by Skye, Sariah
Panting heavily, I agreed. “Yep…”
He peered up at me after a moment of relishing in the feeling of being together, and grinned. “Do you feel better now?”
“Much.”
“Not quite so cold?”
“Not cold at all.”
“That is… good.” He rolled over onto his back and pulled me into his arms until I rested on his chest. I didn’t even feel the hard stone under me, I only felt his warmth and love. “Sleep now, and hopefully when you wake it’ll be safe to leave.”
“Right.” Part of me didn’t want to, no matter how much I missed the other guys. Here I was safe, here there was no war. I was just a girl, Mathias was just a guy, and all we had to be was together.
Chapter Thirty-Four
“Luv… ye might want to put on some clothes.”
I sat upright, confused and startled. Or at least I tried to, I seemed to be pinned to the ground once again by a massive incubus whose heavy arm draped over my stomach. “Huh?” I asked groggily, raising a hand to my eyes to block out the bright light so I could concentrate on a husky Scottish accent and a pair of emerald green eyes. Scottish accent? Green eyes?
“Trystan!” My heart was overjoyed and I scrambled from underneath Mathias’ arm, not caring that the blanket fell from my shoulder and exposed half of my chest, and I completely didn’t care that my breast was “flapping” in the wind, catching a cold, judging by the way the nipple beaded and peaked. I launched myself at him more or less, feeling incredibly relieved to see him. “Where are the others? Were they all separated? Are they okay? Are—” I began, firing off panicked questions as I launched myself at him.
“Oof, och, lassie,” Trystan exclaimed when I clobbered him. He’d been kneeling, shining a flashlight in my face and I knocked him over on his ass, but he didn’t hesitate to take me in his arms. “The others are fine,” he said, and I heaved a huge relieved breath. “They are all together, took refuge in one of the nearby villages. Mordred is in a glamour supplied by Rhys, and Rhys is driving Bash and Xander crazy. After the storm let’s up, we’re supposed to meet nearby. Now, luv, as much as I love to see ye like this, I really have to insist you put some clothes on,” he whispered into my ear, laughing gently as I threw my arms around his neck and pelted his neck and jaw with little kisses. The blanket I’d managed to drag halfway off the makeshift bed, exposing the top half of a naked Mathias. I grinned sheepishly, glancing between the two of them.
“Uh, oops?” I said, fluttering my lashes at him innocently. Trystan just shook his head and chuckled.
“I told ye lassie, what ye do when you’re not with me is your business. Don’t feel guilty. Except for Xander—and he’s come around—we accepted this a long time ago,” Trystan said, helping me slide off his lap and back onto the bed. He leaned in to me next and spoke quietly, “However I do protest at seeing Mathias’ trouser snake. So if ye wouldn’t mind making the fucker put some clothes on too, I’d be all the more grateful.”
I snickered and even though I didn’t think Mathias was awake, he lifted his right hand into the air and flicked Trystan off. “Like I’d want you to see my—what the hell did you call it? Trouser snake? By the gods, you’re immature, you Scottish bastard.” Mathias let out a disgraceful snort, sitting up slowly. The blanket was so low on his waist I almost thought we were going to get a show and if I didn’t know any better Mathias was taunting him with it, but last minute much to my dismay, he pulled the blanket over his stomach. “You’re just jealous, bird brain.”
Trystan grinned devilishly, scrubbing a hand over his face. “Just because you have a big cock, Mathias, doesn’t mean you know how to use it.”
Mathias glanced at him with a look of horror. I snorted into my fist, smirking at Trystan who eyed him tauntingly. As much as I wanted to protest the guys’ little game of “who has the bigger dick," I completely enjoyed where this was going, naked or not. I reached over and stroked Mathias’ bare shoulder gently, and flashed him a wink.
“Trust me, you both do just fine in that department, okay?” I offered, hoping for a truce. When both men were relatively satisfied with that, I pointed at both of them in turn. “But when all this is over, I’m going to settle this shit once and for all. I’m literally going to take out your dicks, whip out the ruler and start measuring them. Don’t think I won’t do it, either!” I said, waggling a finger at them both.
