Page 40 of The Stolen Bride

“He sought only to make our lives better,” he continued. “And he was unbeatable in battle. A brilliant strategist. Innovative. Discerning. Our kingdom prospered like no other. And you took that possibility from us.”

He didn’t give me a chance to defend myself as we entered a small, hastily assembled shelter, most likely chosen for its southern border of evergreens that provided refuge from the biting wind. Snow had been shoveled to the side, revealing a cold, hard patch of ground and a makeshift pit where a fire blazed.

The remaining elite soldiers formed a protective barrier around the enclosure. Actually, additional soldiers were here. They stretched from the large boulder on one side to the fallen branches stacked high on the other, the different sections acting as walls. Each man stared at me, as grim-faced as his prince. None of them spoke, but neither did I.

Dead leaves and feathers created a bed nearthe fire where Viktor rested. He’d been cleaned of all battle gore. He slept shirtless, his lower half covered by my coat.

His expression remained blank, utterly devoid of emotion, humanity… life. My heart and stomach traded places. How still he lay, barely even breathing.

I took a step toward him, but movement drew my gaze to the boulder. What in the world? I pivoted, examining the shocking display. The smooth surface of the rock acted as a projector screen, a scene playing on repeat.

Vignettes of the last few weeks rolled before my eyes. It was like watching a movie based on my past, from the viewpoint of another.

My head spun.Thiswas what played on a loop inside Viktor’s mind as he slowly wasted away? I watched, transfixed, as he eased beside my sleeping form. I laid upon the pallet of furs in his original tent, wearing my tank and shorts, with my face turned toward him. He reached out to smooth locks of escaped hair from my face with utter reverence, as if he handled something precious.

Our first night together.

I tried to breathe as movie Viktor glided his fingers along my braid. As soon as he finished, he traced the shell of my ear and the shape of my lips, and smiled with pure delight.

My heart pounded in my ears. I yearned to see more of this big, bad berserker being his most gentle, with tenderness and awe stamped into his usually harsh features, but the scene morphed. He now stood with Bodi, the two males face to face. Viktor’s lips moved, but I heard no words. Though I did sense the tension between them and the urgency in Viktor’s body language.

“Before he broke into a rage after your arrival,” Bodisaid, “he made me swear to look after you if anything happened to him.”

One of my hands floated to my racing pulse. “Is that why I’m here now?”

“Nem.”

On the “film” broadcasted to the boulder, the prince spoke next, and his words, whatever they were, infuriated his king.

“I reminded him of your untrustworthiness,” Bodi explained in real life. “Attempted to reason with him about how to handle you. Keep you chained and contained until we’d investigated any ties to Deco. You saw the result of that conversation.”

Seriously? Viktor had gone into a rage over the mere thought of my discomfort?

Longing filled me. Wemustsave him.

“These two memories play on repeat,” Bodi grated. “I believe he is aware of what is happening around him and hopes to remind me of your…importance to him. Since you bring him comfort, for whatever reason, I will allow you to stay with him until the end.”

His voice provided a masterclass on fatigue and sadness, and I realized Bodi’s hostility toward me originated from a place of deep concern for his king. Some of my hostility toward him evaporated.

“Give him whatever he needs,” he added, dour.

Little ole me, important to someone as powerful as Viktor. Did wonders never cease? I mean, yes, I’d recognized my importance to him. But this went beyond that. I wasn’t just a desire but a necessity.

I wanted to be flip with the prince, to guard my wounded heart against feelings even now threatening tobud, but I was too humbled to try. “I think we all know I’m his firebrand, and he would greatly protest these bonds.” I extended my cuffed hands in Bodi’s direction.

His internal agitation glittered in his eyes. “Harm him at your peril. That hasn’t changed. And I swear to you now, his hurt will be a mirror of yours.” Promise issued, the prince unwound the metal from my wrists and stalked out. The others followed.

My heart raced as I rubbed my chafed skin. Rather than stew over the motionless man in need of a miracle, I took a moment to view the newest scene to play over the walls. In it, I sat on the fur pallet in his tent, looking him over as he paced. I leered at him, really.

A stinging burn uncoiled in my cheeks. He’d noticed me noticing him, butIhadn’t realized it at the time. I’d been too wrapped up in his smoking hotness.

“That’s what you’re thinking about right now?” I asked and stretched out beside him. “What message are you attempting to convey, hmm?”

His heat enveloped me, and oooh, it was tinged with his decadent scent. I moaned as I wrapped myself around him and snuggled closer.

“Wake up and tell me what you want me to know,” I urged. “You can be saved; I know you can. All you must do is pull yourself out of your thoughts.”

Right? What had Bodi told me? The victims of vargbane root became trapped inside their heads, Sleeping Beauty style. So. What if I gave Viktor a reason to wake?

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