The Frozen Prince (The Beast Charmer #2) - Maxym M. Martineau Page 0,132

voice was surprisingly stern, and he finally caved, inching toward us. “You’re my family. All of you. I would go through all of this again just to make sure you were safe.”

Kost grabbed Calem’s hand and forced him to hold the tunic in place. “Don’t move.” Rooting through the fabric, he found his bronze key and opened the beast realm door, allowing Felicks to come rushing out. Effie followed her master to Leena’s side as he peeled away the shirt, exposing three long gashes down her ribs. Without further prompting, Felicks went to work, licking her wounds. Slowly, Leena’s skin began to reseal, and her eyes fluttered open. Her gaze was stronger. More vibrant.

Oz let out a weak chuckle before signaling to Jax, who’d been lingering on the edge of hall since Kost had started compressions. “He can’t offer much in the way of healing, but he’ll stand by you just the same.”

Leena looked up at the young Laharock and smiled. “He did more than his share of protecting today.”

My heart throbbed at the sight of my brothers and their beasts. Of my family. Still weak from blood loss, Leena continued to lean into me with her full weight. My fingers dug deeper into her hip. I’d nearly lost her. An unexpected groaning sounded, and the beast realm door opened. Winnow appeared beside me, her wild hair dotted with white flowers and yellow eyes full of emotion.

“Winnow? What are you doing here?” I asked, opening my hand to her.

She floated over my palm and looked up at me. I’m here for you, Noc.

I blinked, and then a sense of love, of belonging, bloomed in my chest. My beast had come without me calling to offer me comfort, in spite of everything I’d done. My throat tightened. Perhaps, with a family like this, I’d be able to find forgiveness sooner than I thought.

A weak cough sounded from somewhere behind me, and I jolted in place. My head snapped in the direction of the thrones. Gaige stood with his weight mostly on one foot and bearing wounds of his own, though they appeared shallow. Leena’s face blanched, and she moved to stand but Kost beat her to his feet.

“Are you all right?” His stare roved over Gaige’s frame, cataloging injuries.

Gaige weakly waved him off. “I’ll survive. Yazmin is gone. She must have escaped during the commotion.”

“We’ll find her. I’m just glad you’re okay. If not for you, I’m not sure I would’ve been able to tame the Vrees.” Leena tried again to stand, so I placed Winnow on my shoulder and helped her to her feet. She braced herself against my arm. Calem and Oz stood, their worried stares bouncing between Leena and Gaige.

“Yeah.” He looked around us at the wreckage that our battle had caused. Broken slabs of stone. Smeared streaks of blood. Singed spots where lightning had struck. The throne room had lost its luster. Gaige shook his head. “I can’t believe she did this.”

“We’ll fix it.” Leena’s voice was strong. Confident. “Yazmin is fighting for the wrong reasons. But us? We’ll defend our home, all our homes”—she gave a pointed look at each one of my brothers before ending with me—“with our dying breaths. And that’s how we’ll defeat her.”

We. Us. My throat tightened. I’d done so much wrong. And yet she still wanted me by her side. My fingers tensed against her hip, and she raised a careful brow. Then, placed a soft kiss on my cheek.

“I don’t know what you’re thinking, but if it’s anything bad or self-loathing, then quit it.”

“Leena…”

“I’m serious.” She shook her head once. “We’re in this together. Always.”

I wasn’t sure I was ready to forgive myself for what I’d done, but looking into her eyes, feeling the depth of her love, it was enough to soothe my nerves for the time being. It was all I’d ever need.

“Before we start worrying about Yazmin’s plans, you two need some rest.” Kost moved to Gaige’s side and placed a tentative hand on his shoulder. Shock raced through Gaige’s expression, but he schooled it away and leaned into his touch.

Leena’s smile was brilliant. “That sounds like a plan.”

And as one, our family headed for one of the exits leading to the keep where healers could tend to our wounds and give Leena and Gaige the rest they deserved.

Thirty-Three

Leena

After being attended to by a healer and given a draft of remcura, I’d been whisked away to a room in the keep. The healing potion worked wonders, but