“Fuck his bargain.”
Marth grinned at me. I debated throwing my boot at him. His grin widened, as if he was reading my mind.
“Don’t give him the satisfaction,” he advised. “Lorian takes his deals seriously.” Marth glanced over my shoulder, and I turned, my gaze meeting Lorian’s.
Something vicious looked out at me. But a dull pride replaced it, and I wished I could turn back time and hurt him much, much more than I had.
It wasn’t that I enjoyed terrifying women. But usually, it wouldn’t occur to me to want to soothe one. Especially after I’d been the one to scare her.
For some unknown reason, I’d felt…guilt when Prisca’s eyes had turned stark with horror.
“I think she should ride with me,” Rythos muttered. We were both watching Prisca as she refilled her water skin, her mouth tight as she pretended I didn’t exist.
“You overstep.”
“You just terrorized her.”
“You wish to fuck her? Fine. But I’m the one teaching her how to survive. Don’t forget that.”
I walked away, feeling like there was an itch beneath my skin, and no matter how much I scratched, I couldn’t make it go away.
“We’re leaving,” I told Galon. He merely nodded. I narrowed my eyes at him. “You have something to say?”
He shrugged one shoulder. “You should be careful with that one. Rage can simmer for years before it explodes into vengeance. As you know. She could have killed you in that moment when she controlled time.”
I should feel threatened by that. But for some reason, all I felt was a strange sense of…pride.
We saddled up. Prisca rode with Rythos, allowing me to focus on my upcoming meeting, and not the curvy ass she insisted on rubbing against me each time she shifted uncomfortably in the saddle.
The fact that I missed that curvy ass just darkened my mood further.
It had been far too long since I’d taken a lover if my body was fixating on the wildcat. As soon as I finished with our task, I would find a willing woman and rid myself of this need.
Time crawled by. All of us were silent—Prisca scowling into the distance—while I focused on the forest around us. This close to the Gromalian border was bandit territory. We had to be careful not to get much closer or we’d run into Sabium’s checkpoints.
Finally, we came to the edge of the forest. The air seemed fresher here, or perhaps that was just my anticipation sharpening my senses.
Scrubland stretched out before us, much of it hidden by a thick mist, the fog lit gold by the rays of the setting sun. The wind that washed toward us carried the smell of soil and wild flowers.
“We’ll stay here tonight.” I slid off the horse. Prisca jumped off Rythos’s horse next to me, and I caught the twinge of pain on her face as her feet hit the ground.
If she didn’t want my hands on her, she could deal with the consequences.
I scowled at her, ignoring the vicious look she sent me in return. And the way Cavis shook his head at us. Given how everyone was reacting, it was as if I’d actually wrapped the rope around her neck and strung her up.
I’d paid the price for helping her with her magic. My balls still ached enough that I was grinding my teeth with my every movement. “You can thank me for my lesson whenever you’re ready,” I said.
Prisca held up her hand in a lewd gesture that made Marth snort a laugh.
That wariness when she looked at me…it would make our lessons that much more difficult. Regardless of what she’d managed under intense pressure, she still couldn’t use her power reliably.
Finding someone with her power had been a boon. If one believed the gods had a stake in our world, it would be easy to credit them with the fact that Galon had saved her life. Her power presented us with a unique opportunity I refused to let pass me by.
Beyond that plan was one simple fact—the thought of Prisca being a victim in this world was quite simply intolerable. Especially considering she carried the potential to never be a victim again.
Rythos got to work building a fire. From the look he sent me, my meat would be black tonight. Prisca sat next to him, murmuring quietly, and I shook my head at Marth when he attempted to take my horse.
“I’ll do it.”
I busied myself feeding the horses, ignoring the way Prisca and Rythos whispered together at the fire.
Finally, Galon and Cavis returned with the rabbits they’d caught. With nothing left to do, I sat on one of the overturned logs Marth had pulled close to the fire, pulling out my blade to sharpen it.