Page 3 of Tiger's Dream
Ren nodded reluctantly.
I pressed, “If I stay behind, then Kelsey’s son will…” I glanced around to see if anyone was listening. No one was. They seemed to be giving us a private moment. “Will never be born,” I finished with a whisper.
“You don’t know that,” Ren stubbornly affirmed.
“He had my eyes, Ren. Mine!”
Ren looked away as if it pained him to see the proof of Kelsey’s future son in my direct gaze. Instead, he said softly, “You owe me, brother.”
I sucked in a breath as his words spun in my mind. Iowedhim.
Did I?
I thought back on what I’d done, how I’d betrayed him by not only stealing his fiancée, Yesubai, but by endangering his life and our kingdom. Then, with Kelsey, I’d pressed her, kissed her, when I knew she still had feelings for Ren.
Later, I’d tried to be noble and promised her that she could decide the terms of our relationship. But when I finally had her, I knew I would never let her go, no matter the circumstances. I did owe Ren, but I just couldn’t bring myself to give him the girl I loved.
Frustrated, I ran a hand over the back of my neck. I glanced at the group and noticed Kelsey was missing. “Where is she?” I asked Phet.
“She mourns for the one she believes will stay behind,” Phet replied.
My body stilled and I cocked my head, listening to the sounds of her soft weeping. Her heartbreak carried through the forest as clearly as if she were standing right next to me. All I wanted was to go to her. Stop her tears. Heal her hurt.
I took a step forward and then hesitated. Suddenly, I realized two things. The first was that I knewwhoshe was crying for. She believed thatRenwould stay behind with Durga.
When I’d taken on the role of my great aunt Saachi, Kelsey had confessed her feelings about Ren’s so-called heroic tendencies. What she didn’t know was that my brother much preferred the company of diplomats over warriors. The only reason he leapt into the breach time and time again was because he was crazy in love with my fiancée.
The second thing I realized was that my brother had been attuned to her and had heard her crying long before I’d even realized she was gone. His overblown sensitivity toward Kelsey verged on the irritating. Was Ialwaysto compete with my brother?
Shrugging off my insecurities over Ren, I listened to the woman I loved weep.
How can I leave her?
Another part of my mind whispered,How can I not?
The weight of the world suddenly seemed as if it fell upon my shoulders, and I was no Atlas with the strength to carry the load. I’d break under the burden.
Can I do this?Can I leave her?
I acknowledged the fact that she still loved Ren. Her feelings were obvious to anyone who saw them together, but I believed that, given enough time, she’d come to love me just as much, if not more. Remembering how devastated she was when Ren died, how heartbroken she felt when he didn’t remember her, and grudgingly, how she reached for him first when we’d rescued her from Lokesh left a bitter taste in my mouth.
Ren spoke then, distracting me from my thoughts, and said softly as he stared at the trees where she’d gone, “I can’t live without her, Kishan.”
So what does that mean? ThatI should just walk away?Forget happiness?Forget my future?Forget the family I longed for, the one I saw in vision?
Rubbing my hand over my jaw, I considered my brother. That he loved Kelsey was certain. If I stepped away, I knew he would make her happy. The question was…could Kelsey be happy without Ren?
I knew the answer in an instant.
No.
She’d try her best, but a part of her would always grieve for him.
The choice was suddenly obvious. The tiger that stayed behind would have to be…me.
Letting that idea sink into my mind was about as painful as being shot full of arrows. Hundreds of little hurts stung me at once. If someone had come along and yanked my beating heart from my chest, I would have thanked him for the favor. Even breathing hurt.
Phet glanced at me urgently once again and I nodded slightly.
