Page 122 of The Silent Mountain
Sine smiles. “I am glad to hear that.”
“Why don’t you stay a couple of days?” I offer.
“The king is right,” Stefan offers her his arm. “Please allow me to guide you to one of our guest rooms. His Highness had it prepared earlier.”
“You are family,” I say. “I am happy to have you stay for as long as you want.”
Instead of an answer, Sine hugs me and squeezes me gently.
I think deep inside, she is just too worried about Alana’s well-being to leave immediately. She wants to see her wake up and to help her cope with her injury, and I am happy to have her here and know that Alana has her mother at her side.
I wait for Stefan and Sine to leave before finally entering my chambers. I instantly am engulfed by Alana’s presence and scent. She is still asleep, but she looks like she is regaining some of her strength. Her cheeks are rosy again, and her breathing even and calm. I make sure not to make any noise, just briefly wash myself, and then decide not to rummage in my wardrobe for something to wear, and just keep my briefs on.
Once lying next to Alana, suddenly all the tension leaves my body. It’s like I am being knocked out by the intensity of my emotions. I almost lost my mate and my brother. I had to put on a strong façade and not show my fear, but the thought of losing them makes fear crawl over my whole skin again. They are my family, they gave my life meaning. Without them, there would be no me. I constantly keep on fighting because they are here, and because I want them to have the best life possible.
“Favian,” Alana whispers.
Her voice startles me, instantly snapping me out of my thoughts. She sits up slightly, eyeing me thoughtfully. Her hurt arm is bandaged now, but with her other one, she reaches out to touch my face. “Why are you crying?”
“You are awake!” I blurt out, taking her hand into mine to kiss it. “You are…“ I don’t know what else to say, so I just pull her into my arms.
I think of everything that has happened and of what she went through, of my fears and my worries, and how I hate myself for how she got hurt because I was too weak to protect her. Then, I think of Sine and the advice she gave me. Instead of voicing any of my previous self-loathing thoughts, I focus on another one that’s equally true but weighs so much more: “Thank you for returning to me.”
thirty-nine
Visitors
*ALANA*
Adreamlesssleephadbeenkeeping me in its grip. I can barely remember what happened after Favian appeared on the island, just that I was safe. And now, the moment I wake up, I can feel and smell Favian all around me. The room feels so familiar, proof that this is real and that I am truly safe, and not on that nightmare island anymore.
Favian has his arm wrapped around me, but his body is trembling slightly. Blinking my tiredness away, I try to focus on my mate. I am surprisingly awake and not drowsy at all. It seems like Ros truly healed me well, and that there is no curse or other injury left, aside from my hand, which is tightly wrapped up now.
To my shock, Favian has tears in his eyes; he seems to be so far away in his thoughts. I hope he isn’t crying because of me. But the moment he notices me, he instantly pulls me into his arms. I just need to feel his body, need to feel his skin, to know I am safe and that it’s all over. I fumble slightly with my clothes, but with Favian’s help, I manage to tug them off. He presses me against his body immediately, allowing me to feel the warmth of his skin.
“I am so glad you are back with me,” he says. “You never gave up. Elio told me all about it.”
“I don’t think I could have done it without him,” I admit. “He is so much stronger than he believes he is.”
Favian pulls me even closer to him. “So are you. I can’t believe what you did. It must have taken so much courage.”
I raise my arm to look at it. I feel a little twinge in my chest whenever I see that there is truly just a stump remaining, but at the same time, I try to remind myself over and over again that it was my decision and that it saved my life. Favian reaches out to take my hurt arm into his hand.
“Don’t you find it repulsive?” I ask quietly.
“Not at all,” he says. “Nothing about you could ever be repulsive. You are still the most stunning creature in my life.”
“I will need to learn how to work around it,” I admit. “It will take some time to adapt to it.”
“I am sure you will cope with it perfectly,” he says with a surprising amount of confidence.
I look at him, stunned. “You sound so convinced.”
“That’s because I am,” he says. “There is nothing you can’t do. I strongly believe that. You will be the Warrior Princess with or without a hand. You will learn how to ride and fight with one arm, and I bet you will learn it so quickly that you will surpass my warriors soon.”
I feel tears welling in my eyes, and I lunge forward to hug him tightly. I can’t believe how lucky I am to be mated to him. To imagine how reluctant I was at first, and how I didn’t want to give in to the mate bond. Now, I can barely imagine a life without him.
“Don’t cry,” he says quietly.
