Page 42 of The Kraken Bride

No way I could survive. Not here. Not out in the open like this.

I tried to crawl somewhere, anywhere safe. Footsteps reached my ears. Heavy. Deliberate.

Heart thudding, I craned my face around, fire already blooming in my throat—and froze.

Gunnar and a dozen kraken warriors stalked into the hollow. Their hair and clothing soaking wet, as if they’d just emerged from the sea. Each man and woman clutched a weapon.

Relief flooded me. Friend, not foe. “Here,” I called with all the strength I could muster.

The bodyguard’s eyes crackled with ferocity, but the second he spotted me, his vehemence morphed from anger into concern. “Do not look at her,” he commanded the others, marching forward to block me with his body. “Turn around and go back to the shore. Now.”

They obeyed without hesitation, asking no questions as they pivoted on their heels. In seconds, they vanished beyond the trees.

“Primordial?” I asked him.

“Fled,” he replied.

I gnashed my teeth.

Then some of his other words registered. Not look at me? Frowning, I scanned myself. Aaah. Okay. I got it. I was naked, covered only in splatters of blood, the dragon scales gone.

“By the deep, princess,” he said roughly, scanning the carnage before sheathing his blades. “Let’s get you covered.” He stripped off his shirt and tossed it in my direction.

I sagged back against the stone, on the last of my reserves. The garment landed in my lap. Arms trembling, I donned it.

Only then did he look at me. He catalogued each of my injuries, something grim and reverent settling into his expression. “The king is repairing the dome. He sent us through the hole to get you.” He edged closer, slow and steady, as if he feared startling me. “When he returns, heads will roll.”

“I’ll help,” I murmured. I didn’t care how afraid of myself or others I was; I didn’t want him going in alone.

“You will help best by recovering. I swear to you, I will die before I let anyone else harm you.”

I remembered how much he adored Sebastian, and I believed him.

But I still fought against the pull to rest as he lifted me in his arms, gentle, so gentle, and clasped me against his chest. Fought even as he carried me through the forest. I wasn’t sure I ever wanted to sleep again, no matter how desperate the need was. My mind shouted, Too vulnerable.

“The king will never forgive himself for this,” Gunnar admitted softly.

“He did nothing wrong.” I didn’t blame Sebastian. Nein, this travesty lay at the primordial’s door. “Where’s Sebastian?” I asked, lids as heavy as rocks. Nein, nein. Stay awake! “He vanished.” Wait. “Did you say he is repairing the dome?”

“When it broke, it called him back. He had no choice.”

“Is he safe?” Should I rally and find him?

“He is fine.” A pause laden with uncertainty. “He’s a good man, princess,” the bodyguard continued for my ears alone. “I’ve known and admired him since I was a boy. He protects those he loves with his very life.”

Ja, and that was the problem. The cost to him… perhaps being drained to death as his mother had been, and I was supposed to help him do it.

We reached the beach, where a large watercraft waited. Having never been on a boat, ship, or submarine, I tried to examine it, curious and a little concerned. But darkness had begun weaving through my vision.

I fought it, mind churning. I’d just burned an army alive and frightened myself doing it. I’d been marked by the same monster who’d marked Sebastian. And still—still—the last thought before the dark took me, ending my efforts, was of him. Maybe that was the firebrand bond. Maybe that was just me. Either way, I wondered if I could make him love me before the cost came due.

Chapter

Thirteen

They do not chase. They wait.

–An Incomplete Guide to Kraken Survival