Page 8 of A Surrender Of Hope

I stare at Milo, whose tiny sharp teeth are sunk into Razar’s pointer finger, and then glare up at the man gliding toward the bed. Milo was in my room last, meaning Razar went in there and stole him back. I open my mouth, ready to chew him a new one about how rude it is to steal someone’s cat when they just saved your life, when Razar slowly brings Milo away from his chest, his hand stroking his fur almost reverently before he gently deposits my cat on my belly.

Wait… what? Did Razar just give me my cat back?

Milo hisses up at Razar, fur standing on end before he turns in a circle, his small paws kneading at the blanket covering me, working to find a comfortable place to lie down. He quickly curls up on my stomach, flicking his fluffy tail around his body, the tip twitching in frustration as he keeps his angry blue eyes on Razar.

“What…” I trail off, more confused than ever. This must be some kind of trap. I’m pretty sure if I reach out to touch Razar, I will eitherA-end up with a knife in the back of my hand orB-end up on the floor as he shakes his head in disapproval at my pathetic attempt to pet my own cat. I stare at Milo with suspicion, then look back up at Razar, who is suddenly leaning over the bed, his dark green eyes coming into view under the hood, making me jerk my head back into my pillow.

Rough, strong fingers dart out, grabbing my chin and forcing me to look up into those dark, angry eyes as he slowly shakes his head. My breath hitches as I swallow, trying not to think about how cool his fingers are on my heated skin.

“Don’t youEVERdo that again,” he snarls, a threatening growl rumbling in his chest as he leans even closer to me, bringing our faces only inches apart.

“Razar,” I whisper, unsure of what to say, but before I can scrabble a thought together, Razar releases me. His hand darts down and grabs my free one, yanking it up so he can study it. His face darkens, anger the likes I’ve never seen on any human face crossing his features, and I hold my breath as I see a peek of his Beastia crawling to the surface. I lean forward, looking at my hand and gasp when I see the glowing red mark on my wrist, pulsing with red magic with every beat of my heart.

“Shit.” Razar nods, hand tightening on mine as he snarls and turns on his heel, cloak billowing out dramatically around him as he strides for the door.

“You have twenty-four hours with my tiny monster before I attempt to re-collect him, Pup,” he growls, opening the door to the room, and I raise a brow when I find Jesthren on the other side of the door, guarding it protectively. He looks into the room with a hint of concern but smiles warmly when he catches my eye, winking at me just before Razar slams it shut behind him. Did… did Razar just call me a pup?

All the sleeping men in the room jerk awake, Valen’s arms instantly banding around my body protectively as Lennox jumps to his feet, a blade magically appearing in his hand. Creed reaches for me, then stops when he sees me in Valen’s arms and blinks.

“Oh! Oh shit, she’s awake. Guys, Meyer’s awake!” Lennox scowls at Creed, catching him by the arm when he tries to launch himself at me. He yanks him off the bed and tosses him to the ground like a sack of flour, eliciting several loud and angry curses from Creed.

“We do have eyes, Credence.” Nox’s dark gaze rakes over me slowly and makes me shift in Valen’s arms. I feel slightly self-conscious with his full attention on me.

“Razar was supposed to wake us up when she regained consciousness,” Nox snaps, pointing his knife at the door as Valen’s fingers press so hard into my skin that it almost hurts. I comb my fingers through his wild hair to calm him down and sigh in contentment when he sags into me, tucking his face into my neck and pressing a soft kiss against my pulse point.

“I think the whole door slamming part was Razar’s way of waking us up,” Creed mutters, standing up and brushing off his clothes before slugging Nox in the arm, earning himself a warning glare from the grumpy Viking.

Creed shoulders past Nox, hops onto the bed and wiggles his arms under Valen’s so he can be wrapped up in the weird snuggle hug we have going on right now. I watch Nox’s lips roll into a thin line as he pushes his dark hair out of his face. The silver beads in the braids clink together as he sighs, sits on the edge of the bed, and nods, looking more tired than I’ve ever seen him before.

