She’s gone under, his brother Gaven’s words cut through Nazrin’s mind the next morning.
The farthest place away from you. Essa’s words had haunted him the entire night and now, they’d proven true.
It was his fault, of course. Well, his and the nymph’s.
Immediately after their quarrel, regret had filled him and he’d searched for Essa, but she’d disappeared. Then he’d scoured the village for MaKenna and forced the nymph to confess.
Everything.
Dear gods. No wonder Essa despised him. If he’d fathomed MaKenna would go to such lengths, he never would have let her near his mate. Ugh. His true mate.
After that unsettling confrontation, he’d connected with Gaven’s mind. His brother had returned yesterday afternoon and, ever loyal, set out at once to search for Essa at Halcyon.
He’d been about to circle the human village for the hundredth time when Gaven sent him the news.
Essa is with Kai.
Nazrin flew straight to Halcyon and landed on a barn, shifting into his human form. He never should have let her go, but her words…
Her words emptied his soul.
I do not want you.
Every pain he’d taken to gain her trust, the nymph had shattered. He’d bedded MaKenna ages ago, long before the concept of a mate had been the seedling of a dream inside his heart.
Now, Essa had fled to the one place he couldn’t follow. His raptor whispered doubts within. She’ll never surface again. I’ve lost her.
He was right, wasn’t he? Nay. He tossed his head.
Nazrin perched atop the barn until the sun rose high in the sky. If even a small chance existed for him to regain Essa’s trust, he had to salvage this. Taking flight, he rounded the saltwater lake, his nostrils flared as he pursued her scent.
He found another.
Kai’s.
Growling deep in his throat, he swooped to land in front of Kai. He crouched on all fours and dug his talons into the earth to keep them out of the myrman. “Where is she?”
“Where is who?” he hedged.
Clenching his jaw, he blinked away his raptor’s blood lust. “Essa.”
“She’s not with me.” A hint of pain flashed across Kai’s eyes before he hid it, folding his arms.
If she wasn’t with Kai, where was she? His gaze shot to the lake, but no slender feminine figure did he detect. The myrman must be hiding her, his raptor hissed.
“I’ll ask you one last time. Where is she?” His wings blackened; his feathers sharpened.
“She doesn’t wish to speak with you. Not ‘ever again’ were her exact words,” Kai sneered. Bastard. “Essa and I have been pledged to each other. What claim do you make that could possibly compete with our betrothal?”
Nazrin snarled, the truth cutting into the flesh of his heart. He stood and straightened his shoulders. “The choice is hers.”
Kai unfolded his arms. “A blood betrothal isn’t a choice. I—” He cut himself off, whipping his head. “I care for her. What could one of your race ever offer her?”
Nazrin winced at the jab, the referral to his species’ near-inability to love. Even now, the emotion dug roots into his heart, but love hadn’t fully flourished. What if it never did? Kai could love her. His raptor hissed and flinched in pain.
“Besides, I’m not the only one who has kept secrets.”
“Of what do you speak, myrman? Choose your words carefully, for I have slain many of your kind and one more wouldn’t distress me.” To prove his point, Nazrin toyed with his dagger, flipping it through his fingers.
The sharp, pungent scent of fear seeped out of Kai’s pores, despite his collected manner. “She has questions, Nazrin. Questions I don’t know the answer to, but I’m sure you do.” He cocked his head. “Pray tell, why did you bring Essa to Halcyon?”
“Enough.” He stopped playing and clutched the dagger at his side. “Does she know about the prophecy?” His heart stuttered. If not from his lips, the omission would be a betrayal he was certain she’d never forgive.
“No, I’m not a fool,” Kai scoffed. “I won’t be the one to reveal Hades’s plans for her, and when she does become aware, it won’t be me that she hates.”
“She’s not ready yet.” He tossed his head. “When she is, she’ll be informed and she’ll join us.”
