“What are these?”
Ghigau cupped my face, pulling me away from Gawonii. “They are what makes you, you. You’ve seen Gawonii’s and Ahyoka’s. Each one of the Angenis have their own. Yours show your status and tells us who you are. Ama Angeni, the water spirit. A very powerful spirit to those who believe and even to those who aren’t aware of your existence. You’re a part of what brings balance to our world.”
“But that part died. I don’t understand.”
She smiled. “Oh? But you’re right here. You never truly passed, Ama. Preserved, yes. Gone, no.” She took my hand and led me over to Gawonii, placing it in his. “You have plenty of time for your husband to share all he knows about you.” Ghigau said, flashing Gawonii a warning expression.
I looked over at him, who still looked like he hadn’t quite gotten over the vision we’d just come back from. He squeezed my hand. “Let’s go home.”
A chill blasted over the area. Gawonii yelled something over at his men. Waya immediately tossed him a weapon and Ahyoka leapt from her spot, coming for me before a man materialized before me and she disappeared. I shrieked, earning a glower from the male figure. The air became stale, absence of a breeze with the disappearance of Ahyoka.
“I really detest Ahyoka,” he said, now standing between Gawonii and me.
“You are not welcomed here, Iswali!” Ghigau yelled. “Bring Ahyoka back and leave.”
No longer transfixed on me, he glared at Ghigau. “You still haven’t died yet, old lady? Still around standing in the way of what should be mine.” He stepped towards me. Gawonii came at the man, Iswali, who turned. At the same time, a black hole formed directly before Gawonii. Gawonii, apparently aware of the tricks, deflected it. Light burst from Gawonii, then bent around the blackness and struck Iswali.
Iswali grunted in pain, his long white hair falling forward to cover his face. “You have always been a pain in my side, brother.” Then he laughed, bowing down before me. “Your Highness.”
“Leave, brother.” Gawonii’s warning was lethal, leaving no room for any misunderstanding. Iswali stood up straight, then he took a few more steps towards me.
“You always had to be in control, Gawonii. Yet you could never control this one, could you?”
His hand, like ice, stroked the side of my face. But instead of leaning away, I leaned into the caress.
I knew him before!
The revelation hit me like a stack of bricks, and he smiled at me knowingly.
Get away from him! Gawonii shouted in my head. I stumbled backwards at the force of his command vibrating through my skull. I clutched it, trying to push him out, but I couldn’t get rid of the link.
Iswali made a sour face.
“Eh, that nasty bonding ceremony. A pain in the head, huh?”
Ama, get over to Tsiyi now! I heard in my head. Why wouldn’t Gawonii leave?
Seeing the struggle I was having, Iswali tapped his finger on his chin. “Oh, didn’t they tell you, Your Highness?” I looked up at him, confused. “When you bond with your mate, you are no longer a separate unit. You are one, literally. In other words, that annoying little voice in your head will not be quite so easy to get rid of anymore.”
Gawonii closed in on both of us. Iswali, finding humor in it, opened his arms. “Come on, brother, lighten up. I just came to kiss the bride.” He went to grab me around my waist, but Gawonii had already intercepted Iswali, swinging me behind him.
“Fine, be like that. It’s only a matter of time. You may have dressed her up in a new body, but her spirit will always choose power over me and you, Gawonii.”
Then, as quickly as he’d come, he was gone.
“Ahyoka,” I heard Gawonii call out. “Iswali! Bring back Ahyoka!” he yelled into the open air. There was no answer. “Dammit!”
Ghigau approached him. “I will look for her. You take Ama home.”
Waya and the others ran over. “We’ll follow you until you’re safe in the cabin.” Waya said. Gawonii placed his hand on his shoulder.
“Thank you, my wolf friend, but we’ll be fine. Search for Ahyoka. If there’s no sign of her near morning, please rest. We will start again during the midday sun.”
The three nodded and left, disappearing down a dirt path.
