Page 41 of Caldar
“Goblin King—”
She continued to speak over him, her words coming out in a hurried rush, “So Lorran tells me that you’re going to be executed. There probably was a slick way to approach that, but yeah. There you are. Is it true?”
“It is true,” he answered.
A series of expressions traveled over her face: sadness, fury, grief, and finally stubbornness. It was one of her expressions that he was familiar with.
“I’m not going to let them,” Sonia said. “It wasn't your fault. They drugged you, and I wanted you to.”
“You cannot sway the warlord. It has been decided.”
“Again, saying I can’t when it’s clear I’m gonna.” Her mouth set with firm determination, but her eyes softened. “You’re my mate, Caldar. I’m not letting you go.”
He thumped his head back against the well. His horns hit too hard, making him grimace. “I cannot be your mate. I—”
“Oh my God, stop it. I don’t care about the paperwork or the correct protocol. Have you seen my travel visa?”
“I have. It is an excellent forgery,” he said.
She nodded, as if she expected nothing less from him. He appreciated that she was not surprised that he accessed her visa.
“That’s how much I care about following inane rules. Some laws are just plain bad, and it’s our responsibility to subvert those laws.”
“You cannot pick and choose which laws to follow,” he said.
“So now you’re all about the rules? What happened to you doing what needs to be done, even if it’s icky?”
“Unpleasant. My words wereeven if the task is unpleasant.” He would never use the wordicky.
She slipped her hand into his and squeezed. “You’re a good man. I know you are.”
“I am not,” he said. Inexplicably, he could not stop himself from listing his faults. “I have lied, cheated, stolen, manipulated, and killed. I’ve betrayed friends. I’ve led allies into traps and abandoned them. I put my preservation above others. No one can or should rely on me. It is for the best that I have no one to disappoint.”
“Caldar, sweetie, I know that. You held my bestie at gunpoint and made her steal a ship.”
“I required her to unlock a door. She did not steal a ship.”
They sat in silence. Sonia leaned against him. He draped an arm over her shoulder.
“How long do we have?” she asked.
“The warlord said he would return in the morning, but I do not know the precise measurement of time.”
The last time they had been this close, he had been out of his mind with need from the compound injected into him and his body was grievously injured. His mate had also been injured. The time before that, they had been packed into an emergency pod. It would be nice to have a moment when they could just be themselves, no panic or crisis to deal with, just Caldar and Sonia. A lifetime of quiet moments would never be enough, but he would gladly take the time they had remaining.
“I’m going to fight for you,” she said, “but I can’t do it alone. I need you to help fight with me.”
“I will.” How could he not when she wanted only one impossible thing? He did not deserve his mate. If he lived another hundred years, he could never hope to deserve her.
She fell asleep with her head in his lap. He kept watch, unable to lose a precious moment to sleep, until the warlord returned.
SONIA
Morning came too soon.
“Sonia, it is time,” Caldar said, stroking her back.
“Hey,” she replied, sitting slowly.
