by Garnet Hart
A mixture of different emotions overwhelmed him at once, but the first one that consumed him was the fear that they could have killed her by then. And if they did…
Gods, it didn’t bear thinking.
But to his relief, Nadia went on to tell him that Asra was brought to Asia and she was not to be executed anytime soon. Because this time, the Elf would serve a new purpose.
And then he couldn’t wait to hop on a plane to get to Asia. He tried to curtail his excitement of seeing her again. He shouldn’t care anymore. Not this time around.
He had been travelling for hours and somehow he had managed to achieve clarity in his mind on the plane. He would see her again, but this time would be different. He was given another chance to redeem himself in the eyes of Odin and gain back his honor and the right to go back to Asgard. He must fulfill his warrior’s duty this time around. Not only for himself but for the survival of the Lycans.
But gods, how he hated his wildly beating heart right now.
“Before you enter,” Nadia said, “this woman here has nothing to do with the death of your brother.”
“Roar is alive. Falling on a cliff canna kill a Lycan.”
“I pray for that as well. But I fear that he was fatally wounded before the fall. One of my guards who accompanied them witnessed another Lycan attacking him.”
“Lycan?” His eyebrows furrowed. “You say a Lycan attacked my brother?”
“Yes. My guards tried to pursue him, but he disappeared in the forest.”
“Have they searched below the cliff for any traces of my brother?”
“They did. They found nothing.”
“Then he is alive,” Lior concluded. The death of an Alpha by falling from a cliff would be the last thing he would have wanted to believe.
Nadia refused to move out of the door. “The Demons have learned of the songstress’ existence. They know someone will later carry on Roar’s job and so they have guarded all portals to Alfheim.”
“So what am I gonna do with her?”
“Your task is to keep and protect her for the time being while you find a way to get through any of the portals and bring her to Alfheim. Unharmed,” Nadia added the last word emphatically.
Lior raised an eyebrow. “Have I ever harmed a woman?”
“Just making sure,” Nadia replied and moved away. “I trust you wouldn’t displease lord Odin this time. I’ll wait for you upstairs. Just let me know how many guards you wish to bring with you. I’ll have them prepared.”
“I dunna need any guards. I’ll handle that Lycan myself if he’d ever show up again.”
“Then be it. By the way, she looks a mess and she had sustained some bruises. She caused them herself while trying to escape. She fights like a beast it took five men to restrain her. We tried to bathe her but she refused.”
“No’ a problem. I could take her to Alfheim full of filth if that’s what she wants.”
“Alright then, I’ll leave you now.”
Lior watched as Nadia climbed the stairs. When her footsteps faded, he took a deep breath and pushed the door open.
It had been two hundred years since he last saw this Elf. He wondered if anything had changed.
Chapter 3
Dunvegan Castle, Isle of Skye
1835
Lior leaned on a tree as he patiently awaited his victim to come into the forest.
The trunk was not thick enough to completely cover the wide breadth of his shoulders, but its widespread leaves above blocked the moonlight completely, shrouding him in total darkness.
According to the information he had gathered, the daughter of the Chief of Clan MacLeod would secretly sneak out of the Dunvegan Castle to have a bath at a nearby river at night. It was typical of an Elf. They were so attached to nature.
Patience was not one of his characters. In fact, he completely lacked that damn virtue. But for this assignment that his lord Odin had entrusted to him, he just had to bear this dullness… just for this one time.
His target, Asra of clan MacLeod, was a product of a forbidden coupling between her human father and her Elf mother. They called it ‘love that defies all odds’. He’d call it madness.
Elves were referred to as the goddesses of nature. They had the ability to restore life, and they lived in a densely forested world of Alfheim. They had portals everywhere, whenever there were trees, so they could come out and heal nature from the damages caused by wildfire and human faults.
However, they were forbidden to interact with humans, because aside from being low-level goddesses, they also served as the vessels of the gods. Therefore, they must remain pure from human filths.
However, one Elf disobeyed this order.
According to the story, the Chief of MacLeod was patrolling this forest when he fell from his horse and broke his leg. The Elf heard his plea for help and came to him.
The Chief and the Elf fell in love.
Eventually, they got married, but their happiness did not last long because the Elf died after giving birth to a daughter.
A terrible tale of a forbidden affair.
Now, he was tasked by Odin to come down here in Midgar, the land of the humans, and kill that daughter. According to the seers of Odin, this half-Elf would someday cause the defeat of Asgard from the forces of the Demons.
