Ruins of Chaos (Legacy of the Nine Realms #3) - Amelia Hutchins Page 0,191

I was beyond that point. The days it had taken to get through the passes had felt endless. I’d finally been allowed to ride a horse of my own with Knox and guards close by, but no one spoke to me since leaving the stronghold, not even Greer. I felt alone again, even though people surrounded me.

In the silence, I’d found more chaos than peace. I wanted to scream. I needed to shout. It felt as if everything was wrong. I was the enemy, so they treated me like I was just another witch in their army. Fear had spiked several times as guards cast curious gazes toward me, but Knox didn’t rattle the warning he normally used to scare them off.

Worse than that, something was happening to me. My body had felt as if it were covered in pins and needles. Ember was silent, her mewling noises and grunts the only sign she was still within me. Today I felt like there was a fever burning inside me, itching to be set free. I would slide my eyes to Knox, and I’d watch him move on his large warhorse, hunger burning in my stare.

By the time we’d stopped to set up camp, I was pacing aimlessly while the men observed. I talked to my creature, asking her what the hell was happening, but she only groaned or moaned within me. I paused, stretching my back as the thing on my spine twitched, itching against my flesh.

There was violence within me that needed out in the worst way. I felt as if I was burning from within and filled with rage. My chest rose and fell, my breathing ragged and labored. I was about to explode, and I wasn’t sure how to stop it from happening.

Lifting my nose, the scent of male filled my senses, and I growled, but it wasn’t right. I was hungry but didn’t want food. I wanted something more. I clasped my hands against my ears as my heartbeat echoed through my head, a steady drumbeat that forced me to look around for the source of the sound.

My attention moved around camp, settling on Knox, who grinned. Bastard. I purred low and huskily. My nails slid free, and I peered down at my blackened hands, rolling my eyes as my skin came alive. Knox rattled, and my gaze snapped up and zeroed in on him. I tilted my head to the side, and I smiled coldly. Knox reached down, lifting his shirt over the rows of sinewy muscles that drew my attention.

His scent made my feet move, but I stopped, forcing my body to remain in place. Knox lifted his hand, pushing it through his hair while I studied his slow movements. He lifted his nose to the air, and I mimicked it, unable to stop myself. His thumb trailed over his lips before I licked mine, watching the heat bank in his tranquil stare.

Knox dismissed me, walking toward the largest tent. My feet moved, inching me closer to him while his men followed. I wasn’t stupid. They were there to stop me from going anywhere but where Knox wanted me to be. I entered the tent, finding him sitting in a chair, leaning forward.

He nodded toward a drink, watching me with something dark in his gaze. I moved closer, growling as his lips spread into a smirk.

“Drink. You’re going to need it,” he stated, nodding at the glass again.

“I don’t like you,” I pointed out, my hands fisted at my sides while I studied every curve of his body.

The smirk that jerked the corners of his mouth into a sexy curve pissed me off. Knox smelled like a man, primal, exotic masculinity that made something within me need to bury my nose against the rows of delicious muscle, inhaling him until I was drunk from it.

Knox studied me like I was an animal, which I felt to the very center of my being. My sex was soaked, clenching with hunger. I wanted to rip him apart while riding him. Something was happening, something animalistic that actually scared me. Sweat beaded on the back of my neck, and I felt it slowly rolling down my spine. My thighs clenched, causing Knox’s pretty eyes to lower as his nostrils flared.

I sat in the chair, leaning back, shuddering from the heat burning through me. Knox turned, spreading his legs out in front of him while he studied my face. His thumb ran down the glass, rubbing over the