Total pages in book: 37
Estimated words: 35428 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 177(@200wpm)___ 142(@250wpm)___ 118(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 35428 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 177(@200wpm)___ 142(@250wpm)___ 118(@300wpm)
No. I can’t think like that. He’ll be fine. I have to believe that.
“That may do it,” Zephan says as we place him back down on the bed. I cover him with the sheets again, willing some color into those cold pale lips. “But I still say we should toss him back into the ocean. If he don’t die in your bed, a shifter like this will eat up half my stores of food in no time.”
“He’s staying here,” I say, keeping my eyes on the man’s gorgeous face. “I’ll call you if I need you for something else.”
Zephan leaves without a word.
I drop to my knees beside my bed and grip his cold hand, willing him to wake up. I just want to see his eyes. I want to see more strength in his chest as he takes deeper breaths. I want to see some kind of—any kind of—sign of life.
Briallen appears in the doorway a few moments later with a roll of bandages. “I thought this might help.”
“Come in,” I say, waving her over.
She closes the door behind her and we get to work, wrapping up his wounds.
“What do you think happened to him?” she asks.
“Whatever it was, he barely escaped with his life.”
I wish I were there with him, helping to fight whatever hurt him. Maybe we both wouldn’t have survived, but at least we would have faced it together.
“He’s handsome for a wolf shifter,” Briallen says when we’re done.
“Yeah,” I whisper, gripping his hand, willing my warmth to travel into his body. “He’s not so bad.”
“Do you want to take my bed tonight?” she asks.
I shake my head and look at her sadly. “I’m going to stay here with him.”
“Okay,” she says, backing away toward the door. She looks at me curiously. I know how strange it must be to see her tough ruthless Captain on her knees with tears in her eyes, clinging to a stranger’s hand. It’s strange for me too.
I don’t understand any of this.
All I know is that I’m not leaving his side.
Ever.
Chapter Four
Kieran
The darkness lightens and there’s…
Pain.
Burning, searing pain.
It’s the only thing that registers.
It’s the only thing that exists.
I can’t open my eyes, but I feel it.
Blazing, scorching, incinerating my insides.
It’s everywhere and nowhere, smoldering my insides, torching my soul.
My body writhes. My wolf howls in agony.
Is this the fiery gates of the underworld?
It can’t be.
Because there’s sweetness here too… I can feel it in my lungs. In my soul. A taste of Ulissa…
I try to reach for it.
But the darkness takes over.
I’m lost in a sea of vivid dreams and nightmares. They spin and twirl, ripping me through them while my spiraling head tries to keep up.
I see my father’s funeral pyre in flames. He sits up. Stares at me with cold gray eyes.
“Father,” I whisper.
“You dishonor me,” he hisses. “I left you a kingdom and you let it slip through your careless fingers.”
“No,” I say. “I didn’t know…”
He opens his mouth and insects pour out.
I step back with a gasp.
A wolf bites my shoulder from behind.
I scream.
It’s Lucan. He morphs into his human body and laughs at me.
“What did you think, cousin?” he says in a demonic tone. “Did you think I would ever let you have it?”
I reach for him, but the pain ignites, sending me spiraling into the darkness.
It swallows me whole.
I awake to the feeling of waves crashing down on me, a deafening thrumming ringing through my head.
My chest is on fire. Everything is blurred.
I’m in water.
I’m drowning.
My head breaks the surface. I gasp for breath.
But it’s peaceful here. I’m in a lagoon. The sun is out. The warm breeze is rippling through the trees.
My father is sitting cross-legged on a rock.
He looks young. Vibrant. At ease. Before the weight of the crown wore down on him and carved his face with lines of worry. He smiles at me.
“Am I dead?” I ask him.
“Not yet,” he says.
“This doesn’t feel real.”
I lift up my hand and look at it. The edges are blurred. I realize I’m not actually swimming, just floating in the water.
“It may not be real, but it’s still happening,” he says.
“Lucan tried to kill me,” I tell him, tears filling my eyes.
“I know.”
“He’s going to steal the crown.”
“If you let him.”
“What can I do?” I ask. “I don’t even know where I am.”
“You’re right where you need to be,” he says with a slow nod. “You’ll gain strength here. More strength than you’ll ever know.”
“What does that mean?”
He’s quiet for a long moment, watching a colorful wispfly flutter past him. “You already know.”
“I don’t.”
“You smelled her,” he says, lifting his nose. “I can smell her now. Breathe in.”
I inhale, but it hurts. My lungs scream. My chest flares. But underneath the pain, there’s that sweetness again.
It fills my body with a tingling glow. It feels good. It feels like home.