by Todd, E. L.
Natalia came out of the kitchen and approached them. “Everything went well, Rhonian?”
He nodded. “Yes,” he said. “You can make up my bedroom for the one of our guests.”
“I already did.” She smiled. “I assumed nothing less.”
Lilia stepped forward. “You don’t need to do that Father. But thank you.”
“It’s fine,” he said. “I won’t be around anyway.”
Natalia raised an eyebrow. “Where are you going?”
Aleco didn’t answer. He turned to Lilia. “Can I speak to you for a moment in private?”
Lilia flinched at the unexpected question. After a moment, she nodded. Aleco led her to the study down the hall and closed the door behind her. Lilia continued to stare at Aleco as she stood by the door, awkwardly.
Aleco noticed her look. “Sit,” he said.
She took a seat in front of him. Aleco leaned against the desk. “Who is responsible for this?”
She placed her hands in her lap and looked down at the floor. “The king’s soldiers. When they came to Anastille, they grabbed a few of us and brought us along. They do this every time they make their rounds around the provinces. They steal a few pretty women, rape them on their journey, then they kill them when they are done. They grab new ones when they start up again.” Her eyes started to bubble with tears, but she wiped them away.
Aleco sighed. He clenched his fists at his side while he processed her words. “So, this is the ploy by the soldiers? It has nothing to do with the king?”
She nodded. “I think so.”
“Where did you escape from?”
“Anastille,” she said. “The city adjacent to your lands. They didn’t tighten my bounds, and I managed to get free. I was only able to rescue Vivian and Mia before we had to flee. I’m sure they are looking for us, not wanting us to tell anyone what they are doing. You were the closest place to flee to.”
“Where are the soldiers now?”
She shrugged. “I don’t know,” she said. “We were camped right outside your forest. I think their next destination is Roslyn Thoroughfare.” She stared at Aleco for a moment. “Why?”
Aleco didn’t respond. “How many are there?”
She raised an eyebrow. “Do you plan to kill them?”
“Answer me.”
“Seven.”
He nodded. “Thank you for your telling me. I’m sorry that all of this happened to you. It’s unacceptable.”
“I thought you were a Nature Priest?”
“I never said I wasn’t.”
“Then why you do you care?” she asked. “This is out of your realm and responsibilities, isn’t it?”
“Let me worry about that.”
“You are going to kill them, aren’t you?”
“Does that bother you?”
“No,” she said. “I—I just don’t want anything to happen to you.”
“Don’t worry about me.”
“You shouldn’t risk your life over this,” she said. “It isn’t worth it.”
“Yes, it is,” he said firmly.
“Why?”
He stared at her for a moment. “Someone very dear to me experienced the same torment. I refuse to let it happen to someone else.”
“Who was this someone?”
Aleco stared at her. “The woman I love.”
She nodded. “I’m sorry to hear that.”
Aleco rose from the desk and walked to the door. He opened it for her and waited for her to leave. When she crossed the room, she stopped before him. “Be careful,” she said. “They are strong.”
“I’m stronger.”
She continued to stare at him, looking at his face hidden in his hood. “Thank you for everything, Father.”
“You don’t need to thank me,” he said.
“Yes, I do.”
He leaned closer to her. “You may think I’m doing this for you, but I’m not. My intentions are entirely selfish.” He turned away from her and opened the secret doorway in his study. “Enjoy your dinner.”
Roslyn Thoroughfare
20
Aleco tracked the group of soldiers from Orgoom Forest to the hidden thickets of Roslyn Thoroughfare. The heavy cart they towed with them was easy to track in the soil of the earth. When he approached their campground in the middle of night, most of them were still awake. Aleco heard the sound of women screaming in agony and knew they were being taken against their will. Uncontrollable anger shot through him and he couldn’t dim the rage he felt. The scene was too close to his heart. Accacia suffered through this experience for years. He couldn’t let this happen to other innocents. He would grant no mercy or prisoner this night. He would kill them all.
Aleco pulled his bow from his back and fit an arrow to the string. With accurate precision, he shot two soldiers in the head. They were sitting by the campsite, eating their stew, when the arrow pierced their brains. As soon as they fell over, the others started to panic. Aleco didn’t want it to be this easy. He returned his bow to his pack and pulled his blade from the scabbard.
The men knew the attacker was coming from the copse of trees Aleco stood in, but he didn’t care. He wanted a fight. His mind was clouded with unbelievable agony and he wanted an escape—retribution for his pain. Aleco just wanted to kill someone.
“To the left,” a soldier shouted. The cries of the women disappeared in light of the attack. Aleco ran towards the fire and swung his blade towards the man closest to him. It happened so quickly the soldier couldn’t defend himself. Aleco stabbed him in the gut, the most painful blow he could execute, then stabbed him in the shoulder. The man screamed as he fell to the ground. The next solider stopped across the glade and aimed his bow, directing the arrow at Aleco’s eye. Unperturbed, Aleco ran to him with his blade raised. When the man fired the arrow, Aleco slice the shaft in half then continued forward. He seized the man by the hair and sliced his throat. The man tried to scream but blood spilled from his severed windpipe.
