To Defend A Bride (Entangled with the Enduar #3)

Chapter 8

Chapter 8

MELISA

I watch Ra’Sa leave while I stand in Hammerhead Hall, surrounded by Enduares. The other Enduar spoke to him, and then he just… left.

But not before looking back at me.

There was something vast and tortured in that look. His sky-blue eyes had turned stormy, and that unsettled me.

Did he pity me for the things I shared?

He had no way of knowing that I had once gone to the breeding pens. There was no way in heaven or hell that he knew what happened when I laid there on that table, or what I did.

I start to sweat, and my pulse quickens.

The king finishes his speech abruptly after getting the men to promise that they won’t go anywhere near the gem ceremony today.

To be honest, I had dreaded putting the crystal in my chest. Despite all the obvious benefits, I wasn’t sure if I wanted a mate. I just wanted a protector—someone to give me and the girls a home.

A mate feels too personal. Kind of like letting myself finish for a man.

I bite my lip as some of the attendees of King Teo’s little party begin to approach. Letting out a deep breath, I smile broadly.

“You are brave, woman,” one of them says. He looks at me with deep, steel-gray eyes.

I dip my head. “Well, thank you for listening.”

Another, with white hair steps forward, places his fist over his chest and bows to me.

“I am called Sikur. I will look for you after the ceremony. It would be an honor to be mated to a human like you,” he says.

Something twists in my gut, and I think of Ra’Sa. “My, what a compliment.”

More men begin to swarm, but Niht splits through all of them.

“All right. Off to work. I’m sure Melisa doesn’t want you drooling on her fresh clothes,” he calls.

I grin up at the aging Enduar, noticing the lines just starting to show in the corners of his eyes.

“Thank you, Niht,” I say as sincerely as possible.

He winks at me. “Always here to help a woman in need.”

I laugh. “I’m sure. Give my regards to Glyni.”

He smiles, and I turn to walk out of Hammerhead Hall.

“Good luck at the ceremony!” he calls after me.

Once away from the hordes of large, muscled men, I lean against one of the pillars and let out a long breath. Staying in Enduvida is the right choice.

But the Fuegorra…

I think back to Glyni’s offer. I could go with her and the other elves. But it doesn’t seem like a place suited for children.

You don’t have to decide right now.

So, instead, I wonder where Ra’Sa has gone. The Palace? To see his mother?

It shouldn’t matter. Not after what he said, but I catch sight of his silver hair and oversized shoulder, and I feel pulled from my spot.

I look around me, finding the area mostly empty, and follow behind him at a safe distance.

Another man joins Ra’Sa, and they continue on, faces stern and heads fixed on the path ahead. They pass the palace and the homes and head into the tunnel that leads out of the city.

My interest piques.

I give them a head start before hurrying along behind. My legs ache from the speed since I’m not fully healed from the trek.

The pumping sound from inside the city starts to fade, and the air grows colder and crisper.

Enduvida’s entrance is wide open, and the hunters stand just outside with the Enduar King. Everyone’s faces are set in grim expressions, and it doesn’t take long to see why.

Quietly stepping out into the open air, into the sunlight I was starting to miss, I look down and see a dead human lying in the snow, a message carved into his chest in the common tongue.

I choke back a gasp, pressing my hand to my mouth. The blood, the color of his lips. It’s… gods, it’s awful.

And it seems just like something a giant would do.

Of course. Our escape isn’t as harmless as I thought it would be. We aren’t just left to be forgotten. The new king doesn’t merely presume us dead.

High King Rholker is particular with the humans—his obsession with Estela is appalling. Eneko had a good relationship with the king. On more than one occasion, I observed his ways. I should’ve known that he wouldn’t let any of us be at peace.

This could mean a war. How am I supposed to find a mate in the midst of all that? There isn’t time.

The Enduares will need to win this conflict before it has a chance to doom us all. I’ve come so close to getting a new home. I need to do something to stop it.

My head spins.

When I lived with Eneko, he was accustomed to spilling the contents of his mind after rutting me. It wasn't intimacy, not really—more like another kind of release. Sexual, and then mental.

Most of the time, the information was trivial. He told me idle gossip about other foremen and frustrations with Hibsej or his sons. But sometimes, it was important. Matters of the court.

Eneko knows the king. My old master has access to information that could turn the tides of a battle.

I’d been worrying about returning to Zlosa because the road was too dangerous to travel alone, but if I offered to help the Enduares, I bet they would give me someone to travel with. A bodyguard.

My mind soars, producing one name. Ra’Sa.

Nothing changes a man’s mind like close proximity to temptation.

The pieces of my plan aren’t fully formed, but my gut tells me yes.

Returning to Zlosa means sacrifice. But it also means a clear path to bringing my girls to Enduvida, with its pretty houses and glowing fungi.

Hard, but it would be worth it.

And the Enduares? If I make myself useful, there is no way they would ever cast me out. Mate or no mate. I’d make sure the two little girls in Zlosa would finally be safe.