A hint of a smirk twitched Mathias’ lips. “Don’t you mean a yardstick, Avie?”
“Och,” Trystan slapped himself in the forehead and groaned. “Shite, I walked into that one. My brain must be frozen.” I reached over and slapped him gently.
“Uhm, is everyone decent, yet?” A new voice echoed from further away. “I really do not wish to see my future-son-in-law’s private parts on display. Or anything else for that matter.”
I gasped, looking hopefully at Trystan. “My god—is that?”
“Aye, Ava. I found yer Dad about two hours ago.”
“Oh my—fuck!” I grabbed Trystan’s flashlight—the one Mathias had had long burned out—and flashed it around us on the hard ground, looking for my clothes.
“Um…” Mathias produced a pair of black panties from his lap, and gingerly handed them to me. “How’d those get there?”
I shone the flashlight at him to see his blushing cheeks and playful smirk. “Don’t worry, I know those aren’t your size. You were just holding them for me. Trystan is the panty-stealer.” The Scot didn’t even bother to look miffed or tried to deny it, but he did grin most impishly at the implication. He laughed loudly and helped us gather our clothes that had been tossed about.
“One second, Dad!” I quickly pulled on my underwear, skipping the bra for now because Mathias tore mine, and my leggings and shirts while Mathias dressed himself. Trystan focused on me, a look of mischief in his eyes but he stood back, allowing me to get dressed. However he did flash me a predatory look that clearly said, “Later…” I glanced over my shoulder to make sure Mathias was decent, and satisfied he was, I called out for my dad.
My stomach swooped when my father emerged from an opening in the cave nearby, must have been one of the stone corridors. He carried a flashlight himself, but one arm appeared to be crossed over his chest, and he limped weakly. “Dad…” I said, feeling tears of happiness sting at my eyes. I scrambled up onto my feet, and not caring that the ground was hard, damp, and hard to walk on, I dashed over to him as quickly as I could.
“Ava, baby…” My Dad’s lower lip trembled as we came together, and I wrapped my arms around his waist, careful not to jostle his arm. His good arm embraced me, pulling me into his chest; I didn’t even care that he smelled a bit musty or that he was ice cold. “I’m so happy to see you.”
I looked up at him through blurry, tear-filled eyes. “I was so afraid I’d never see you again!”
“You might not have had it not been for—well, I don’t know who he was,” Lachlan mused. “And if it wasn’t for Trystan getting to me with that potion, I wouldn’t be here.” He motioned towards the eagle-shifter and Trystan inclined his head in respect.
“I thought that was only supposed to last about an hour? Didn’t you say you’ve been walking for two?” I inquired.
“Yes, but the cold seems to of slowed the infection. However now that I’m in here and warming up…” Lachlan said, and I didn’t need to be told twice.
“Guys, help me get him in here and get him warmed up,” I requested, and the guys, after Mathias greeted Lachlan with a respectful handshake, they supported him by the arms and helped him to walk to the blankets in the center of the cave. I hesitated before draping one over him, knowing what had just occurred on them, but Mathias beat me to the punch and offered another couple of fresh blankets from my pack.
“Thank you,” my father said, taking a long drink from the canteen Mathias also produced for him. He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand and shrugged off his fur pelt. “Thank you for everything, really.”
&nbs
p; “We haven’t done anything yet,” I insisted.
“Not true, you gave me hope, Ava,” he said solemnly, with a smile that attempted to be warm but was thwarted by the obvious pain of the shadow infection. I frowned when my father winced and shuddered violently. “Now that I’m warming up, it’s moving at its normal pace again,” Lachlan said, his tone dire.
I looked between Trystan and Mathias with concern and bit my lip anxiously. “I’m not sure how to do this exactly. Rhys had this shadow shit on him before, but it was only for a moment or two. This is… much worse.”
“You healed our wounds after Morgaine’s ritual,” Mathias reminded, and I considered this.
“Yeah but… that was sorta, um…” I faltered, finding the words.
“A lust thing?” My father offered, and I cringed. Didn’t matter how long I knew him or didn’t, but you didn’t want your father thinking of you that way. Period. However, he was right.
