Page 21 of Shadow Kissed
I’m an orphan.
Raegal places a hand over her eyes and closes them before he gets to his feet and walks my way. I push myself out of Jasiel’s arms and despite the agony in my limbs I charge him, pounding my fists on his chest. “You could have saved her! Why didn’t you save her? I hate you. Why didn’t you save her!” He doesn’t try to stop me as I attack him. “Why?” I demand. He’s an all-powerful Shadow Borne, if anyone could have saved her surely it would be him.
“I couldn’t save her. No one here could have. Only the Night Borne can reverse the venom.” He grabs hold of my fists and holds them in one hand against his chest. “Where are you hurt?” he demands, scanning my face.
“Everywhere,” I whimper as I spiral into shock. “It hurts everywhere.”
He wraps an arm around my waist to hold me up as I sag against him, and I hear Corym cry my name as my world goes black.
9
RAEGAL
Icarry her unconscious body into the great hall and lay her down gently on a blanket that Jasiel has quickly laid out on the floor. The room is littered with many injured residents of the town.
“Is she okay?” he asks me. His eyes scanning her body for injury.
I study her sleeping form, just as perplexed as he is. I can see no visible wounds on her and no evidence that any of the mutts have fed on her.
“Reya! Let me through!” I look up to see Arkynn fighting to get past my men. Her two little brothers tailing behind him looking lost and bewildered, one of them sobbing uncontrollably.
“Let them through,” I order. He’s not going to leave until I let him see that she’s alive.
Arkynn drops to his knees on her other side, and he looks like all his greatest fears have come true. “Is she dead?” he asks me as he gently strokes her cheek with the back of his hand. Corym andElian come up beside him, their faces contorted with concern for their sister.
“No. She’s unconscious,” I inform him. My shadows itch to push him away from her, whispering in my ear that she’s ours. I fight them down, telling them she isn’t ours and they laugh from within me.‘Ours. Only ours.’The possessive fuckers push at me to claim her. My eyes turn black as I fight them, and I snarl when Jasiel places his hand on my shoulder.
“Everything okay, Raegal?” he asks, his voice filled with concern.
I close my eyes as I fight against my own shadows. “I need him away from her.” I hiss quietly so that only he can hear, as I fight with all my might to stop my powers from attacking the Asen soldier who is touching her.
“Okay, my friend. You’ve seen she’s okay. Please have a healer check on the boys. Reya would want to know you’re looking after them.” I hear Jasiel order him as he grips Arkynn by the arm and guides him away from her. I hear the young Asen protest, but Jasiel reminds him of his duty as a soldier and assures him she is okay, and we will protect her.
My shadows unfurl from their tight coil as he leaves, and I kneel beside her to continue my inspection of her body. “Something’s wrong.”
Jasiel leans down beside me. “Could it be something from within?”
I shrug my shoulders. “Cover me,” I order him, and he glances around the room as he shields me from view. Hovering over her, I stroke her cheek before I place my lips against hers and my shadows spill into her mouth and work their way into her body. I don’t know how, but something has singed her flesh on the inside. My shadows quickly work through her body to heal each wound.
‘Claim her’they whisper to me, urging me to mark her with my shadows and show the world she is mine.‘Mate,’ they whisper to me.
“No,” I growl out loud harshly, reining them in as one sneaks from my hold and places a small mark on the inside of her right wrist. “Stop,” I order, pulling them back within me. They leave her body and reluctantly retreat inside me as I pull my mouth away from her plump rose-coloured lips. “She’ll be okay now,” I say through gritted teeth, still fighting an internal war with my shadows.
Jasiel grips my shoulder. “Are you okay?”
I can tell from the concern on his face that he has some idea of my internal battle.
He leans down so he can speak quietly into my ear. “It’s okay to want her, you know. You can’t punish yourself over Haysen forever.”
I wince at the sound of his name. The brother I failed to protect. Hearing his name strengthens my resolve. After Haysen died, I swore I would never let anyone close again. It is nothing more than I deserve. He would still be alive today if it weren’t for me. I straighten and stand up, distancing myself from the Asen female who seems to have cast a spell over my shadows. “Let’s go. She’ll be fine now. We’re needed back out there,” I order my men. Jasiel lingers, looking over my shoulder to where Eretreya lies unconscious. “Healer!” I shout across the room and a small greying woman rushes over. “Tend to her.” She bobs her head and rushes over to Eretreya, placing her hand on her head and checking her over.
As we exit the great hall, my shadows pull fiercely back in the direction we just came. They demand I stay with her, but I won’t let them dictate my actions. I roar loudly inside my own head, silencing them until they retreat like a sullen child.
We head back out to the square and I order my men to scour the town for any survivors.
“It’s the strangest thing, don’t you think…” Jasiel says, as we load another dead body onto the cart. A young girl, she only looks to be around twenty.
“Go on,” I urge him, as I place my hand over her eyes and close them. That’s better. Now she looks like she is sleeping.