Kai snorted and headed for the woods, but Nazrin wasn’t finished with him yet.
“Did you touch her?” His grip tightened around the dagger’s hilt.
“Of course I did.” Kai twirled his hand in the air, nonchalantly. “She’s my bride.”
Snarling, he sent the knife flying through the air. It struck the tree behind Kai, an inch from his head. The myrman froze while the blade’s vibrations warbled in the air. Nazrin stalked forward with a menacing growl and wrenched the hilt free from the trunk.
“Don’t seek her out.” Kai cleared his throat and strengthened his tone. “You’ve been warned.”
He ignored the myrman’s taunts and prowled into the forest. No words could further injure his already mangled heart.
***
The afternoon sun hid behind the clouds, but at least it wasn’t raining. Essa climbed onto the rocks. A twinge of panic fluttered through her chest. In her haste to follow Kai, she’d forgotten to properly stow her clothes. They were squeezed between two boulders. She grimaced as she plucked her sodden clothing. Even if she dried them, they were still soiled. She scrunched her nose. They stank of dirt and grime from her exertions in the field, and bore a musty taint from the rain.
Her gaze shifted to the water. She might swim to the women’s morphos area, borrow someone else’s clothes, and then switch into her own. Hopefully, before the owner found theirs missing.
The piercing cry of a raptor broke through her schemes. Nazrin. Was he still here? She tipped her face toward the trees. Not a hawk, but a falcon peered back. How many forms did he assume?
“Hmm?” Huffing, she lifted a brow at the creature. “Are you going to aid me, or sit there gawking all day?” She swept her hand at her wet clothes.
The falcon squawked, flapped its wings, and shuffled restlessly. What was wrong with him? Was he still angry over their quarrel, or just being stubborn and thick this morning? She didn’t particularly wish to speak with him either, but well, there he was.
“My clothes are wet. I need dry ones.” She mouthed the words slowly and carefully, holding up her garments—in case his bird form had trouble with the language. The falcon continued to stare at her. Essa sighed. After her morning with Kai, she wasn’t in the mood for dealing with another presumptuous male. She angled her neck and glared at him. “Are you going to help me or not? Because if not, I suggest you fly back to wherever it is you came from. Shoo, fly away.” She waved for him to take off.
“Am I to understand you don’t want these?” Nazrin stepped out of the woods.
Gaping, she swung her scrutiny from Nazrin to the falcon and back again.
“Ah. Allow me to introduce Aedre’s husband, Gaven. My second-in-command.”
She forced the corners of her mouth up in a weak greeting, while her cheeks burned with embarrassment. Her stomach clenched tight. She’d insulted Aedre’s husband.
The falcon swooped, landed beside Nazrin, and shuddered during its morphos. She frowned in envy. Wind Borne always transformed fully clothed.
The stunning male before her was slightly shorter than Nazrin, with shoulder-length golden hair. Bright blue pools the shade of a summer’s sky twinkled at her. Similar fluffy white wings as Nazrin possessed were folded behind his back. He wore dark breeches, long boots, and an ivory tunic. A thin black band stretched across his upper left bicep proclaiming his bonding to Aedre.
“Oh, he’s also my younger brother.” Nazrin laughed, delivering a blow to Gaven’s shoulder. As the male ducked, he grabbed Gaven’s head in a vise and ruffled his hair.
“Brother,” Gaven grated, shrugging out of his brother’s hold and straightening his locks. “It’s an honor to meet you, Lady Essa. I’ve heard a lot about you.” He sent a mischievous smirk in Nazrin’s direction before stepping forward to shake her hand.
“My apologies. I mistook you for him.” She jerked her chin at Nazrin and clasped Gaven’s hand. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, too. I’m very much indebted to your wife.”
