Haydn stares strangely at Logan. “Are you on the level?”
“Now you’re starting to piss me off. Of course, I’m on the level! Do you think I’m some uncaring bastard?” Logan grinds down on his teeth. “You think I’m my father?” I place a cautionary hand on his forearm, rubbing circles on his skin with my thumb.
“Of course not.” Haydn shakes his head, tugging on his earlobe. “I don’t want to appear ungrateful, but can we please switch the subject to something more pressing, like”—he stares at the ceiling—“what the state of play is in Saven? What’s happening in the galaxy? Where that douchebag brother of yours is?”
Haydn clearly doesn’t want to talk about Kesla or the baby, and we have to respect his wishes. “Glad to see your coma hasn’t affected your recently acquired sarcastic nature,” I deadpan.
Haydn pauses momentarily before answering. “Have a rep to live up to now.” He shrugs nonchalantly, a faint smile teasing his lips, as Logan’s tense muscles relax under my fingertips.
Argument evaded. Thank the stars.
Logan plants his regal hat on and proceeds to update Haydn on everything he’s missed in the last month. Most of it is old news to me, so I tune them out and rest my head back on the couch, closing my eyes briefly.
A gentle vibration at my wrist alerts me to an incoming comm. Opening my eyes, I stare at my comport in a daze. Blood thrums through my veins as my heart rate kicks up. Butterflies swarm my chest as an icy shiver rips up and down my spine.
“What’s wrong?” Logan instantly picks up on my distress.
Lifting my head up, I gulp as I stare at him.
My comport continues to vibrate as the caller persists.
“Are you going to answer that?” Logan inquires.
“I don’t know,” I whisper, my lip trembling.
His brow furrows in confusion as I shiver uncontrollably. “It’s your brother, Logan. It’s Ax.”
CHAPTER 3
“Disconnect the comm!” Haydn yells, automatically enraged. His eyes are out on stalks as he glances at Logan, appealing for his agreement.
Logan ignores him, focusing all his attention on me. “I think you should answer it. Let’s hear what he has to say.”
Haydn curses, flopping down on the couch and shaking his head.
Sucking in a large gulp of air, I press the button to accept the call.
“Hello, Sadie.” Ax is formal in the extreme, but I practically dissolve at the sound of his voice, so relieved that he’s alive.
“Hi,” I squeak.
“Is my brother there with you?” The words spew out viciously.
“I’m here.” Logan is curt. Haydn still has that angry look on his face, and it’s clear that his feelings toward Ax haven’t altered in the slightest. Not that I can blame him.
“Good. I need to meet with both of you as a matter of urgency,” Ax says in a flat, bland tone.
“Were you working with your mother the whole time? Was everything a lie?” The words fly out of my mouth before I can question the wisdom of asking them. But it’s the one recurring thought that I’ve failed to evict from my mind from the second Ax left. I need to know how far his betrayal extends.
Dead silence greets my question.
When he eventually replies, he sounds a little less self-assured. “I don’t have much time, Sadie. Let’s leave the questions for when we meet. I thought Narik would be a suitable neutral venue if you are agreeable?”
Stars, he sounds so cold and stiff. So unlike himself.
“That will work. I’ll contact King Coryn to set it up. When did you have in mind?” Logan replies.
“Tomorrow night. It can’t be any later. There isn’t time.”
“Isn’t time for what?” I interject, watching Haydn’s scowl grow fiercer.
“Isn’t time to adequately protect you.” There’s a pregnant pause. “Both of you.” I’m opening my mouth to ask the obvious question when he adds, “Griselda will have the Tempo fully functional by the end of the week. She plans to put it to good use.”
A powerful shiver washes over me, and all the color has drained from Logan’s face. “Okay. We’ll be there.” His voice betrays no evidence of his concern.
The line goes dead, and silence engulfs the room until the three of us all start talking at once, throwing theories around as to what Ax’s agenda is.
Haydn is growing more bullheaded by the second, and I’m fighting to get my points heard.