A volley of arrows fired past him, but they all missed their mark. Aleco rolled his eyes, disappointed that he was dealing with such idiots. He pulled his three-bladed throwing knife from his pocket and tossed it at the closest soldier. It lodged in his throat and he fell to his knees.
The remaining two men trembled as they watched their comrade fall to the floor. They tried to place new arrows on the strings of their bows, but fumbled with the shafts, giving Aleco plenty of time to stab each of them in the gut. One fell to his knees and gripped his stomach, trying to breathe through the tear in his body. The other man lay still and looked up at the night sky.
Satisfied that the soldiers were eliminated, he turned around and returned to the campsite. Some of them were still alive, barely hanging onto consciousness, but Aleco would grant no mercy. Normally, he would end it quickly, but not for these men. They didn’t deserve a quick death. He let them suffer, feeling their blood as it seeped out of their bodies.
When he walked around the campsite, he saw the women huddled together by a tree. Their wrists bound behind their backs and their bodies covered in bruises. They reminded him of the first time he saw Accacia in the Prisoner’s Circle. He knew she would be disturbed by his unforgivable past when she looked into his soul catcher, but hoped his current deeds would atone for his mistakes.
The women were wary of him like he assumed they would be, but as he cut their bonds, they relaxed.
“Are you from Anastille?” he asked.
“Yes,” one woman said quietly.
Aleco cut the bonds of the next woman. “Would you like me to escort you there?”
The woman looked at the other girls sitting beside her. After watching Aleco kill all seven soldiers with ease, they knew he could protect them. And if he hadn’t hurt them yet, then he probably wasn’t going to.
“Yes, please,” she whispered.
Aleco nodded. “Get some sleep,” he said. “I’ll guide you in the morning.”
She nodded. “Thank you.”
The women retrieved blankets from the cart and huddled together near the tree. Aleco moved to the other side of the campsite by the fire, giving them space. He leaned against a log and watched the women huddle together under the stars. He would offer his cloak to them, but he didn’t want to. The only woman he would give his cloak to wasn’t here anymore. The thought of Accacia flooded his body with guilt. He just killed five men and, like a violent maniac, let them suffer. He knew his actions were justified, but Accacia would still be disappointed in his behavior. He was glad she would never know what he did.
The thought of her made his heart ache. He opened his necklace, pulled out her gray Soul Catcher and appraised the surface. Whenever he missed her, he escaped into her hoard of memories to feel connected to her. He knew it wasn’t healthy, but he didn’t care.
Aleco closed his eyes and entered the storage of memories. There were a few recollections of her time with Drake that Aleco never wanted to see again. In fact, he wasn’t sure why she kept them at all. There were also a few of her time with Father Giloth in the forest. But most of them were memories of her and Aleco and their short-lived romance. It made him happy to know that she had so many memories of him that were worth keeping for a lifetime. He selected a random image on the wall.
Aleco was sitting near the fire, drinking his whiskey when Accacia walked into Asylinth Cottage. When he heard the door open, he looked up. “So, how was the old man?” he asked. He took another drink of his whiskey, but Accacia snatched it out of his hand and placed it on the counter.
He raised an eyebrow at her. “What’s—”
Accacia grabbed his face and kissed him deeply. She climbed onto his lap and held him tighter, deepening her embrace while she moved his lips with her own. Aleco moaned as he felt her dominate him. He ran his hands down her body and gasped when she broke their kiss. Her embraced moved down his neck then she tore off his shirt quicker than Aleco could move. She tossed it on the floor and kissed his chest, trailing her kisses to his stomach. Aleco’s expression was mixed with pleasure and confusion. She grabbed his pants and yanked them off of his body, exposing him completely. Accacia kissed his naked body everywhere while Aleco watched her please him in the way he loved.
He moaned. “Accacia.”
She moved back to his lap and kissed him again. Aleco grabbed her hips and pulled her close to him, feeling her body against his. He ran his hands though her hair while he kissed her, but every time he tried to gain control of the moment, she stopped him.
Accacia grabbed the end of her shirt and pulled it from her body, and Aleco tore off the camisole underneath, practically ripping it in half. Together, they pulled her leggings and underwear off, leaving her completely naked. She positioned herself over him and started to ride him gently.
She pressed her forehead against his. “Aleco.”
He gasped at the feel of her and rocked his hips into her. “Accacia.”
“Aleco—I—”
He opened his eyes and looked into hers. “What?” he asked. She didn’t answer. His breathing became deep as she continued to move on top of him. He grabbed her back and held onto her. “I’m not going to last much longer if you keep this up.”
She ran her hands through his hair then placed her palm on his shoulder. Her breasts pressed against his chest as she gripped him tightly and rode him harder. “I missed you all day.”
He moaned. “I can tell.”
She started to moan and held onto him tighter. “Aleco,” she whispered. “Aleco.” Finding her moment of bliss, she kissed him passionately during her euphoria, squeezing his shoulder the entire time.
“Gods, Accacia.” Aleco thrust his hips upward and convulsed as he reached his pleasure. He grabbed her hips and rocked her harder until he finished. Then, he placed his forehead against hers while he caught his breath. “What was that about?”