We made it back to the cabin quickly. I stayed quiet, holding my thoughts until we made it home. He blessed the home once the door was closed.
“We’ll find Ahyoka,” Gawonii promised. I was happy to hear that, missing the troublemaker.
“Is Iswali one of the Angenis that I’ve been hearing about?” I followed him in the bedroom when he didn’t answer me right away. “He’s the aether Angeni that Kasey was telling me about, isn’t he? Why does he feel so familiar?”
“Yes, Iswali is an Angeni, but he’s one you should not consort with. You will be guarded at all times by Tsiyi and Waya.”
I planted myself in front of him to keep him from walking away. “No. I don’t need to be watched. I want you to not hold me hostage and just simply answer my questions.”
He backed me up into the wall, his hard body against mine messing with my senses.
“I will not argue with you. You will be guarded when I am not around. Iswali is a threat, and his target is you.”
I started to open my mouth, but his head lowered to brush his lips above my collarbone. The only sound that passed my lips was a sigh, not only expressing my surprise but pleasure from the touch. Full, soft lips made a path along the side of my neck, reaching the tender flesh of my throat where he rested there, his teeth lightly grazing my skin.
No more talk, I heard in my mind as his teeth nipped at my jawline.
“Gawonii,” I coughed out loud, trying to break the spell he had on me. He silenced me with the touch of his lips on mine.
“Galutsv. No more putting off what should have been done weeks ago.”
His hand slipped in between the sheer layers of the dress that Ahyoka had worked so hard to tease him with earlier. Touching my thigh at the juncture where both thighs met, Gawonii squeezed, massaging the tender flesh upwards until his fingers slipped between my wet folds protecting my sensitive love button he sought out. I nearly screamed when my body was injected with a burst of sexual endorphins. My legs opened wider at the induced invasion, my fingernails digging into his biceps from the intense ecstasy.
“Let me in,” he ordered. When I opened my eyes, he watched me as he sent another wave of raw energy, sending electric shocks up and down my spine.
“Ah, Gawonii!” I cried. I tried to remember why I denied him, why I felt the need to avoid him, but every time my brain touched on the reasons, they were stripped away until all I could recall was the attraction, I felt for him on the first day.
A smile appeared on his lips, seeing my thoughts. “Say my name again, Angeni.” He cupped my bottom and lifted me up to lay me down onto the bed. His beautiful body covered mine, his larger frame over my smaller one.
“Gawonii,” I murmured whimpering when a large finger slipped inside of me, sliding in and out of my core.
“Again, I ask you who am I to you?”
I heard that somewhere in a dream, I thought, but then it was gone like the first few thoughts that were swept away. The only thing left was the answer to the question.
“My husband.”
He lifted the layers of the thin dress over my head then cupped my small breasts, his thumbs flicking the hardened peaks, sending more lustful surges through my sensitive nerve endings. I arched my back, jutting my breasts upward. His lips lowered over my right nipple until his tongue replaced the torture his fingers were doing.
In minutes, he had me twisting and moaning, no longer caring about the issues.
“Let me in, Ama,” he requested again. “Forgive me. I need you to forgive me for everything.” My eyes opened to stare into the eyes of a tortured man. A picture took shape in my mind of a woman standing in the center of a circle, but as quickly as it came, it was gone.
Standing u
p, Gawonii unbuttoned his pants and slid them past his hips, letting loose his arousal that stood straight up, ready for me. I could feel my body preparing for him, my excitement slipping down my thighs. Placing his frame between my legs, I willingly spread my legs wider for him as an animalistic lust burned in me which he fed off of like a starving soul. I felt him in my head whispering, asking me to open up.
Thinking he meant inside my head only, I cried out his name when he buried himself inside of me, my moist walls willingly opening and pulsating around him.
He was inside of me, completely and totally, in mind and body. It was too overwhelming, yet it was so good. Nothing could describe what I was experiencing. Simultaneously, as he plunged inside me, he would send mental pictures of what he was doing to me along with energy surges of pure pleasure. There was no end to the ecstasy I was being introduced to that left me shamelessly crying out for him to keep going.