“You scared the shit out of us, Lemon Drop,” Creed rasps into my ear, his nose burying into my hair as he clings to me. Valen is still too tense, and I didn’t miss the dirty look he sent Creed for joining our snuggle. His ordinarily pale green eyes are more gray than green, and his lips look almost purple.

“What happened?” I look at Nox, who is staring at me with a weird sort of look in his eyes. “Are Jordan and Theo all right? What about Elaine? What happened with the Rogue Hunters and the?—”

“Everyone’s fine,” Nox says, cutting me off as he raises a hand, stopping my stream of questions. Creed snorts in disagreement, and I glare at Nox, wanting to know the truth. Nox shoots him a dirty look before tilting his head and sighing.

“Jordan was injured, but—” I don’t wait for the rest of the sentence, shoving at Valen’s chest while kicking Creed out of the bed, making him fall to the floor for a second time with an angry shout. Valen literally growls, the sound reminding me of Razar’s Beastia, but I ignore him as I heave myself upright, launching Milo to the end of the bed with a disgruntled hiss.

“Holy shit, when did she get that strong?” Creed asks under his breath.

Swaying on my feet, my vision blacks out momentarily, but I don’t let that stop me as I dart for the door, only for Nox to catch me by the waist and toss me back on the bed. “No!” His green eyes darken as he points a big finger at me. “You just died, Meyer! You do realize that, yes?” he asks, his tone incredulous as he glares at me.

I shove up on my hands, blowing a strand of hair off my face as I mentally prepare to do battle with this annoying bastard when Valen’s arms wrap back around me. I squeak in surprise as I’m hauled off the bed and into his arms. He stands, cradling me close as he walks to the dresser nearby and gently lowers me to my feet.

“Valen?” I reach out and set a palm on his chest as he opens a drawer and grabs a huge black shirt. I watch him; the way his bloodshot eyes hardly leave my face, even as he gestures for me to raise my hands above my head. I frown and look down, then curse when I realize I’m practically naked save for the small pair of black cotton panties I have on.

There is a harsh inhale of breath, and I look over my shoulder, finding Nox glaring at my back with a fury I only see when he’s on the battlefield. Creed's eyes roam down my back before he curses and shakes his head, looking away. I frown, and then my heart stalls as I realize what he’s seeing—my scars.

Shit.

I turn, ducking my head to fight the embarrassed blush climbing up my neck, and look back to Valen. “Where did my clothes go?” When his jaw only tightens in response, Nox sighs, hands clenching and unclenching at his sides as he steps closer to me and answers for him. His hand darts out to grab Creed by the back of his shirt when he tries to get close to Valen.

“I cut them off you since they were covered in blood, and I needed to get the arrow out of your back.” I wince and nod, realizing he must have seen my scars then. Had Razar seen them as well? Will he make fun of me for being weak? I keep my eyes on Valen as he helps me put the shirt over my head, pulling my long hair through so it doesn't get tangled. At least I wasn’t covered in blood when I woke up this time. It looks like someone bathed me, my skin silky smooth and hair flowing around my shoulders.

“Would you stop pushing me around?” Creed hisses at Nox as Valen smooths the shirt down. Right, well, I don't have the energy to deal with this right now. There’s something wrong with Valen so I’ll concentrate on that and leave the rest for later.

“Valen? Hey, look at me.” I lean forward and cup his cold cheek with my hands as his colorless eyes meet mine. I almost cringe from the emotionless look there and shoot a worried glance over my shoulder at Creed and Nox, who have stopped arguing and watch us with concerned looks of their own. “Are… are you alright? Were you injured in the fight?” Valen’s lips twist to the side as he shakes his head then scoops me back into his arms and heads for the door.

“Whoa, okay. Where are we going?” Looping my arms around his neck, I hold him tight, which seems to ease the tension in his shoulders somewhat.

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