Page 49 of The Rowan's Stone
“Don’t you ever willingly let anyone hurt you again,” I demand, my voice fierce and raw as the images from earlier race through my mind—her fall to the floor, the knife buried to the hilt, and the endless river of blood pouring out of her chest. “Not for me, or anyone else. Promise me.”
Her voice is husky when she gives me her word. “I promise.”
Sliding in and out, I stare into her eyes and tell her, “I need you. Not this kingdom, not the people, not the crown. You. I’ll do everything in my power to keep you safe, no matter your destiny or the enemies we face, because I refuse to live without you. Do you understand?” My voice is gruff but serious, needing her to know she’s not expendable. Not to me.
“I understand,” she murmurs. “I love you too.”
The dragon in me roars at her words, and my hips thrust into her over and over. When she begins to come again, I give her the words back. “I love you, Arden.” Then I follow her, coming hard within her sweet body.
28
DAIRE
Striding through The Abbey, I stop at the bar to grab a bottle of blood. Noticing we’re low on stock, I send a quick text to Theron to ask him to reorder. Typically, Maya would manage everything pertaining to the bar, but with everyone still on sabbatical, it falls to Theron. Picking up a glass as well, I head upstairs.
The Abbey is quiet without anyone else here. After watching the battles today, I’d gotten a text from Lucifer asking me to check on a possible rumor he’d heard about a dark sorceress who was also searching for information on the Primary.
When I arrived in the Underworld city where she lived, I found the area to be full of criminals and demon families living in extreme poverty. A few buildings were standing, some with meager food supplies and necessities, but the people were living in shacks and tents nearby instead of homes or apartments. Disturbed, I sent Lucifer pictures, admonishing him for their conditions, but he was shocked too. Apparently, this region was Alain’s responsibility, and none of the resources made it to the people. Furious, he decided to visit himself and find out what’s going on.
Surprisingly, I couldn’t find out whether the rumor was true or not. Getting information out of anyone seemed near impossible. Any time the word “sorceress” was mentioned, the demon I was questioning would suddenly be unable to speak. Apparently, a powerful geas prevented them from giving her up. I texted the info to Lucifer, and he decided to add it to his list, so I headed home.
When I get to the door of my bedroom, I stop and breathe in deeply. The smell of strawberries and honeysuckle lingers in the air. It’s still pretty strong, which means Arden visited me recently. Frowning, I can’t think of why she would come to my room. She knew I was in the Underworld prior to our visit to Valerian’s kingdom.
Opening the door, I pause in the threshold and inhale. Her scent is even stronger in here, and I groan. Sleeping is going to be near impossible tonight, since my mind will be busy picturing her in my bed. Turning on the light, I almost drop the bottle of blood on the floor, which would be an incredible shame, considering all the old black rugs have been replaced with beautiful light grey ones. My eyes flick up, and I’m stunned. The entire room has been redecorated.
Standing in the doorway, I feel the light airiness of the room. The depressive dark dungeon of the past is gone, and now, it’s inviting and warm. The excessive black furnishings have been replaced with blues, greys, and whites. Even the walls are an incredible shade of blue, not too dark or light.
Bemused, my eyes flit from one spot to another, unable to decide where to look first. Setting the bottle and glass on a nearby table, I make my way to the large grey couch and sit. Sighing with pleasure, I sink back into the cushions and run my hands over the soft texture. It’s incredibly comfortable and deep, and not too stuffy. Eyeing the length, I swing my legs up and lie end to end. From my head to my feet, I fit. It’s almost as if it were made exactly for me. A few soft pillows and a blanket complete the comfortable cocoon.
The décor is minimal, but all the fabrics and textures give it a luxurious feeling, and the colors blend well to create an atmosphere of total relaxation. Standing, I make my way over to the bed. She replaced everything, from the bed itself to the mattress. I can smell the newness of it. My fingers caress the pillows and comforter, finding the texture soft and pliant. Stretching out on the bed, I can’t help but picture her lying beside me.
A wink of silver catches the corner of my eye. Glancing over, I see three silver frames with the pictures I’d hidden in my nightstand. My breath catches at seeing Danica’s and my mother’s smiles. Solange always hated those pictures, so I’d kept them in the drawer in order to avoid another argument. But Arden’s placement of these pictures in beautiful new frames means a lot, and I can see them from practically everywhere in the room.
I’m literally speechless. I can’t remember the last time someone surprised me or did something for me without expecting anything in return. My heart beats, and I can’t help but be warmed by the sound. Wishing she was here to share this with me, I pick up the phone to text her, but put it down. It’s late, and I don’t want to wake her or interrupt her time with Valerian.
The only odd thing is the bare walls. I’m glad she didn’t add the harsh pieces Solange had chosen, but I’m surprised she didn’t add any new art. Grinning widely, I decide to use it to my advantage.
Walking over to the bottle, I pour myself a glass of fine A+ and sink down into my new couch. I grab my tablet and start searching for places for our date.
29
ARDEN
Yawning widely, I step up to the portal, drop my bag, and plop down on top of it to wait for the others. After a delicious but emotional night spent with Valerian, I’m exhausted. All I want to do is go home and relax for at least a day or two. But I’m going to miss Valerian. He’s staying for a week or two to kick off the changes, including the new elections.
Picking up my phone to check the time, I blink when I see I’m ten minutes early. No wonder I’m the only one here. This is all Theron’s fault. I like being on time. Not early because you have to wait for others, and not late because…well, Solandis wouldn’t have tolerated it. Bad manners.
When a cup of coffee appears in front of me, I look up in surprise. Theron’s standing above me, holding coffee and a banana. Taking them from him, I take a sip and moan. “This should feel like a reward, but it kind of feels like strategy. I don’t care, though, I’ll take it,” I jokingly tell him. Although he is a planner, so I wouldn’t put it past him.
“Ready to go? I know you must be dying to know what’s in the journal,” he remarks, his phone already in his hand as he prepares for his day.
“Shit!” It slips out louder than I intended. Scrambling up, I hand him my cup of coffee, then kneel back down. Pulling my bag to me, I start digging through it. Taking everything on top out, I get to the bottom where I wrapped my bloody clothes in a plastic bag. It’s gross to take them home to destroy, but after seeing what blood magic can do, there’s no way I’m ever leaving my blood for anyone to find. Snatching up the jacket, I shove my hand into the pocket and pull out the letter. The edges are a little darker from my blood, but most of it is intact and relief pours through me.
“Is that your mother’s letter or the parchment?” Theron asks, squatting down to help me put my things back in the bag.
“I think it might be a new letter from my mother, but I’m not sure. When I went back through the MacAllister chamber to make sure we had everything, it was sitting on the bench,” I tell him. “It’s my mother’s handwriting on the outside, but I didn’t have a chance to read it, yet.”
“Read what?” Astor calls out as he approaches us.