“Yeah… and obviously I can’t use that with you,” I pointed out.
“You healed the witches, that wasn’t lust, right? Or are you needing to tell us something, luv?” Trystan asked with a smug grin.
“I need to tell you you’re a perv,” I replied innocently as he laughed. Sighing, I continued, “The witches was… desperation almost.”
He grinned widely. “True, but that was still a love in and of itself, just a different kind of love. Remember, Avalon is about all love. Even just love for humanity or life itself.”
I sighed. “I suppose, yeah.”
“You can do it Ava, I know you can,” Lachlan said earnestly, taking his good hand and clutching one of mine. He gently squeezed in solidarity, and I felt Excalibur, still wrapped in bracelet form around my wrist, warm and tingle gently. “You’ve come so far in such a short time, I’m so damned proud of you.”
I sniffled, his words leaving me emotional. The connection between our hands heated and I noticed a faint golden light emanating from them. I gasped gently; it was already working. I could do this. Closing my eyes for concentration, I kept one hand in his, took my other one and set it gingerly on his infected shoulder. He flinched involuntarily at first, the touch being painful, but he took in a breath and stilled. I searched through my mind for the steady drum beat that I sometimes associated with Avalon. It came easily for Rhys’ injuries, but this was a bit harder, and I needed more. I smiled, almost recalling Gabriella’s grinning face; the drummer who always kept beats in time when the witches danced around the fire.
I felt the beats intensify and with that, my hands heated with the golden healing magic. When my eyes opened I noticed it lit up the room around us.
“It’s working, lass…” Trystan whispered encouragingly into my ear, and I nodded. I pictured the dream beat louder, and the light brighter; the healing warmth was so intense I nearly began to sweat even in the midst of a blizzard outside and cold cave conditions inside while I poured all I had into him. Finally, Lachlan let out a relieved sigh and I opened my eyes while he yanked down the neck of his button-up shirt.
I covered my mouth with my hands, overwhelmed. The spot that once appeared gnarled and sickly green was now healthy, with shiny, cream-colored skin and my father smiled in relief.
“Thank you, Ava. I know you could do it,” Lachlan said, clobbering me with a big hug now that he could. “By the gods, Ava, I was so afraid I never would get to tell you how much I loved you.”
My gaze snapped up. “You do?” I asked in a small voice.
“Of course. I promised myself if I ever saw you again that’d be the first thing I told you when I could. You need to know that. I’ve messed up royally, but everything I ever did for you, I thought was because it was in your best interest. As much as I think Morgaine is a twisted bitch, she seemed to really, really care about you, and was more stable, more than I ever was.” My father’s gaze slipped downward, ashamed, as he sighed. “I should have known, she’s an expert at manipulation. And clearly, getting manipulated is something I know how to do well.”
I sighed this time. “Lach—Dad. I don’t understand really because I’ve never like, done the kid thing,” I said, my heart fluttering anxiously, as my eyes involuntarily tracked to Trystan and Mathias nearby, talking quietly to each other as if trying to give us our space. “But, I mean I guess like with the magic-Avalon thing. I freaked when I saw the witches being hurt by that skankbitch Nimue. Seriously what did you ever see in her besides a pair of big tits, huh?” I snarked, rolling my eyes as my father blushed gently, then laughed easily, snorting at the end. “Men,” I kidded reproachfully, shaking my head and clicking my tongue as Lachlan continued to chuckle. “Anyway… when I saw all that happening I flipped, and did the wrong thing even though I thought it was the best thing at the time. I…” I felt my mouth slip into a frown, eyeing the guys again. I watched Trystan’s gaze snap away quickly, like he’d been watching but didn’t want to be caught. “I really hurt them, even though I didn’t mean to. I guess… I mean we all fuck up. Even parents. Some are beyond forgiving,” I said, snarling gently at the idea of my mother, “but others are not.” I offered him a hopeful smile.
I watched my father’s handsome face melt into an expression of… pride? I wasn’t sure, but he opened his arms and let me crash into him, where he just held me there tightly, not wanting to let go, like he was trying to make up for all the missing hugs of the past. “You know you really are quite amazing, Avalon…”
I shrugged nonchalantly, brushing away an emotional tear that had begun to fall. “Well I have legendary parents, it was only inevitable,” I said, with a snort. Lachlan pulled back slightly, grinned, and laughed. “Too bad one of them was crazy as fuck.”