“So she claims as well.” Gaven barked a laugh, releasing her hand with a hearty squeeze. He seemed much less serious and reserved than Nazrin. A typical older and younger brother pair. The affection between them flaunted itself before Essa, squeezing her ribs tightly together inside her chest. Many times, she’d wished for a sibling. Though Lord Nereus had other children—namely the fifty Nereids—none of them had ever bothered to seek her out.
“While I’d love to become better acquainted with you, I’m afraid my wife and daughter have been missing me. Many thanks for returning to the surface. I was getting rather tired of sitting in that damned tree.” He leaned in and whispered to her, “If he gives you any trouble, I shall fight him for you.”
“Like hell you will, little brother. You haven’t bested me in nigh fifty years,” Nazrin scoffed.
“Thirty.” Gaven chuckled and cast her a wink. “Fare thee well.” Waving, he strode toward the woods and out of their view.
“What did he mean by ‘sitting in that tree’?” Had Nazrin sent him to guard her?
“Nothing.” He handed her the set of clothing, careful not to graze her fingers.
She concentrated on the garments, picking at a stray thread. After a minute, she looked up to find his piercing gaze studying her, his lips pressed together in a tight seal.
He glanced over her once and nodded. “I shall leave you, then.”
Damn him, but she craved an explanation. Why had he toyed with her heart when he already had a mate? Essa tugged her dress over her head. Blue light pulsed through her while she performed the morphos into human form. She donned the rest of her garments and slipped off the rock, taking a few steps toward him. Her breath trembled and her hands quivered as she reached for him. “Wait.” He halted, his back still to her. She dropped her outstretched hand. How angry was he about last night? The tension in his shoulders betrayed the easy demeanor he’d displayed with his brother.
She set her jaw and ignored the fluttering in her belly. As she opened her mouth to speak louder, he spun around and pinned her with his glower.
Worry strained his expression and his muscles twitched. He combed his fingers through his chestnut locks. Dark circles shadowed his eyes. Likely, he hadn’t slept well, either. If at all.
Because of concern for her? Her heart sputtered and she was eager to believe he cared. She ought to have stayed at the infirmary. Clearly, both he and his brother had been searching for her.
Guilt gnawed within her. He deserved an apology for her harsh manner, but the words wouldn’t form on her tongue. After a moment, he sighed and lowered his hand. “I returned to check that you’re still breathing. Seeing that you are, I’ll be on my way.” The words were cool, his tone icier.
“You lied to me.” Essa grimaced at her treacherous lips. “And then you abandoned me.”
“Abandoned you?” His thick brows lifted. “If I recall, you made it clear you didn’t wish for the pleasure of my company.”
“You let me.” She trained her focus on the bushes behind him. “You let me walk out of the taverna without ever offering me an explanation.”
He barked a wry laugh. “I’m not in the habit of forcing my attentions where they’re not desired.”
Yet, he’d searched for her. She shook off the longing which spiked in her blood. “Or even where they are desired? MaKenna said—”
He whipped his head. “Aye, I know what that scheming harlot told you.”
“Scheming?” She pursed her lips. “If you’re her mate, I don’t think she’s wrong to—”
“Argh.” He pinched the bridge of his nose. “I have neither ties nor affections for MaKenna. And I bloody well am not her mate.”
“It’s not true?” She gaped. Why had she believed that vile nymph? Curse her. “Then why would she make such a claim?”
“Aye, well, she is rather manipulative, but I didn’t suspect she’d go so far. Still, I’d hoped you’d trust in me.” His shoulders slumped and his voice lowered. “Trust in us.” Pain flashed in his copper eyes.
Her heart thrummed at his plea. “Forgive me.”
“There’s nothing to forgive. Do you wish to know why I don’t care for her, why I have never cared for her?”
She pressed her palm to her heart and bobbed her head. The tension in the air thinned, making it easier for her to breathe.
He stroked his fingers through her locks, caressing along her cheek. “It was for you.” The rumble in his voice vibrated down her being, curling her toes. “Everything, Sirena, has always been for you.”