Logan holds up a hand. “Stop.” Haydn and I stop talking at his commanding request. “Let’s think about this logically. None of us trust him—there’s no debate required on that.” His gaze slides to mine, and I nod with downcast eyes. I don’t need to look at Haydn for verification. He didn’t trust Ax from the get-go.
“If Axton wanted to entrap us, he wouldn’t have suggested Narik as a meeting point. Even if he brings Tor soldiers with him, they won’t be able to leave without the code, and Navda won’t issue it if he’s holding us hostage,” Logan surmises, referencing the king by his first name. They’ve become good friends, and the time for formality has passed. “He is taking as much of a risk meeting us there as we are.”
“That won’t matter if he’s planning on killing you,” Haydn bluntly supplies.
“You think he’d kill Logan and expect to get out of there alive?” I slant an incredulous looks his way. “Remember, we can’t even teleport in or out of Narik due to their high-tech security systems. Killing Logan would be a suicide mission. I don’t think he’d do that.”
“And what if it’s actually Griselda that’s coming?” Haydn throws out his next theory.
Logan shakes his head vigorously. “She wouldn’t risk her freedom, and she never does her own dirty work. No, I’m certain it’ll be Axton who’s coming. Whatever he has to propose, I’ll bet this is his way of protecting Sadie.”
“I don’t like it, Logan. I really don’t.” Haydn shakes his head.
“If what he says about the Tempo is true, then we’ve no choice but to meet him. If Griselda has access to time travel again, then your argument is a moot point. She can easily send someone into the past to kill me.” Standing up, he paces back and forth. “We still have one ace up our sleeve.” His eyes narrow as his brain rapidly computes tactics.
Haydn and I focus on his face.
“Sadie,” Logan breathes. “Axton would never hurt Sadie. Not in a million years.”
Haydn’s lips pinch tight. “I hope you’re not suggesting what I think you’re suggesting, because there’s no way I’m comfortable bargaining with my queen’s life.”
It’s at that moment I know Haydn and I are back on track. I can’t keep the smile off my face, and Haydn frowns, wondering why I’m grinning like a total idiot.
“I have an idea that I think might work,” I pipe up, factoring in some of the suggestions flitting around Logan’s mind and adding in my own flavor.
We spend the next hour going back and forth over our options, outlining the pros and cons, and arguing a lot. Even Logan is opposed to my idea. I have taken his suggested plan and embellished it to a point he isn’t happy with. But in the absence of any other viable strategy, it’s agreed that we will proceed to implement my proposition.
I leave to rouse High Elder Jaxa while Logan stays behind to update Haydn on other events. Most notably, he needs to break the news to him about Neve and her baby, and it’s not something I can relive again. Not when I need to keep a calm, level head for what’s around the corner.
Jaxa is a total champ, abandoning his plans without hesitation once I explain the urgency. We travel to a remote, uninhabited part of Saven so I can get some last-minute practice in. It’s vitally important that I have full control of my incendio gift so I can unleash my power without incinerating everything and everyone on sight.
“Don’t forget that it all starts with the mind. Your state of mind and your emotions control your ability to summon your gift to the surface.” Jaxa taps the side of my temple.
As if I could forget.
It’s been drilled into my head as successfully as Haydn’s combative ministrations are.
“Remove distractions and establish sole-minded focus. Erase your surroundings, tap into your emotions, and fix on the task at hand.”
Standing with my legs slightly apart, I inhale and exhale deeply as I create the necessary canvas in my mind. It’s amazing how much controlling my mind centers my entire being and infuses me with confidence.
“Aim for that boulder.” Jaxa points at a large rock in the near distance.
I press that inner button, and fire surges through my veins, igniting me from the inside out. Instead of my usual panicky reaction, and the directionless sensation I’ve felt in the past when my gift rises to the fore, I am remarkably calm and in control. Lifting my arm, I angle my wrist, pointing it at the center of the boulder. Allowing the incendio energy to ripple up and down my arms, I flick my wrist up and try to hold it steady as the stream of scorching fire shoots forth, blazing a path toward the boulder. My aim is slightly off, but the fiery beam flows into the corner of the boulder, and it explodes upon contact.
