Page 29 of The Highseer's Mate

It’s as beautiful as it was when Varek brought me here.

I strip down and swim to the foamy trickle, making quick work of washing my body. I scrub the poultice off my forehead and drag my fingertip along the cut.

“No way—”

I swim back to the edge and get out, drip drying as much as I can before dressing again. The tunic is soft against my clean skin. I sit on the edge of the spring until the water settles and I can see myself in the reflection.

The cut is but a thin line. Barely visible.

I touch it again and blink hard. Am I still dreaming?

Nicole said I would probably need stitches. Selvara only put the paste on my forehead yesterday morning and now it’s as if the cut was just a tiny scratch?

The breath surges from my lungs.

This place is magic.

I finger pick through my hair, the chocolate waves detangling as they air dry, and head back to the main hall of the hollows. I need to find Varek.

I have so many unanswered questions.

If Varek could mate with me, a human, what’s to stop the other Vrut males from mating with humans as well? I need to ask him how this all works.

If he didn’t keep up his end of the deal and the Vruts descended on the other five humans, was there a chance that they might also trigger a mate bond?

Then, we would never be able to leave here.

It’s one thing if I’m stuck here, but all six of us?

I round the corner and suck in a sharp breath as I almost slam into someone.

“Paige,” the male enunciates my name.

My mouth drops open as I look back at him. He’s older and I’ve seen him before.

He bows his head in respect. “Kylor.”

“Kylor,” I repeat, wracking my brain for where I’ve seen him before. Then it dawns on me—he was here the day Varek kidnapped me. He was one of the three who entered the chamber and had a heated discussion with my mat—

With Varek.

“How are you adjusting?” He asks.

I bite the inside of my cheek. What a loaded question. I nod. “Fine. It’s just a lot to take in.”

His thin lips press into a polite smile. His gray skin is thinning, almost translucent. Kylor’s hair is almost completely white, and unlike the younger males who wear leathers on their bottom half with their chests on display, Kylor’s leathers are more of a cloak.

“Well, you are fortunate. Varek is a moral and just male.”

His voice carries such pride and respect.

He continues. “Varek puts his people first and deserves to find happiness after everything he has endured.”

I deflate. “Endured?”

Varek said he won his position on the council through his strength and wisdom, but also his prowess on the battlefield. He didn’t want to go into detail and suddenly I feel guilty for not pressing.

Kylor nods.

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