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Ruslan pulled me into his chest, cradling my head against his furiously pounding heart. Rage rolled off of him like a storm rolling into the valley, and I had to work to block out his emotions and focus on my own. His arms trembled around me as if he fought with everything he had not to haunt the halls of Ryza and rip out Kazimir’s throat. “You are fierce, my mate, and I am proud of you for standing up for yourself.”
“I sense a but,” I stated.
“ButI am not okay with him hurting you. If something should happen to you, I would never forgive myself, and I wouldn’t be long for this world without you in it. Waiting for you to tell him that we accepted our bond is killing me.”
Guilt slammed into my gut, the secret I had been keeping from him weighing heavily on me. But I couldn’t tell him what Immonen saw, not when we didn’t know what the dark meant. Instead, I skirted around the truth, and my voice was small as I whispered, “I have this awful feeling that the moment I tell him,something horrible will happen. I don’t have an explanation for it, but I feel it in my bones to be true. Maybe it's my empath magic or something else, but I think we need to wait until Béke is almost over.”
He blew out a frustrated breath, his arms twitching as he continued to hold me. Sensing he needed more reassurance, I pulled back, then cupped his face, running my thumb across the beard that covered his strong jaw. “I know this is hard for you. You’ve empowered me to be able to hold my own. As you said before, you want to be able to concentrate on the battle in front of you rather than worrying about me. This is practice, for both of us.”
My words took the edge off his fury, but the violence in his eyes had not faded. “We will continue training, every day. And you will continue training with Zuriel as well, but do not exhaust your magic as you have been. It’s more important that you have some to spare than to grow your well. Understood?”
His tone brokered no room for argument, not that I wanted to challenge his points. “Understood,” I replied, stroking his face and massaging his arms until he relaxed around me.
Zuriel cleared his throat, drawing our attention. “The Telivér will all be in attendance at the masquerade. We will watch over you, and I’ll have Xorrek and Gozzak trail Kazimir the entire time.” He paused as if he was considering a confession, and my stomach dropped as I feared he would reveal what I’d told him in a moment of despair the previous day, but had obviously not told Ruslan. To my relief, his next statement was an affirmation of my own belief without revealing how either of us knew. “Kazimir’s mind is fracturing, and I fear Izidora is correct in her assessment that breaking the lingering string between them will set him off. We should plan it strategically.”
“Thank you, Zuriel. See you later,” Ruslan said, the thanks and dismissal both clear in his tone. The Angel slipped out thedoor with one last parting look, leaving me alone with the male whose only desire was to see no harm befall me.
“Come, let’s shower and read before the masquerade. It will take your mind off things.” Ruslan held out his tattooed hand and I accepted it, allowing him to lead me to the marble bathroom. I let him wash the sweat and dirt from my body as the heated water poured over us both. With each swipe of soap, Ruslan instilled safety in my muscles, in my bones, until finally, I was clean in both mind and body.
But rage simmered just beneath the surface of my skin, and I knew it was my own. Kazimir dared to lay a hand on me in violence, and I’d already proven time and time again what happened when a male touched me in a way that I did not want. Determination settled over my shoulders like a cloak of armor, and I vowed in that moment to give my fucking all to breaking his alliance with the Day and Crystal Realms.
The Iron Realm was my home, and its king was my safe space and my mate. Our bond was more powerful than any magic on this planet. United, we could do anything, and I steeled my spine as I reminded myself of that fact, reminded myself just how fucking strong I was. I only hoped that my strength and our determination were enough to see us through the challenges that lay ahead – both on and off the battlefield.
36
Béke Day Nine
When the guards outside Izidora and Ruslan’s apartment allowed me entrance, I immediately burst in, calling out for my best friend. I needed to see if she was okay after what I’d witnessed in the Night Realm’s temporary accommodation.
I’d just emerged from a shower when my brother, Endre, Viktor, and Kaztar returned to our suite after another hunt. Before I’d finished dressing, Kazimir burst into the room, cursing Zuriel for stealing Izidora away from him. I crouched at the slit in the door to the room Endre and I were sharing, listening to Kazimir recounthis versionof what happened when they arrived back and he found Izidora waiting for him.
It took every ounce of my willpower not to slam the door open and tell him how fucking wrong he was. Kazimir’s perspective was slipping by the day, and I no longer trusted him. Domi shared my views, and after Immonen’s vision, the two ofus had promised each other never to be in the suite alone with him. If only Kaztar, Endre, and Vadim had listened to us when we told them about the changes we saw in Kazimir.
Of course, my brother had every excuse in the book for him. Vadim had searched for Izidora longest, seconded only by Kazimir, and I was sick of hearing him say, ‘of course he’s going crazy, we spent all that time looking for her, only for her to be his mate and get stolen away.’ The next time those words fell out of his mouth was the time I was going to punch him in the face.
Even Endre, the sensitive, sympathetic male, could only find loyalty for Kazimir. His empathy only went in one direction, and that was to his best friend. Each day that passed, we fought more and this chasm opened between us that I wasn’t sure how to cross.
Which was why I jogged through the halls of Ryza dressed in the most casual of clothes, my attire for the masquerade ball tucked safely under my arm, to my best friend.
“Liliana?” Izidora’s voice was small and strained, floating toward me from the bedroom. I burst through the door a moment later, finding her and Ruslan curled up in matching robes, each with a book in hand. Izidora set hers aside as I approached.
“I came as soon as I could. Tell me what happened.” Without regard for Ruslan, I jumped on the bed and snuggled in beside her. He smothered a laugh and returned to his book, though the twitching muscles in his jaw told me he was probably trying to drown himself in the words so he didn’t rip Kazimir to shreds with his Dragon talons.
Izidora’s aquamarine eyes hardened as she sucked in a breath, and I reached my hand to hers, grasping it in mine and stroking the back of it. “After our training, I went to find Ruslan, and after that I decided to visit Mistik and Twilight before returning inside. Only, Kazimir lingered after the othermales had gone, and he cornered me. I tried to influence his emotions, but his magic tangled with mine, capturing it as I tried to retreat. And the things in his mind…” She shook, her hands fisting the sheets so hard her knuckles turned white. “He wants to impregnate me so I’ll have no choice but to accept our bond.”
I gagged on her words. “He is sick. I’m so sorry you had to experience all that.”
“It gets worse.” Her eyes flashed, and I realized I’d never seen her so angry.
I groaned, flopping back against the pillows. “Tell me.”
“He threw his binding magic at me, then when I defended myself, he pinned me to the ground. I bit him, and he slapped me. So I used my empath magic to make him believe he was being tortured. Thankfully Zuriel was nearby and heard the commotion, helping me get away from him.”
My mouth popped open in shock. “Okay, first, you are a fucking queen with your magic. He deserved everything you gave him and more. I can’t believe he hit you. What the fuck! If the others knew, maybe they’d change their minds about him.”
Hitting females was one of the most frowned-upon actions in the Night Realm, and most of the males I knew, especially the ones who went through Knight training, would never stand for actions like that.
Ruslan released a pained growl, then flipped his book over on the bed. “Liliana, I know that I am putting you in an awkward situation by asking you this, but what is the Night Realm planning? Did you bring an army with you, waiting in the Day Realm to attack?”