“Well done, Alma Sadie. Try again, until the aim is exactly as you intended.”
We spend all day and half the night practicing relentlessly until I feel comfortable that I’ve mastered the gift as best I can. I thank Jaxa before heading back to the palace. Exhausted, I crawl into bed beside Logan and conk out.
Logan’s hot lips on my naked flesh wake me the next morning. “Sorry to wake you,” he says with a teasing grin, not sounding even remotely apologetic, “but I wanted to find out how your last practice session went yesterday before I head out.”
“It went well.” I slide my hands down his body. “I can channel the incendio power in a controlled manner. I’m ready.”
His mouth stalls on my collarbone. “I’m nervous about this, Sadie. So many things could go wrong.” Propping up on one elbow, he cups the side of my face as his gaze rakes over me.
“This started out as your idea.”
“I never intended this.”
He runs his fingers across my skin, trailing a path from my face to my neck and lower. It’s like a shot of liquid desire straight to my core, and my body tingles all over. “It’ll work. And it’s the only way. You can trust me to do this. I won’t let you down.”
A stern look crosses his face as he drops down on his back alongside me. “I know you can do this. That’s not my concern.” He growls as his face contorts into a snarl.
I steal into his mind, reading all his thoughts. “Baby, I know you don’t trust him, but even you acknowledged he won’t hurt me. And despite what Haydn thinks, Ax wouldn’t hurt you either. You’re his brother.”
Logan jerks up in the bed. “Sadie. For the millionth time, he hates me and I hate him. That’s the way it’s always been. The way it always will be.”
Anger bubbles inside me. I haul myself up against the headboard, tucking the comforter under my arms. “And for the millionth time, stop deluding yourself. Have you forgotten I know what you feel and think? You’re an open book to me. Same way I am to you. So, cut the crap. I know part of you hates him for his deceit, and I totally get that.” I touch his arm as I turn to face him. “But that other part of you is concerned for your brother. That side of you feels bad for him, for everything he’s had to endure. There’s a piece of your heart on hold for him. You want to get to know him as your brother. Don’t pretend to me that you haven’t had those thoughts, because I know you have.”
Logan locks his hands behind his head as he sighs in defeat. “Yeah, okay, I’ve felt that, but it doesn’t mean it’s what I want. Everything about Axton is a mess in my head. I still can’t figure out what exactly it is I want, if anything.”
“I can empathize because my own feelings are muddled too, but I still love him, Logan. He is like family to me, and I won’t give up on him. Not yet. Not until I’ve exhausted every possible way of saving him. And I don’t think you should give up on him either. Not until you’ve at least had a chance to form a relationship with him.”
I let my words hang in the air, snapping our connection shut to give Logan time to think in private.
After a couple of minutes, Logan wraps his arms around my waist and rests his head on my shoulder. “He doesn’t want a relationship with me. I represent everything that’s been taken from him.”
I stroke my hand up and down his arm. “He may well feel like that now, but in time, things will be different. He doesn’t have anyone, Logan.” He looks up into my pleading face. “We are all he has in the world, and we can’t give up on him, even if he has supposedly given up on us. We have lost too many people we care about. We can’t lose him too. It’s up to us to change his mind.”
Leaning up, Logan presses his mouth softly to mine for the briefest moment. “This is why you are so perfect for me. If everyone could see this side of you, then no one would object to you becoming my queen.”
Tension forms a rock in the pit of my stomach. Sensing it, Logan interlocks our hands, rubbing calming circles on the back of my hand with his thumb. We haven’t publicized our Eterno bonding or Logan’s intention to make me his queen yet because of the tenuous situation in Saven. Members of the Royal Advisory Council are aware of our status, and with the odd few exceptions, they have not been welcoming of me. Suspicious looks are the norm from the Saven I meet everywhere I go, so, yeah, things aren’t looking too hopeful on that front. And that’s before anyone is aware that I’m also part human and part Tor and that I’m kind of a freak.
