nodding slowly. “And that’s why we need to get our cure, and our virtues, as soon as possible.”
With that, the meeting ends, and we go our separate ways. Varyx and Raziel depart swiftly for the prison while taking bets on who’ll get Kalach out first. Ezarith assesses the information I sent to his tablet and huffs when he realizes he must go to Commander Leoric before setting off to receive further orders. Xalen, along with Ryzer, stays with me while I go over our next mission, to retrieve the human females.
The discussion leads me to think of my own female, and the moment I conclude the meeting, I stand and make my way to Ella, who awaits me. I cannot wait to take her from this suffocating palace and show her my home—the home she is now part of.
Ella
I stand the moment the doors open and tuck my tablet into my pocket. Waiting with bated breath, I scan each of the five warriors as he funnels out of the conference room. None of them look particularly pleased. They each meet my gaze with the same smoldering eyes as Bravik’s, but there’s an intenseness burning in them that causes a chill to run down the length of my spine. From the moment I landed on Erebos, the males have looked at me like I’m the most bizarre creation in existence. But now they look at me differently, as if I’m the answer to their prayers.
Their benediction.
I avert my attention to the tiled floor and wait until they’ve passed, acutely aware of the rapid lurch my heart gives as they do so. The only benediction I ever want to be is Bravik’s. As much as I’d like to help his friends, I can’t.
Bravik is as much my redemption as I am his, and I’m not letting that go.
“Ella?”
I flinch at the concern in Bravik’s voice and lift my gaze. He stands at the threshold, his muscular body swallowing up the whole entryway. In two long strides, he’s at my side and tilting my chin in assessment. I give him a small smile and caress his hand; mine is so small flush against his.
“I know you wanted me to wait for you in the guest chamber, but I couldn’t stand being in there another moment.”
The edge of Bravik’s lips twitches. “Were you pining for me, human?”
“Excuse me?” I make a face at him. “No. I’m just tired from standing around, waiting on you.”
What I don’t say is that I’m nervous. Why? It’s because there’s so much about him and his past that I don’t know. I will learn in time, but it’s too late for me; I’m a forgone conclusion when it comes to Bravik. I care for him too deeply to walk away now, but I’m still not sure how we are going to fit into each other’s lives going forward. I guess I’ll have to take it one step at a time.
Bravik pulls back and then swoops me up into his arms. “Well, we can’t have that, can we?”
Make that no steps at a time since the male is carrying me.
He makes for the door at the end of the corridor while ignoring the guards who stare curiously at us. Now I wish I hadn’t teased him since the embarrassment I’m experiencing is quite severe.
“Bravik, you can put me down now,” I whisper to avoid being overheard.
“You’re my mate,” he says, and there’s a possessive note in his voice that sends a shiver through me. “And I will touch you when I want, whenever I want and how I want.”
The armored guards flanking the door open the entrance for us. One of them winks at me, and I bury my face into Bravik’s chest. Damn this alien and his lack of shame. In spite of my slightly flushed state, my heart thunders with anticipation. Ever since Bravik told me we’d be going to his house, I haven’t been able to stop imagining what it will look like. So much of Erebos is hidden belowground. What sunlight isn’t blocked by towering trees, wound in lights and lanterns that illuminate the pathways, is obstructed by buildings carved out of what appear to be caves. The black structures are daunting at a distance, but I know it’s to ward off enemies. While the enormous underground city appears to be like that of a bland, polished rock on the surface, it’s actually a different story on the inside. It’s like cracking open the rock only