Sapphire Falls (The Lost Realm #2)

5. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Savine

“ W e should make our way to Orofine as soon as possible,” Raikin said for what must have been the fiftieth time since Jasper’s death.

If it wasn’t for everyone else, Savine suspected that Raikin would have them packed and traveling on their elk at this point. But, considering the events that unfolded, Savine had no plans on racing away from the Towers.

“Stop pushing the issue, Raikin,” Savine growled in a tone that didn’t even begin to show the extent of his irritation with his ambassador. “We are not going anywhere tonight. I wear the boughs and the antlers. Everything else will fall into place.”

Savine had met with his council in a spacious parlor that Rylo had made a show of his alleged generosity in sharing with Savine and his advisers. The room was more ornate than Savine’s tastes, with marble flooring and black velvet couches meant to accommodate wings.

“I, for one, would just like to know if I’m sleeping in a traveling tent, or if Rylo is going to bother with giving me accommodations,” Garnel muttered from beside Kyla.

“I don’t think it would be wise for you and Kyla to stay in the Towers. You need to stay with the warriors and the elk. If it wasn’t for Avery, we would all be joining you in traveling tents. But I’m not leaving her in the Towers alone,” Savine said.

Garnel snarled slightly, but didn’t argue with Savine.

Jay stood and motioned to the room. “Then if we’re done here, I’d like Raikin and I to join the warriors too. I’ve been gone from the elk for too long as it is, and with so many of them here, I need to make sure they’re being cared for properly,” Jay said as he stood and tugged on his mate’s hand. Raikin stood up, his green eyes shining with disappointment.

“If we’re not traveling tonight, could we not just enjoy an actual bed?” Raikin argued with his soulmate.

Jay just shook his head before he placed a tender kiss on Raikin’s pale hand. “I’ve had my fill of the indoors.”

Just then, Savine heard a knock on the door. Jay opened it and smiled in that broad, welcoming grin of his. His dimples popped as he let go of Raikin’s hand and took Avery’s. She was still wearing the same dress she had been wearing to the assassination attempt, and despite her disheveled hair and tired eyes, she looked every bit the queen he wanted by his side when he entered his kingdom.

His heart fluttered as he watched her search the room for him. Her sweet mouth warmed into a smile when her eyes met his. Despite all the odds, she was alive. His own witchy soulmate.

Savine crossed the room and pulled Avery into a hug. The bond was there, tugging and pulling at him to bring her as close to him as he could. “Little Flower,” he murmured in her ear. “You look beautiful.”

He felt her shift onto her tiptoes and he bent his head lower to hers. Her warm, small hands stroked the crown resting on his forehead. “You look good too, old man”

Savine couldn’t suppress the smile on his face. “Let’s get out of here.”

Avery entwined her hand in his as she said, “Lead the way, your highness.”

Savine couldn’t get her close enough to him. He’d been patient as she took her sister out of the throne room and back to her bedroom. He’d resisted the urge to go check on her, to make sure she wasn’t harmed by the ordeals she’d experienced that evening. But now that she was here, there was no resisting the need to hold her in his arms, to breathe in her honeysuckle and mint scent.

He reached down and scooped her into his arms. She melted into his embrace with such tenderness that he never wanted to let her slip away again. “I’m here, Savine. I’m safe and I’m yours,” she whispered into his ear before she pressed her lips to the pointed edge of his fae ears.

Garnel looked at them with a smirk that in other circumstances he would have called him out for, but he had no desire to be the grumpy, brooding rebel leader now.

All that was in the past. He was king now, and he had his soulmate. For the first time in Savine’s life he might actually have a chance at happiness.

He carried her to a large balcony designed for private rendezvous. He didn’t want to point out how he knew about this place. Those old memories always threatened to push themselves forward, but now was not the time for him to think about his past and the hurt he’d experienced in the Towers.

Savine set Avery down on a low outdoor couch. A fire blazed in a large ring, keeping them warm as they sat in the cool night air. Overhead were the thousands of stars, brilliant and clear. This view was what the Towers were famous for.

Avery leaned her head back, staring at the stars. Goosebumps prickled her skin and he immediately went to retrieve a blanket for her. Avery was still transfixed by the night’s sky when he returned. As he sat down beside her, he tucked the blanket around both of them.

“It’s incredible, isn’t it? I’ve never seen this many stars before,” Avery said as she nestled her head against his chest.

“Do you see that constellation there?” Savine asked as he traced out a cluster of stars in a row. “That’s Gaia, the premier goddess’ twin sister. Legend has it that she was the goddess who ruled over the witches and the humans, and all witches were her descendants. She disappeared the day of the Cleaving.”

Savine shifted his hand to their right, tracing a long line of stars. “This constellation is called ‘goddess tears’. It’s said to grow each year as Althea mourns her lost sister.”

Avery leaned in closer to Savine, her cheeks pressed against the exposed skin on his chest and her hand made lazy circles, tracing the lines of his essence. “Why does everything here have to be so damn sad? Do fae have any happy tales?”

Savine chuckled as he kissed the top of her head. “Ours. Our tale is a happy one.”

Avery smiled up at Savine, but it was laced in sadness. “It would have been a sad story if my sister didn’t show up when she did.”