“Yeah, and the other was a horrid bitch,” he offered, his grin widening into a smug smirk. I pulled a face at him and shook my finger.
“You really shouldn’t call yourself a horrid bitch. That’s like… well I don’t know what but you shouldn’t do it,” I pretended to scold.
“Aye, save that for Morgaine, that bloody numpty fud…” Trystan made a retching gesture and Mathias gave him a strange look.
“‘Numpty fud’?”
“Och, basically a daft cunt, all right?” Trystan joined us, slapping Lachlan lightly on the shoulder, his jovial expression falling.
“What is it?” Lachlan asked, as Trystan frowned grimly.
“Afraid that I have bad news,” he began, with a sigh. “Now that I know you’re all right, I can tell you.”
“What?” Mathias demanded from nearby, brown eyes wide in a panic.
“Flying around before the storm set in so hard, I noticed a gallows set up,” he began, and my stomach immediately fell to my feet. He winced at me, reaching out to squeeze my hand for support; he knew the dreams I’d had, and they contained gallows and executions so it was disconcerting. “Now, I dunno if that’s just normal for Arthur, but they seemed to be busy, like they were getting something ready. So I flew in closer and overheard… things.”
“Things?” I asked hesitantly.
Trystan frowned deeply, pulling his forehead into deep lines. “Aye. It’s… och… maybe I’m wrong, but…”
“By the gods man, spit it out!” Mathias demanded, looking between me and my father’s terrified expressions.
“It appears they are executing… traitors.”
“Oh shit…” My father rubbed his hands over his face and grumbled. “Did you hear—”
“—aye. Sir Percival’s name was mentioned. I heard a struggle nearby, and…” Trystan sighed gloomily. “I can’t be sure, because the storm seemed to have put a stitch in their plans but now that it’s letting up…”
“Fuck!” I exclaimed in dismay. “Percival is an instrumental ally, isn’t he?”
“He is,” my father said, with a low sigh. “If they have found out about that…”
Mathias groaned. “Any idea how much he knows about the rebels?”
Trystan shook his head. “No,” he replied, as Mathias stalked away to the pile
of gear and packs. The gladiator began rummaging through them, taking things out and refolding and setting down a number of packages on the ground nearby. “We should really eat up. Might be a while before we can again.”
“Right,” Lachlan agreed, as the both of us watched Mathias frantically clean up his pack.
“Aye,” Trystan said, with a shrug.
“That’s a huge pack. This looks like you’re ready for armageddon,” my father observed.
“This? This is nothing,” Mathias replied, with a nonchalant scoff.
“Right, superhuman strength. That’s probably like lifting up a change purse for you, or something, huh?” Lachlan mused.
“Pretty much. We just like to be prepared,” Mathias insisted, thrusting one of his canteens at him. “Drink up. There’s more where that came from, so don’t be stingy.”
Trystan thrust a dehydrated meal at me; the package read “chicken soup” on the front. I gingerly tore it open, and took a small nibble. It was incredibly salty and pretty gross; I really missed Mathias’ home cooking right about now.
“Good thing we were because of this storm, aye?” Trystan said, grinning a bit too widely at me.
“Good thing.”
“Well, storm should be letting up soon, so let’s rest up and eat up and get ready,” Mathias said. “How far would you say the gallows are from here?”
“I dinnae ken, exactly. I was flying, but on foot, maybe about an hour’s walk,” Trystan replied.
“Camelot surprisingly isn’t all that big for everything here.” My father grumbled, as he grimaced biting into his meal—whatever the hell it was, I don’t think either of us could tell. “Arthur, for as much as I cared about him years past, was always a bragger.”
“Mordred mentioned something about that,” I agreed, with an eye roll.
“Yes. Well he always made everything out to be bigger and more formidable than it was, including his kingdom,” Lachlan said, with a shrug. “Camelot is impressive, and it was more so when it was still in its own on Earth.”