman, wake up, and simplyget dressed. Was that a Ruthenian habit? Or was it only Viktor?
“Why did you touch it?” she asked, wishing he would stay.
Viktor went still, his hands frozen midway through buckling his belt. Then, as though making a conscious effort, he continued. “Your door was open. I thought perhaps you were awake. But you were asleep and the Bone Doll was … moving.”
Her hairs stood on end. “You should have left.”
Viktor looked stricken as though he couldn’t fathom the thought of leaving her in the room with the half-sentient Bone Doll. The pang in her chest sharpened. He cared about her in a way she had never expected.
“The Bone Doll called you.” Syra climbed off the bed and padded towards him. It called her family, her clan members. It gave them nightmares. It lured the youngest children and theanimals away from camp. Now, it was doing the same to Viktor. “It will try again. You have to resist it.”
“It’s three more days to Zoldrovya,” he said. “I’ll be careful.”
“And on the return journey,” Syra said. “You will be the one to take me back, right?”
“Of course,” he said with one of his odd smiles. “But you will need to defeat theleshyfirst.”
Syra knew that Viktor preferred the road, but she didn’t like the idea of staying in Zoldrovya while he went off on more errands. “Will you stay with me, in Zoldrovya, while I bind the forest spirit?”
His smile faltered. “I will, at the beginning. But I … may be pulled away.” He turned from her. “I should pack.”
Syra wanted to reach out and hold him. But it was pointless. Whether they left now or this afternoon, they would still arrive at Zoldrovya in the end. Whether she had enough power to bind theleshyor not, she would return to the tundra. And Viktor would return to his solitary travels. Holding him here wouldn’t change any of that.
Besides, he didn’t seem to want to stay.
She stared at the door after he left.
