All Chapters of His to protect, theirs to sacrifice : Chapter 11 - Chapter 20

“An attack now, what is going on,” I said, looking around the empty road. “And why are you opening the door, aren’t you supposed to be driving us away from here.” Riya was already out of the car before I finished the sentence. I got out after her. “We are leaving the car here,” she said, her eyes scanning the tree line, her whole body different now, alert in a way that made the hair on my arms stand up. “We are taking the forest path back to the house it is faster.” “The forest,” I said, looking at the dark tree line. “We are going into the forest at night during an attack.” “It is safer than the road right now, come on.” She was already moving. I followed her because standing alone on a dark road was not an option I was considering. We moved into the trees and the sounds of whatever was happening somewhere in the town behind us faded but did not disappear completely. I could hear something in the distance, not voices exactly, more like pressure in the air. “Who is at

Caius Pov "What wine," I asked. "It was Bella," Priya said, her jaw tight. "She gave us drinks at the party, I think she put something in Zara's specifically." That bitch. I would deal with Bella but that was a conversation for later. Right now the woman in my arms was pressing herself against me with zero awareness of what she was doing to my self control and I was running out of it fast. Her hands were moving across my chest and her mouth was on my neck and every rational thought I had was losing a war it had not agreed to fight. "I need to get her back to the house," Priya said, stepping forward. "You cannot take her home like this," I said, keeping my voice level. "The lake. We can cool her down there." At that exact moment Zara got both hands on my shirt and pulled. I heard the fabric give before I processed what she was doing. I looked down at my own ruined shirt and then back at Priya. "She is the one taking advantage of me," I said. "Don't you dare use this si

He moved through the crowd like it was not there, hands in his pockets, his eyes fixed ahead on where his father stood. People stepped aside without being asked. "There is no need trying to talk sense to people who lack it," he said, his voice carrying easily as he walked forward. "There is no need to be so insulting, they were only expressing how they feel," Darius said, stepping slightly forward, his smile the careful kind. "Brother." "I am also expressing how I feel." Caius stopped a few steps from the king and looked at Darius when he said the last word. "Brother." The word came out of his mouth like he had found something unpleasant on his tongue. "You cannot simply walk in and interrupt," one of the elders said, his voice sharp, the distaste on his face not even slightly hidden. The other elders around him wore the same expression, some of them not even bothering to look at Caius directly. "That is enough." The king's voice landed over everything and the crowd went quie

"It is because it is magical," Sera said, her voice completely unbothered. "The color change means it has been activated and it is working. There is nothing to worry about." I looked at the purple bracelet on my wrist and then back at her. She was still wearing that small quiet smile like someone who knew the punchline of a joke the rest of the room had not heard yet. "Right," I said. "Magical bracelet. Sure. Completely normal." Riya put her hand on my arm. "Let's go." We said goodbye to Sera who stood in her doorway and watched us leave with those attentive eyes and that settled expression and I felt her watching until we turned the corner and she was out of sight. The walk back was quiet. I was too tired to ask questions and Riya seemed content not to answer any. By the time we got back to the house the afternoon had gone soft and golden and my body had made a decision entirely without my input. I needed to sleep. I told Riya I was going upstairs and she nodded and I di

"I am so sorry," she said again. I looked at her sitting there with tears on her face and I felt nothing except the need for an answer. "Did you plan the cheating with him," I said, keeping my voice as level as I could manage. "Was Marcus in on it the entire time." I could feel the tears building behind my eyes and I blinked hard. "Answer me." My voice broke on the last two words and I did not care. "Answer me Riya." She opened her mouth and closed it. Opened it again. "I..." She stopped. Pressed her lips together so hard they went pale. "I am so sorry." She looked down at her hands in her lap, her fingers laced together tight. "I gave him money," she said, her voice dropping so low I almost did not catch it. "He did not really love you." The room tilted slightly. I stood there and let those words land one at a time. He did not really love you. Eight years. Eight years of a life. A friendship I had chosen myself, the one friendship I had ever chosen myself, and a relat