Page 19 of Storms of His Wrath

But this was his mate. She was asking him, pleading with him, and the trust that had been building between slowly was crumbling like sand through his fingers. Something in him wanted her to want him back, wanted her to be proud to be his. Just like he was proud of everything she was. In the past, he’d thought it would never happen. But he’d seen the possibility in the last few weeks, he’d caught glimpses of how it could be between them, and he couldn’t ignore that it.

“You are safe there?” he asked.

“Yes,” she said firmly.

Akoro exhaled, brows drawn down as he looked at her. “I cannot return to the palace and leave you here. But I won’t progress further into the Sands either. I’ll wait in the sand drift for you and we’ll leave together.”

She paused, studying his face. “I’m not sure they’ll be happy with that.”

“They will have to be, Naya.” His jaw clenched. “And none of them are to touch you again.”

Naya nodded.

“I also want to know you are safe and well. You will come and see me here every day you remain in this place. If you don’t come, I will come and find you. I will not agree to anything else.”

Her brow furrowed and she looked past him, squinting behind him. “How can you stay here?”

“We found a sand drift to camp in. It’s free of… this.” He gestured around him and the swirling Sands.

“Is it stable?”

“For now, yes. I don’t know how similar these sand drifts are to the ones we normally use.” He stepped closer to her, breathtaking in that scent he needed so much, and he spoke with finality. “But I’m not going anywhere without you, Naya. If it means I have to stay in the sand drift until the end of time, then that’s what I’ll do.”

Naya said nothing, simply watched him with those beautiful brown eyes as his promise settled.

Akoro couldn’t stop himself from reaching for her one last time. His arms circled her waist, pulling her against his chest with raw need. She didn’t resist, and warmth flooded through him as he buried his face in the curve of her neck, breathing in her scent again until it filled his lungs. He held her tight and finally her body relaxed into his embrace. For one stolen moment, the distance between them vanished, and he could pretend nothing had changed.

Then she stepped back. Her movements were gentle but firm. She turned and walked into the shifting sands, and the treacherous tiny grains that had tried to swallow him whole settled beneath her feet like tamed beasts. The wind that clawed at his armor with stinging particles parted around her as she moved away, her figure growing smaller until the golden wasteland claimed her. Akoro remained rooted at that spot, watching his mate disappear into the Sands. Frustration burned through his veins, but beneath it lay something harder, more resolute. She would return to him and when she did, he would be waiting. No matter how long it took, no matter what came between them, he wasn’t going anywhere without her.

CHAPTER SIX

“Why aren’t they leaving?” Oshrun stood at the canyon entrance, her hand tight around her staff, her body stiff. “You spoke with King Sy, but his party still remains at the edge of our territory.”

Naya reached beneath the neckline of her dress, her fingers finding the cool crystal Oshrun had put on her before she left. She drew it out, pulled the chain over her head and held it out to her. “He refused,” she said. The confrontation with Akoro churned in her chest like bitter poison; the memory of his hands on her face, the darkness in his voice, the way he looked at her when she accused him. “He has agreed not to progress any further, but he refuses to leave.”

Oshrun took the chain, suspicion flickered in her eyes. “Why?”

Naya hesitated, searching to explain the complicated tangle of loyalty and attraction that bound her to Akoro. Finally she said, “He has his reasons.”

Oshrun’s expression hardened. “And yet you chose not to leave with him.”

Naya could feel the weight of it, the question that hung in the air between them. The leader of the community wanted to know if she was friend or threat, refugee or spy.

“No.” The word came out stronger than she felt. “I still have questions. You told me the history, but there’s more I need to know about...” She gestured around them. “Everything.”

Oshrun studied her for a long moment, a grudging acceptance in her amber eyes reflecting the flickering lamplight. “Are you intending to seek sanctuary with us?”

Naya’s head swam with all the information and emotions coursing through her veins. The history carved into the canyon walls, the truth about the Sy Dynasty’s crimes, the look in Akoro’s eyes when she’d compared him to his ancestors—she couldn’t make sense of anything right now. After her conversation with him, everything felt raw and exposed, like a wound torn open.

Oshrun must have seen the turmoil written across her face because her expression softened. “Come with me,” she murmured.

She led Naya back through the canyon, past chambers she hadn’t seen before. Evening sounds had softened throughout the canyon. Children’s voices faded from the pathways. The clatter of cooking implements gave way to the gentle murmur of evening conversations drifting from carved windows.

They reached a modest dwelling carved into the rock face. Inside, the space was simple but comfortable—a sleeping platform covered in soft furs, shelves holding clay vessels and folded textiles, a small basin for washing. Crystals embedded in the ceiling provided gentle illumination, their soft glow casting everything in warm amber light.

“You may rest here tonight,” Oshrun said, retrieving a bundle of clothing from one of the shelves. The fabric was similar to what the other women wore—practical tunics and loose pantsin earth tones, finely woven and embroidered with intricate patterns. “These should fit you.”

Naya accepted the clothes gratefully, suddenly aware of how the beautiful ceremonial gown she still wore reeked of blood and desert sand. The sapphire fabric was beyond salvaging, the gold embroidery dulled with grime. This morning when she had been delighted to put it on seemed like lifetimes ago.

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