5. I Say You Are

I swallowed the lump in my throat, my body shivering more.

“Who touched you?”

I blinked, confused by the question. My mind was still reeling from the men surrounding me, from their eyes and their taunts. Why did he care?

My chest heaved as I shook my head in a broken, sharp movement. His eyes traveled down my body, lingering on my waist before settling on my thighs, where the paint had been smeared.

A storm raged in his eyes.

“Who touched you?” He repeated, raising an eyebrow which was cut in half by a thick scar that ran down to his cheek.

I felt like he was seeing straight through me, like he could smell my fear. My eyes watered and I looked to the side, where the man with the dragon tattoo on his neck stood.

The man sneered, “You bitch-”

It all happened too fast. My mouth parted but my scream was stuck in my throat. Blood sprayed everywhere, and a second later, his head rolled to the ground.

“Clean this up.”

The man before me wiped his sword on his pants, sheathed it and then extended a hand toward me. I stared at it, then back at his eyes.

“Do you want me to leave you here with them? They haven’t felt the warmth of pussy for months. You think they won’t touch you?”

I shivered, clutching the tatters of my sheer cloak against my chest before reaching for his outstretched hand. His fingers closed around mine. He hauled me to my feet with little effort, nearly sending me stumbling into him.

The men snarled, muttering their discontent.

He straightened, his shoulders broadening as he turned toward them. His grip tightened around me.

“Mine.”

The single word cut through the camp. Every voice died. It sent a jolt of fear through me, but also an inexplicable relief. His hands were surprisingly gentle, and as we walked away from the soldiers, I could feel those gold eyes of his burning into me.

The men’s voices faded as he led me toward a large black horse. It watched us with dark, wary eyes. He positioned us behind it, shielding me from the others. After a quick glance over his shoulder, he turned his attention back to me.

I recoiled beneath his gaze, my body shivering as the cold seeped into my bones. He tilted his head, studying me before slowly lifting a hand.

He flipped the chain off my breast, his eyes not leaving the peak of my it as his thumb brushed against my nipple.

I blew out a shaky breath. I was numb, not as sensitive as when the pillar had touched me. Still, the fact that a man like him was touching me was enough to make my stomach roll.

He kept his hand on me and snapped his cloak off his neck with his other hand, throwing it over my shoulders in one swift movement. Immediately, I held the fur-lined cloak around me, savoring its warmth and the faint scent of leather and smoke.

Tears pricked the backs of my eyes. This wasn’t supposed to happen. I was just supposed to ride in the carriage until Aeliana could save me. This was all wrong.

He reached for me again, his fingers tightening on my cheek as he turned my face toward him. His golden eyes scanned my features, a small, almost appreciative smile playing at his lips.

“So you’re the beauty that’s been rumored to be worth thousands of men’s lives?”

My heart hammered in my chest. “What?”

He cocked his head. “Elysande.”

I swallowed the correction in my throat. For all they knew, I was Elysande, and I didn’t know what revealing my true identity would do. It was a risk I wasn’t willing to take.

“When word reached us that Kaelen was offering your father a legion for your hand, my men wanted to know what kind of woman could be worth the price.”

I pulled the cloak tighter around myself.

“I say you are,” he said.

My stomach twisted at his words, and I couldn’t tell if it was fear or something else. I didn’t want to know.

He had blood on his sword. Blood on his hands. I looked at the man standing before me and remembered how easily he’d killed the man with the dragon tattoo.

Whatever he wanted from me, I couldn’t forget what he was.

A killer.

He watched me, those gold eyes gleaming. “I’m Cerus.”

I blinked up at him, struggling to keep my eyes open. The name was unfamiliar, and there was something strange about hearing him offer it so easily. Why was he telling me?

My gaze drifted over his dark uniform, the colors marking him as Eryndor. “You’re from the Eastern Kingdom.”

One corner of his mouth lifted. “You noticed.”

I nodded, though my thoughts were becoming sluggish. I swayed toward him as fatigue took over me. He seemed to notice my struggle and stepped closer to me.

I flinched when he wrapped his arm around my waist, but I made no attempt to push him away. He was warm, the only sign of life in the freezing night. My breath was white in the air and he looked at me with narrowed eyes, studying the tremble of my lips.

He said nothing, but he unbuttoned his coat, letting me press my naked body against his in search of even more warmth. I buried my face in his chest, embarrassed by how much my body was shaking from the cold. The wind picked up, howling between the trees.

“We will camp here tonight.” His chest vibrated as he spoke loud enough for everyone to hear him, but he kept his movements to a minimum as he lifted me into his arms. The men set up camp, not questioning his orders.

“Why-why did you attack us?”

He pulled back slightly to look down at me. “What do you mean?”

“You’re with the Eastern Kingdom. I’m from the Western Kingdom. The carriage was from the Southern Kingdom. We’re not…enemies.”

He smirked, raising an eyebrow. “Not enemies. Sure. But I never said I was good.”

I frowned.

“We thought the carriage was filled with gold, but it was-”

“Me.” I exhaled, and he twitched beneath me.

“We’ll take you to the Southern Kingdom.”

This time, I pulled back and looked up at him. “What?”

“I’m assuming Prince Kaelen will pay a hefty price for your return.”

My ears rung. If I were Elysande, that would be the best news possible, but I was horrified to think of what Prince Kaelen would do when Cerus presented him with me and not my sister.

Still, I nodded, trying to mask my doubts, attempting to show relief.

We stood like that, together, until camp was set up.