My necklace shone brightly as Gawonii buried himself deeper into my mind and into my body, driving his shaft into me over and over again. I wanted more, wrapping my legs around his waist, earning a groan from him. He cried out words I couldn’t understand, and my necklace burst open with a warm light, enclosing both of us. A chain reaction of fireworks set off in my body, spasming and milking him until he released his seed inside me. Mind and body, I was spent.
Gawonii kissed me, injecting me with another dose of what it meant to be bonded to him. The thought of what that meant was not only exciting but terrifying for I could still feel him inside me mentally, and I had a feeling that he wasn’t in a hurry to leave.
Chapter 3
The Day After…
Gawonii was gone when I woke up the next morning. Looking at the ceiling, my mind kept replaying the night I had with him, trying to find some level of guilt for falling under his spell, but I couldn’t find any.
Good morning, echoed in my head.
I jumped. Falling back on the pillow, I groaned. I didn’t know if I would be able to get used to sharing my thoughts. Some things were meant to be private.
“Good morning,” I muttered back. “Are you going to make invading my private thoughts a habit?”
You will adjust. We are bonded now, more than merely husband and wife. We are one.
I shivered, thinking about last night again.
His subtle laughter sounded in my head. I can come home now if you are ready for me again, Angeni.
I slammed a pillow over my face. No. There was no way I would get used to this. I could hear him laughing in my head, finding mirth in my embarrassment.
We’ll have plenty of time to make up for weeks of celibacy, he teased. Tsiyi and Onacona are standing guard outside. I should not have to tell you about how I feel about you staying safe within their company.
I growled, bound to the house for another day.
You are not a prisoner, Ama, but I expect your obedience. Now that we are bonded, the punishment for disobedience is much more severe. I trust that you will stay near them at all times. I will hopefully be home before dusk with Ahyoka.
I was getting ready to say something when I felt a void, and I realized he was gone just like that, expecting me to follow his orders. Getting out of bed, I passed a mirror that reflected my image back at me. It took a minute for my mind to register the person looking back at me. I’d changed. I barely knew who the person was in the mirror. My hair was a little longer and my body a bit thinner. Maybe all I’d gone through this month wasn’t a complete disaster. I took a few steps closer, eyeing the markings and symbols on my body.
“What is so freakin’ special about these?”
I turned around, looking over my shoulder at the symbols that colored by back, down over my bottom, and my legs. I always wondered what I would look like with a tattoo. Now I was covered with them.
I recalled hearing Ahyoka claiming that when I bonded with Gawonii that I’d be stronger.
How much stronger did she mean? And how powerful?
Could I really take on a pack of rorrets without the assistance of Gawonii and his guardians? Not that I really needed to find out.
Dressing in my own personal clothing, to avoid Gawonii’s hulk squad, I pushed open the bedroom window and lifted myself through it. If I got back before he did, I should be all—
“Ah!” I screamed when I realized too late that someone had placed a trench full of ice-cold water underneath the window ledge. I came up sputtering to see Tsiyi and Onacona come running around the side of the cabin, ready for a fight. When Tsiyi saw my predicament, he crossed his large arms over his chest and broke out into laughter. Onacona’s surprised expression turned to annoyance. He went back around to the front of the cabin.
“Your Highness, if you wanted proof that you are in fact our beloved water spirit, all you had to do was ask.”
I would have given him the finger if I wasn’t so busy trying to pull myself out. I’d just put my leg over the side of the trench before I felt myself being lifted into the air and then sat on my feet.
Tsiyi’s laughter irked me even more when he stepped away from me.
I must look like a drowned rat.
He held his hand out to me but standing proud, I ignored it, stomping away from him to go back inside to change.
“I can go find Gawonii. The heat from his flames should dry you off,” Tsiyi called after me. When I didn’t respond, more laughter broke out behind me.
