Page 100 of Elas

“Not many Anunians out in the wild?” Ronan asks, and Elas snorts a laugh, his chest bouncing under my cheek. I smile, glancing up at his face and realizing what a sap I’ve become.

I turn back to Ronan, still grinning. “Well, he described you as a ‘grumpy purple dude who likes to throw around a tall, skinny sarcastic guy with glasses,’ and oddly enough, it just clicked.” Ronan narrows his eyes at Reyes, who shrugs. “When he figured out you and Elas were old friends, he told him your plan to find a village the two of you had raided. Elas knew immediately where you were headed.”

“I’m sure he did,” Ronan says, his mask of irritation slipping as he offers Elas a sad smile, and Elas returns it with just as much emotion. “There’s something you should know about this place, Elas. It was…” Ronan trails off, suddenly uncertain as he glances at Cameron, and my curiosity is piqued.

“This was my home,” Cameron says, and Elas tenses beside me. “I was out hunting when it was attacked.”

Elas’s grip tightens on me, his throat clicking in a rough swallow before he finally asks, “Your… family?” My heart breaks all over again at the guilt he carries, and I wonder if anyone else can hear the weight of his regret in those two simple words.

“My mother was killed in the attack. She was the only family I had, so after… everything… I left.”

“I’m sorry,” Elas mutters, but Cameron waves his hand, giving him a genuine smile with no trace of accusation.

“Ronan and I have been through this, too, Elas, and I don’t blame either of you for what happened.” Cameron reaches to squeeze his arm when Elas grabs Cameron’s hand and jerks him closer. Elas pushes up his shirt sleeve and stares at the dusky purple mark on his biceps.

“You’ve both accepted the bond then,” Elas says, an enormous, cheesy smile on his face.

Cameron and Ronan exchange a surprised glance, and Ronan exposes his golden-skinned palm. “We didn’t know what it meant when they changed.”

“How doyouknow what it meant when they changed?” Cameron asks, and Elas and I share a look as Cameron blows out a breath. “Uh oh,that’snever good.”

“Before we left the base, August was working in the medical labs when he came across some files,” Elas explains, and Cameron tucks himself into Ronan’s side as he heaves a sigh.

“And that’s also never good,” Cameron mutters.

“Here… it’s easier to show you.” I separate myself from Elas and wave for them to follow as I walk around the back of the SUV. The hatch lifts and I throw the blankets aside, displaying the boxes of files. “There were more,” I say as I open the lid of the top box, where the endless paperwork is packed inside. “Lots more, but this was all we had the opportunity to grab.”

“You aren’t the first set of mates,” Elas says, and both Ronan and Cameron nod.

“We know,” Ronan says, stepping forward to stand right beside me as he trails his long, elegant fingers over the box of papers. He pulls one out, staring at the names written on the front. His eyes meet mine before moving to Elas’s, the tension thick between us until Reyes breaks it.

“Who is that?” Reyes breathes, and I follow his line of sight to find a petite green-skinned figure standing at the forest’s edge. A tiny twig sticks out of his long, deep green hair, and brown rings of soil stain the knees of his pants. He freezes, eyes enormous, as he stares at the group of us. Panic radiates from him, and I swear, it looks as though the limbs of the trees reach for him.

“It would seem we have some things to discuss,” Ronan says, and I glance at him as he nods towards one of the recently repaired homes. “Come on inside and let’s get comfortable. Something tells me it’s going to be a long night.”

Elas

Twodaysoftravellingin my thick, restrictive armor means I’m in desperate need of a shower. Cameron immediately tells me I’m welcome to use theirs, though Ronan insists I go bathe in the stream like an animal.

Honestly, the stream would’ve been fine, but I decide to use their bathroom just to piss Ronan off. What makes it better is heknowsthat’s why I picked it, which makes the clean, chilly water even more satisfying. Freshly cleaned and wearing new clothes, I feel infinitely more relaxed as I step out.

August ducks into the bathroom to bathe once I’m done, though Reyes was content to take a dive in the stream and has already returned. Outside, a pot of rice boils next to a large slab of red meat speared on a metal rod. Fat drips as it cooks, sizzling into the fire beneath and filling the air with its heavenly scent. Ronan explains it’s venison from a recent hunt as he turns it.

It could be absolutely anything and I’d eat it. The smell is incredible, and my stomach growls as I sit beside him.

If I close my eyes, I could pretend we’re back in the old days of being sent out for scouting missions. Cooking over a fire and shooting the shit under the open sky, without the noise and constant crowds on base.

Only now, our allegiances have shifted.

Conversation drifts from inside, and I smile to myself as Cameron and Reyes joke and laugh, and soon, August’s voice joins them. I glance back to find Ronan observing me, and he nods towards my hand as he checks the rice. “Your mark has changed as well.”

“It has,” I agree, flexing my fingers and enjoying the breeze on my skin after wearing my armor for so long. “It’s pretty recent.” Ronan nods, clenching his own marked hand. “Who’s the Drüinae?”

The tiny figure disappeared like a ghost, melting into the forest. He was like an apparition, some wild nature spirit that came to visit, only to vanish when he saw visitors. Ronan’s lips pull into a tight grimace, and he glances over his shoulder towards the vine-covered cottage.

“That’s Nyx,” he finally says, and an intense sadness fills his eyes as he turns to look at me again. “We haven’t gotten his story yet, but he barely knows any English.” My eyebrows shoot up as Ronan nods. “He was being held captive by the military… only understood me when I spoke to him in the common language.”

“Gods,” I mutter, as the impact of that statement hits me. “How long were they holding him?”

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