Page 50 of Kingdom of Faewood

Something inside me shifted. Softened. Maybe I was crazy, desperate even to make some kind of sense amidst all this chaos. And perhaps I was just making another stupid, naïve decision, but I looked at him in adifferent light.

“Who do you want me to find, Jax?” I whispered.

His eyes dimmed. “Somebody very important to me.”

“But . . .who?”

A single breath heaved his chest. “I can’t tell you. I’m sorry, but nobody can know who they are. Not even you.”

My brow furrowed, and a moment of silence passed between us, but the forlorn energy surrounding the Dark Raider couldn’t be faked. It was too raw. Too visceral.

And maybe it was feeling that aching emotion he had for another—love, no doubt. Because what else but love could form a response like that...Vengeance certainly couldn’t. No, it had to be love. Somebody he loved had gone missing. And it was a love powerful enough that he’d ventured to my kingdom, stalked me for weeks, and then had taken me when the opportunity presented itself. Even though I’d been King Paevin’s favorite pet, Jax had still risked it.

He’d done all of that for love.

And maybe it was knowing love like that existed, even if it was something nobody would ever feel for me, that had me nodding my head.

“Yes, I’ll still help you, Jax.”

“You will?” he replied gruffly, hope evident in those two words.

“Yes, I will.”

A breath escaped him, a huge sigh of relief. “Thank you, Elowen.”

“Don’t thank me yet. I haven’t found anyone.”

“But you said you will.”

“When I can.”

“How much longer will you need to recover from the last callings before performing another?”

A heartbeat of silence passed between us. I knew I could lie. I could prolong it, tell him that it would be weeks until I could, but...I didn’t want to lie. For the first time, I felt that I was being given a choice about my callings. As though that fragile truce that had been born between us was growing stronger, more resilient, and I didn’t want to shatter whatever understanding was being formed between us.

“Honestly, I probably could do one the day after tomorrow.”

Eyes glittering, his aura rose sharply. Jax lifted the adaptor. “Your guardian will need to wield this to make that happen, but once he finishes, I can command him never to use it again without your permission. That is the gift I can give you for helping me in addition to letting you go.”

I managed a small smile, even though inside it still felt like I was breaking. It was the best he could offer, and he and I both knew it.

“All right, our deal is settled.”

Jax nodded and finally lowered himself to the furs until he was lying beside me. I shifted to face him, then placed both hands beneath my cheek. He studied the adaptor, holding it up in the dying light, so I studied his profile.

He lay on his back, and the outline of hisface was more discernible beneath his mask in his current position, and I wondered if he was even aware of that. He had a straight nose, not long but not short either. A strong nose, one might say, and his jaw appeared defined with how the cloth draped over it.

“How often does he use this on you?” he asked quietly.

I shrugged. “Whenever he wants me to do a calling. Or, when he wants to severely punish me. The adaptor can also hurt me, like what happened yesterday to me in the Wood.”

His gaze whipped to mine. “Hepunishesyou with this?” he all but snarled.

I took an unsteady breath. Rage pounded from Jax, filling the tent. “Not often, but he has.”

He took a deep breath, then lay back but his chest still lifted too quickly, and it felt as though he was struggling to control himself. “And how often does he demand callings?”

“Twice a week at most. That’s the maximum my magic allows, but usually only a couple of times per month.”

---