I walked past Onacona, who wouldn’t give me a worthwhile glance as he sat on the porch, and then I noticed Kasey sitting on the rail.
“You know if he catches you trying to leave off the grounds without an escort, he’ll ban you to the cabin again.”
“He’ll do this, he’ll do that. He can kiss my ass.”
“It sounded like he did plenty of that last night while completing the bonding ritual. I will let him know that his wife awaits his return, Your Highness.” Tsiyi joked, coming up behind me.
This time, Onacona cracked a smile but quickly wiped it off, glancing over at Kasey. Wasn’t there anything kept private around these parts?
Kasey jumped down from the railing to tower over me.
“Why are you here Kasey?” I asked, still angry at her.
“Doing my job while your husband is away.”
I scrunched up my face. “Something you do so well,” I added, going into the cabin. She followed me inside.
“Change into the clothing Gawonii provided for you. I’m to start your training today. We’re already getting a late start since you slept in this morning.”
“Well, that wasn’t my fault.” I muttered, briefly forgetting the subject’s sensitivity. Kasey was over by the fireplace, her hands planted firmly on the mantle. She took a couple of deep breaths, her shoulders straight as her knuckles turned white from gripping the edge so tightly.
“Hurry up and change, Ama. We have a lot to do today, and I don’t plan on disobeying anymore orders for you.”
I didn’t move right away. This was the first time Kasey didn’t call me by the name from back up north. “Ama?” I paused to stare at her. “Look, maybe today is not such a good day. We can—”
“Get dressed. I’ll be outside waiting,” she snapped, stalking out of the cabin.
Great! I’m about to be trained by a pissed off mistress. This ought to be fun.
I quickly changed into an outfit a little more suitable for this so-called training and met the three guardians outside.
Tsiyi stood a few feet away from the cabin, leaning up against a tree; the same tree that Kasey had perched herself on a limb waiting for me. Onacona sat on the sidelines, keeping watch and eating an apple.
Seeing me, Tsiyi pushed off the tree to stand beside Onacona. “You’ve been doing well based off instinct alone. Let’s see if you have any skill.”.
I glanced around at all three guardians, then burst out laughing. “You all are so frickin’ serious. Oh, my God! This is just training me to protect myself, not war.”
“Is that how you se
e this, Your Highness? Playtime?” Tsiyi asked, nodding towards Onacona.
Is this a trick question? I shifted from one foot to the next, nervous. “Well … no,” I said. “Wait, why did you nod to him?”
Onacona took the apple he was enjoying and threw it at me, along with the really sharp and pointy spear he had next to him.
I didn’t have time to scream before I threw my hands up in a feeble attempt to protect myself. When nothing happened, I opened my eyes to see Tsiyi standing right next to me, holding the spear that had pierced the apple in his hand.
“This is not playtime, Your Highness. We take this seriously.” He walked away from me, heading back over to the others. “And yes, this is war.”
“How did you get over here so fast?” I asked him.
Tsiyi sat the speared apple against the tree. “Each of us has our own special skills. Mine is thinking about where I want to be within range, and I am there. I can also cloak myself. Onacona’s, as you saw, is accuracy and precision. He can also see many miles away in both the day and night.”
Tsiyi then pointed to Kasey, who jumped out of the tree, not making a sound.
“Chitsa-Yona, your guardian here, is a tracker who can communicate with any naturally-made species and has this uncanny talent of being able to engage in full combat from above without being seen.”
“Oh, really,” I said pretty impressed with all three of them. “So, can I do any of those things?”
Tsiyi circled me, his feet crunching leaves on the ground while he eyed me carefully. “You tell us, Your Highness.”
My eyes followed him as he assessed me before he moved to stand between Kasey and Onacona. “You have a twenty second head start, Your Highness—”
“Give her thirty.” Kasey interrupted. “She’ll need it.”
“What? Head start for what?” I asked, confused.
The Ageni Series: Queen Page 3