She continued to breathe heavily. “What do you mean?”
He smiled. “You practically raped me, Accacia. You are acting like me.”
“I just wanted you,” she whispered. “I missed you. I was thinking about you all day.” “Well, you could have come home. It wouldn’t have bothered me at all.”
She smiled at him then kissed him gently. She placed her palm on his cheek and looked into his eyes for a moment. Aleco rubbed his nose against hers then kissed her forehead.
“I enjoyed that,” he said. “You can do that whenever you want.”
“You think I didn’t know that already?” She smiled.
He laughed. “Well, now you better do it every day. I expect it.”
“I have a feeling I won’t disappoint you.”
He stared at her for a moment. “Accacia, what are we?”
She flinched at the unexpected question. “What do you mean?”
“I mean exactly what I said. What is this relationship? Are you just sleeping with me for convenience and protection, or do you actually want to be with me?”
She looked stung by his words. “I thought it was obvious, Aleco.”
“Well, last time I assumed we were together, we weren’t. I just want to clarify.” He ran his fingers through her hair. “Do you want to be with me? Commit to me?”
She stared at him. She stumbled through her words. “Aleco—I—”
“Got it,” he said quickly. He looked away from her and grabbed his glass.
She steadied his hand. “There’s no one else I would rather be with, Aleco. I thought that was obvious. No, this isn’t a relationship of convenience. If anything, this relationship is pure work. Since we met, you’ve been nothing but an asshole to me.” Aleco smiled at her words. “You’ve driven me insane repeatedly, and we argue just as often as we make love. You are too protective and act insanely jealous. You are the most annoying person that I know. This relationship is definitely not one of convenience.”
He smiled at her. “You haven’t been a delight either.”
“I know.”
He rubbed his nose against hers. “You are a pain in my ass, actually.”
She smiled. “I know that, too.”
“Good,” he said. “So, do you want to live with me?”
She raised an eyebrow. “What do you mean?”
“We can’t live in the forest forever, Accacia. We’ll have to leave eventually.”
“Where would we go?”
“My cave.”
“The bat-infested one?” she asked in disgust.
He glared at her. “There are no bats!”
“Well, I saw one.”
“No, you didn’t,” he snapped.
“I know what I saw.”
“Obviously, you don’t.”
She glared at him. “You are being an asshole again.”
“Did I say I would stop?”
She rolled her eyes.
He grabbed her face then kissed her. “You like it when I’m an asshole.”
“I really don’t.”
“I don’t believe you,” he said. “You don’t seem to mind it when we make love.”
“Well, you aren’t being an asshole then.”
He shook his head. “I’m always an asshole, Accacia.”
She placed her forehead against his then kissed him gently. “I know that isn’t true. When you are with me, you are completely different. You are happy.”
He stared at her for a moment. “I’ve never been happier in my life, Accacia. I’m glad you realize that.”
“You make me happy too,” she whispered.
He pulled her close to him. “Is that a yes?”
She was quiet for a moment. “I would love to live with you.”
He smiled at her and his eyes became wet. “I lied before. Now I’ve never been happier.”
She kissed him. “You better get rid of the bats before I move in.”
He stared at her. “I’ll take care of it.”
She raised an eyebrow. “So you admit that there are bats? I knew it.”
He shrugged. “Sure,” he sa
id. “Whatever it takes to get you to come with me. But since you are living with me, rent free, I expect to be paid in other ways.”
“Really? What a surprising turn of events,” she said sarcastically. “I think I’m still paying off my other debt.”
“You are going to be in debt for the rest of our lives.”
“That’s a long time,” she whispered.
Aleco swallowed the lump in his throat. “It’s not long enough.”
She stared at him. “You’re right. It’s not.”
The memory ended and Aleco came back to the harsh truth of reality. When he opened his eyes and looked at the group of slaves, he realized his cheeks were coated in tears. The only part of Accacia he had left was her memories, but all they did was cause him pain. But he couldn’t stop reliving them. He would never be able to stop.
Orgoom Forest
21
Aleco guided the women back to Anastille and returned them to their families. When people asked who their rescuer was, Aleco replied, “Rhonian.” But never said he was the Nature Priest. He didn’t want news to travel back to the king and reveal that he was a more formidable adversary than Drake initially projected. And since he was leaving for the council meeting soon, though he had absolutely no interest in doing so, he needed to keep a low profile.
When he returned to Orgoom Forest, he walked inside the house and up the stairs to his bedchamber. He entered the room as Lilia was getting dressed and she screamed when he opened the door. Aleco shut the door as quickly as possible and cursed himself. He forgot the women he healed were still there. Aleco went down stairs and found Natalia in the kitchen. “Can you have an escort take the women back to Anastille?”
“Of course, Rhonian,” she said pleasantly. She stared at him for a moment. “Where were you last night?”
Aleco ignored her question and walked away. As the leader of the realm, he didn’t have to explain himself to anyone. He retreated to the study and waited for the escort to come to Asylinth House. A few minutes later, Melina, the Naturalist, knocked on the door.