Page 11 of The Stolen Bride

Fine. We’d discuss something else. “You got any more of that goat cheese? I’d be willing to share it with you out of the goodness of my heart.” Dude. No. I couldn’t be hungry again after witnessing such a slaughter. But I was.

See! This was the reason I’d been so keen to identify my birth parents. To find out why I was the way I was. And now, Malachi dangled that most enticing carrot in front of my face. But no. Absolutely not. I wouldn’t do anything to push a man into opening his life to evil.Thatwas evil. Although, to be fair, Viktor might already qualify. Look at what he’d just done!

“Fetching time.” Without any more warning than that, Viktor slammed his body into the tree trunk.

Boom!The entire structure shook. Retaining my perch proved impossible. I careened over the edge, falling and flailing.

“Oomph!” My lungs emptied upon impact. Took a second to regain my bearings, but when I did, realization dawned. I hadn’t hit the ground; Viktor had caught me.Now he held me clutched against his powerful chest, his grip intractable.

“Making me fall isn’t exactly fetching,” I grumbled, irritated by his strength. Andonlyirritated. Not impressed. Not even a little.

“It accomplished the same goal, didn’t it?” He strode forward, stepping on his victims, unconcerned by the disgusting squishing noises.

Well. As far as consequences went, these weren’t too shabby, really. Irritation fading, I snuggled up against him, getting more comfortable.

“Yes,” he suddenly snapped without provocation. “The only one capable of calming a sentinel from his rages. No.”

Confusion set in, and my brow wrinkled. “Um. Okay. Isthismy punishment? Random word bombs?” Because I wasn’t opposed.

“With me, drágá, you will never have to wonder if you’re being punished. You’ll always know. You asked questions, I answered.”

Well. I backtracked through my earlier words to him. “So a firebrand is like a soulmate.” How intriguing and very romance novel-esque. But, uh, why did the shifters wonder if I was Viktor’s?

No. No way. Nope. That particular query wasn’t even worth considering. It was too far-fetched. Besides, the shifters had mentioned “the other,” another candidate in the running for such an…illustrious title. The Valkara, I’d bet.

“A firebrand is more than a soulmate. She rouses the world’s most powerful force in her sentinel.”

Let me guess. “His immortal strength?”

“His unwavering, unbreakable, incorruptible love.”

Aaah. Only something I’d craved my entire life! Viktor must crave it too. I detected a note of longing in his voice.

Bit by bit, my ability to breathe returned. Not exactly a development in my favor. I inhaled the most intoxicating scent: pine needles from ancient woods interwoven with forest dew and dried honeysuckle. Mmm. Surely all that goodness didn’t come from him.

Focus. “How do firebrandless berserkers stay calm?”

He glided his tongue over his teeth. “They consume an herb, and it keeps them cold.”

Hello! Problem, meet solution. “You should do that.”

“I’m too strong for it. Nothing works on me.” He waggled his jaw. “However, since meeting you, I haven’t neared a rage.”

Hemustbe kidding. “You seemed to be on the cusp multiple times. Although, yes, you’re calm now.” Maybe too calm. “What happened?” A roundabout way of asking ifhebelieved me to be in the running for his firebrand.

“Everything and nothing.” He’d used the same tone and volume earlier, while talking to himself.

Ugh. I bet he was about to launch into another tirade.

“Find, destroy, happy.”

Yep. I did my best to lure him back into our conversation. “Where are we going?”

To my surprise, he responded in detail. “Many places. We’ll start with my army’s camp. There are certain supplies I seek to acquire.”

Oookay. Talk about a supervillain tone laden with glee, mystery and suggestion. I opened my mouth to launch into a serious grilling, but he snapped, “Be quiet. The Valkara speaks again.”

I waited, listening, but once more I heard nothing. “So, just to be clear, Valkara is the one–”

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