“But she did show up, and that’s what matters.” Savine paused, thinking about Morgan and Rylo’s insistence to keep her in Nephel. “I only wish I could take her with us. I want you to come to Orofine with me now. I understand why you want to protect Morgan, but it would make me feel better if you stayed near me.” Savine’s chest tightened as he spoke. He didn’t want to make Avery angry about this matter, but it physically hurt his heart to imagine being without her at his side again.

Avery pushed herself up a little, leaning away from Savine. She still wore that same sad smile, but this time her chin was quivering slightly. “Knowing what you’ve been through here, I get it. I mean, hell, even knowing what I’ve been through! But that’s why I can’t just leave her.”

Savine hated knowing that Avery was right. He wanted to flee with her, to leave the Towers and never return. But Avery was loyal to her sister, and Morgan must be distraught from the evening’s events. There was no reason to make Avery upset with him by trying to convince her to abandon her sister.

“How is she taking all of this?” Savine asked

“Honestly, she’s doing better than I did. But she told me something that’s going to shock you.”

Savine’s essence squirmed. “Tell me.”

“The bear that attacked us wasn’t a normal bear. It was a Latian shifter. He took her to an abandoned mine shaft and she hit him with an old iron pipe.” Avery frowned and ran her fingers through her hair.

“There is a way for us to cross into your realm? Why haven’t we ever heard of such a thing?” Savine stared into Avery’s dark eyes as she shook her head.

“Maybe they can’t get back? It could be a one way portal on each side. But what I don’t understand is how he could shift into fae form on Earth. We don’t have magic. And how has nobody noticed fae warriors walking around? Are there ever folk who go missing here?”

Savine shook his head as he thought. “Folk go missing, but we live in a dangerous world. It’s not out of the ordinary for someone to disappear.”

“Well, it adds a whole other element to me being here, doesn’t it? Morgan said she kept expecting him to kill her, but he didn’t.”

Savine thought about the prophecy. “I heard the prophecy Rylo mentioned the same night my grandfather gave up his essence and my mother was killed. I always thought I was the only one who heard it, and honestly I didn’t give it much thought, with all that happened that night. But now we know Rylo heard it, that means others may have also. Rylo figured out it was talking about two witches. What if my father knew?” Savine felt his heart tighten. He couldn’t risk losing Avery. Not now.

Avery sighed. “The prophecy and knowing that Morgan killed Jasper complicates things for us. I can’t leave her, Savine. And Rylo made an oath not to hurt me. I’m probably safer here than in Orofine. At least until you gain control there.”

Savine growled. He wasn’t going to fight her, and yet he couldn’t stop himself from saying, “You’re safest with me. We shouldn’t be apart.”

She shook her head before leaning back into Savine. “I don’t want you to think that I don’t want to be there with you when you re-enter Orofine. I really do! But, I think it’s a good thing for you to return to the city without me.”

Savine felt a rise of frustration in him. He wanted to push it down. Everything she was saying made sense, but it didn’t make it any easier for him to accept. Her words felt like a rejection.

“I have spent most of my life convinced I couldn’t have a soulmate, that I was unlovable. And I only just found out all the lies I believed aren’t true. There is someone for me. Letting you go after all that, even if it is for a month, hurts. It’s not what I want and I’m afraid…”

Savine cut himself off. He couldn’t say that he was afraid Avery would reject him and their bond, but that thought was at the forefront of his mind.

Avery slid back from Savine before she climbed into his lap, both legs hugging against his hips. The slit in the Latian green dress revealed her muscular thigh on one leg and Savine let his hand drift there, squeezing her soft body.

She looked into his eyes and all he could see was the reflection of starlight in those dark pools. “Savine, I want you. I’m not rejecting you or the bond. I just want you to have a chance to establish order in Orofine. And I need to be with Morgan.”

Avery lifted her hands to his cheeks, playing with his beard before she pressed her lips to his in a kiss that was so tender it made Savine’s heart pound and ache at the same time. Her soft lips brushed his, pressing deeper as he opened for her, letting her tongue sweep into his mouth in soft, languid strokes.

She pulled back and looked at him with a passion that took his breath away. “I want you to know that I’m not leaving you. Do you want to do the bond thing tonight?”

Savine twisted his fingers in Avery’s wavy, golden strands and thought about their bond. Did he really want to take that step with Avery in this place that had haunted his past for so many years? The answer was a resounding no. He could wait. This was important enough to wait until they were both safely in Orofine. Plus, he needed her to understand how serious the soulmate bond would be. She seemed eager to accept him, but he feared she lacked an understanding of how life altering this choice would be.

“Not here. I—I don’t want that moment attached to this place. And… I worry you don’t understand how serious this choice is,” Savine said, his voice not hiding his emotions. He wanted her. It nearly consumed him, this need to bond with her. But not now. He’d been patient and could continue a bit longer.

Avery pursed her lips. “This place holds a lot of terrible memories for you, and maybe you’re right about waiting. I promise you I will be by your side in a month, and I won’t leave you again. We’ll keep Morgan safe. I have no intention of keeping my promise to return her to Nephel.”

Savine smiled. Of course she was lying about letting her sister return to Nephel. He should have known that was her plan. “My sweet little liar.”