Page 70 of Their Trials
“Somewhere along the way that brotherly affection turned into something more. Something we both flirted with but never followed through on. Everything fell apart before we could ever get the chance.”
He grew silent as his face fell, his eyes haunted in the firelight. The shadows dancing across his face only lended to the somber moment. Unable to keep silent, I tried to urge him to continue. I knew there was more to the situation and the animosity between Lennox and Callum. “I’m assuming that boy was Lennox?” I asked, though I was certain of the answer.
“Aye,” he said simply with a deep sigh. “We were close, but there were things I had withheld from him. Things that he wasn’t aware of, and I’d made sure to keep him in ignorance.” He paused and glanced around briefly, standing and walking to the edge of the cave to scan the perimeter.
Finally satisfied, he came back to the fire to continue his story, convinced that we were indeed alone. The globe that followed us was nowhere in the vicinity. “You see, even back then, the Queen was a tyrant. She’d slowly been gaining power and increasing her strength in the Court. The edges of our lands were already starting to die, and my family was convinced it was because she was abusing the powers the land had given her, upsetting the balance of the magic somehow.
“Unable to stand by, letting the dishonor go unpunished, my family began to build an underground rebellion, slowly making moves to undermine the Queen. For several years, we were successful in remaining discreet. The Queen knew that someone was working against her but was unable to determine exactly who the traitor was.” He paused here, as if working up the courage to tell the final parts of the story.
“We had to work in secret, even though it went against everything we believed. To us, there’s nothing worse than underhanded and secret meetings and dealings. We prefer the honor of working in the light. My father used to tell me that if I didn’t want others to know what I was doing, then I probably shouldn’t do it. For years, we lived by this tenet until our lands were threatened, leaving us to fight the only way we could. To face the Queen directly would have resulted in death. She was already too powerful.
“As my relationship grew with Lennox, I knew that I wanted more than the friendship we had shared for years, but I couldn’t see starting that kind of relationship with him without sharing all of myself with him first. So, I told him about the work I’d been doing over the years to weaken his mother.”
My mouth dropped open at this confession, and I covered it with a hand, dreading where his story was going. I already knew it wasn’t a happy ending.
“Somehow, the Queen started to suspect the Autumn Court. We had loyal allies all over the land, but she couldn’t gain any traction or get them to confess to who was leading those that wanted to overthrow her. That is, until she learned of my deepening relationship with Lennox. She used him to get to me, pulling the information from him against his will.”
He shut his eyes as if to block this memory from his mind, a sheen of moisture glinting in the glow of the fire when he finally opened them back up. He blew out a breath. “She retaliated by dragging my parents before the Court and beheading them for treason. She threatened to destroy the entire Autumn Court if I didn’t bend the knee, so I did. However, in order to ensure my cooperation, she kept me at the castle, subject to her whims.
“Any time she thought I was pushing back or taking too long to submit, she would threaten my people. Their deaths weren’t something I could live with, so I did what I had to to keep them safe. Even if that meant giving her use of my body.”
His voice trailed off, but I didn’t know what to say. How did someone respond to that knowledge? I knew firsthand the treachery of the Queen, but this brought her to a whole new level. Sure, you read stories about people who are depraved and purely evil, but a part of your mind can’t fully comprehend the level that some people are willing to go to to maintain that power.
Now, faced with the reality of her depravity, I grew angry. People like that were bullies. The only reason they were in places of power was because they weren’t afraid to stomp and trample on those below them to get ahead. There was nothing I hated more in the universe than a bully.
That bitch had scarred and almost ruined two of the greatest men I’d ever known, leaving them both broken in her wake of destruction. Even her own son. She’d used him against his will to get what she wanted. In this moment, I wanted nothing more than to destroy her, the feeling building in me, my rage simmering under my skin almost as if it was a tangible thing. I would destroy this bitch if it were the last thing I ever did.
A crack shot through my chest, causing me to gasp and lean over in pain. Callum was by my side in an instant. “What is it?”
“I…don't…know” I gasped out, the pain radiating through me before stopping suddenly. As soon as the pain fled, I slumped over. Callum kept me from flopping onto the floor, holding me in his arms as his gaze searched me for injuries. I smiled weakly at him. “I’m good now.”
Obviously, I wasn’t. I was completely spent. Whatever had just happened had left me burned out magic wise. I needed sleep and food to recover, but neither of those possible at the moment. There was nothing he could do though, so I put a hand on his cheek to reassure him. “I’m okay. I don’t know what that was, but I’m sure a little nap will help me. I’ll wake up, and we’ll be right back to normal. Me trying to get in trouble, and you trying to keep me safe begrudgingly.” I laughed softly at my pathetic joke.
“Don’t,” he said.
“Don’t what?” I asked him, my brow furrowing as I took in his expression.
“Don’t make light of the situation. Something happened, and it wasn’t good. I can’t protect you if I don’t know what’s going on,” he growled, his chest rumbling against me.
As if I was drunk instead of just exhausted, I burrowed into the vibration coming from his chest, seeking his comfort. “You feel good,” I told him, looking back up into his eyes.
Without a word, his eyes flashed with hunger before his mouth crashed into mine. One second, I was exhausted, and the next, I was set aflame by the passion in his kiss. I wanted to get closer to him, crawl inside him. An impossible task, but I could try.
I shifted in his arms as his mouth claimed mine until I was straddling him, my arms and legs wrapped around him like a spider monkey. I clung to his wide frame as best as I could, slowly rocking my hips until he fell back on his ass giving me more leverage to grind against him. Fuck! He tasted good.
A haunting laugh sounded out, piercing the haze of desire we were both under. I jerked my head up to find the source, meeting hundreds of glowing blue eyes.
Chapter Thirty One: Rhowyn
“What the fuck are those things?” I whispered to Callum, not daring to move as I kept my eyes glued to the beings that were fully hidden in the dark. The only thing that was visible were their eyes. Until they started smiling. I suppressed a shudder at the image of hundreds of smiling creatures all staring at us as if we were their next meal. No one moved as I sat on top of Callum, whose back was now on the ground, his head tilted to see the creatures behind us.
“Kobolds,” Callum said on an exhale.
“Okay. What the fuck does that mean?” I questioned him, not daring to raise my voice above a whisper, too afraid to set them off.
“This must be their cave. I should have known better, but there weren't any recent signs of them.”
“So, what do we do?” I asked him. “Just so you know, whatever happened just a minute ago has left me completely spent of magic. I don't have anything left.”