Logan taps into my mental meanderings, and he kisses me again. “Stop. Worrying. Everything will settle down. In time, they will love you almost as much as me.” I snort at the absurdity of that statement, and he flicks my hair playfully. I’m at least glad that the stressful atmosphere has disappeared. I don’t want to set out to meet Ax tonight with any hint of discord between us. “We’ll continue as we are—you will gradually attend more meetings by my side and represent me at engagements and events, and people will start to accept you. It’ll be easier to appeal to them once the conscience development process is up and running,” Logan confirms.
I weave my hands through his hair, pulling his mouth over to mine. “Enough talking.” I push him down on the bed and straddle him. He squirms underneath me as I flick my tongue lightly up and down his neck, planting lingering kisses on his jawline as he begs me for more. I kiss one corner of his mouth, then the other, before I take pity on him. Fusing our mouths together, I kiss him deeply and passionately, pouring my entire heart into the kiss. “I love you.”
I confirm it countless times a day, and I can never tell him enough. I still marvel at my ability to speak so freely when there was a time those three words were constantly stuck in my throat. Logan has brought me out of my shell, allowed me to be me, and it’s just another reason why I love him so much. “Ala beatra.” I repeat the sentiment in the native Saven tongue, and he clutches me tighter, pressing our bodies flush against one another.
My need for Logan is insatiable, and I drink my fill, stocking up for what’s ahead. As my mouth devours his, I take him into my body, basking in the sensual movement of our limbs as we flow as one.
King Coryn is waiting to greet us in the hangar of the fake military compound when we arrive on Narik later that night. Without hesitation, he pulls me into a bear hug. “It’s so lovely to see you again, my dear, although I wish the circumstances were more fortuitous.”
“Logan explained then?” I peer up at him as I loop my arm in his. Haydn, Logan, and Rylan are deep in conversation as they walk ahead of us toward the assigned meeting room. A bunch of heavily armed Royal Saven Guard accompanies them. The sight of their red, black, and gold emblems never fails to unsettle me. Thoughts of Officer Vero and his near-successful attempt on my life will forever be associated with that uniform in my mind. Shaking myself out of that melancholy place, I focus my attention on the king.
“I’m
aware of the plan, and I think you are right to try this. If anyone can pull it off, it’s you.”
I flush with pride. This man’s word means a lot to me. He is the only regent I have the utmost admiration and respect for. Besides Logan, obviously. “Thank you. I’m still nervous though.” An icy tremor travels up my spine at the thought of what I’m about to do, and I quiver all over.
King Coryn pats my hand. “That’s to be expected.” He has a faraway look in his eyes. “I’m glad you haven’t given up on him. I’ve never met a man more in need of love and more deserving of it. Whatever he may or may not have done, there is no doubt in my mind that it was done for the right reasons. For what Axton perceives to be the right reasons.”
We round the next bend, slowing our steps and losing sight of the others. “I know that. I may not have access to my previous memories, but I know how much I meant to him.” I swallow the thorny ball in my throat. “How much we meant to each other. But it doesn’t change the fact that he lied about some very important things, and whenever I think of that, it’s hard not to get mad.”
The king stops to scrutinize my face. “There’s a very fine line between love and hate. And sometimes, unintentionally, those lines blur. I am not saying this to make you feel guilty or to pass any of the blame your way, because that is most definitely not the case. Axton is entirely responsible for his own actions, but do not underestimate the impact your rejection had on someone like him. You were his sole purpose. One could argue his sole reason for living. When that purpose was taken away from him, he floundered. With you gone, what did he have to focus on?”
Guilt is twisting my stomach into knots, and my conviction is waning in the face of such blatant truth. Can I truly do this? Is there any way back from this? How can I convince Ax of anything when I’ve destroyed his world?
Seemingly oblivious to my plight, the king continues talking. “His identity has been wrapped up in yours for so long that I doubt he knows who to be without you. His desperation made him vulnerable, and Griselda exploited that in some way. It’s her standard modus operandi.”
Saven Deliverance Page 4