Lior couldn’t hold back a sarcastic laugh. He could see no reason why such a woman could do that much damage to the mighty realm of the powerful gods. The seers could have been mistaken.
However, it was not his place to question the decision of Odin. If his lord wanted this woman dead, then be it.
Finally, he heard the sound of dry leaves crackling under a light weight. Someone was coming, and he hoped it was the half-Elf.
He remained where he was with his eyes following the path to the river. The footsteps came closer, until finally, he saw a woman pass by.
This should be her. She matched the description. She had long blond hair that cascaded all the way to her buttocks. She was petite, the top of her head won’t probably even reach his shoulders. Wrapped enticingly in a fabric that only the noble humans wore, he watched her hips sway seductively as she walked.
“What a puny task,” he whispered to himself as he stepped out of his hiding place to follow the Elf. He, the commander of the Elite Asgard Warriors, had bothered to come down to Midgar just to kill this woman? Odin must have been humoring himself at his expense.
The half-Elf had walked quite a distance away from him when he decided to come out of his hiding place and follow her. He could kill her right now if he wanted to, but they were too close to the castle. He didn’t want anybody discovering her corpse lying around so soon and create an uproar within the castle of Dunvegan. He didn’t want to see or hear people crying for their precious princess.
Despite being known for his arrogance as a god, he had a soft spot for humans, because all throughout his centuries of existence, he’d witnessed how they were scorned and toyed with by the gods. If these poor humans only knew how the gods had been constantly competing for worship. If one god felt he was not being worshipped enough, he’d cast a spell on the land to make his wrath known. That way, the humans, especially those living outside the cities, would build him bigger temples and worship him more often.
He had despised the gods for such acts, and he had no intention of following their foolish ways. He was a high-level god of Asgard, ranked higher than most of the gods being worshipped here in Midgar, but his name was not even known to anyone.
He didn’t care. He had never felt the need to be worshipped by humans just to be a great god. Odin himself knew his greatness. The humans didn’t have to.
He continued following the woman deeper into the forest, keeping several meters of distance so she wouldn’t hear his footsteps. He didn’t need to see her. He just had to follow her scent.
He realized they had gone as far as necessary. He could kill her instantly without giving her time to scream, but he wanted this to look l
ike an accident, not a murder. This way, he could spare anyone from being a suspect.
He hid in the bushes and transformed into his Lycan form.
He grunted as long claws pierced out of the tips of his fingers and his whole body, now covered with black fur, swelled, ripping off his clothing.
This shape-shifting had always pained him, but he was used to it.
Slowly, he emerged out of the bushes and followed the maiden’s scent. He stopped when he had finally spotted her standing at the edge of the river. Even from afar, her long, yellow hair glittered under the moonlight, like soft strands of the finest quality of gold.
Then she started undressing.
He was frozen and couldn’t take his eyes off her as the wrapper fell from her shoulders, revealing creamy skin that glistened. No darkness could conceal such fine, luminous skin.
His mouth went dry, waiting for her to reveal more, but the Elf turned around as if she felt that somebody was watching her.
He leapt behind the bushes to hide his huge frame. Should he kill her now? Naked? He hesitated.
Now, why was that? She was just human, a lowly human, and he was a god. There was no need to show her respect.
He heard the water splash, and then a sigh of relief.
Poor Elf. If she only knew this would be her last bath.
He didn’t want to kill a woman—not ever, but this was an order from the high and mighty Odin, for the good of Asgard and of all creatures in the nine worlds. He just couldn’t imagine the nine worlds being ruled by the Demons. It would be hell, like that very place the Demons guarded.
This should be a quick death. He had to attack her while she was unaware, rip her neck with his sharp claws as fast as he could to spare her any pain.
Stealthily, he moved forward, stifling his grunts. She must not hear him. He poked his head through the bushes and there he saw her rise from the water.
The scene froze him. His eyes which were sharper at night followed the rivulets of water running down the swells of her breasts, forming droplets at the tip of her nipples.
He drooled like the beast he was. That was the most beautiful pair of rosy nipples he’d ever seen, as red as the color of her lips.
Suddenly, he was dying to taste them… to suck on them. He looked lower to her tiny waist and her rounded hips. Her figure was just perfect, but damn, her very long, dripping hair hugged her thighs and covered the juncture which he most wanted to see.
His manhood hardened, and he hated it. He shouldn’t feel like this before killing a prey. It was disgusting.
But he was feeling it. He was powerless to stop it.
He wanted her.
He wasn’t able to hold back a grunt as the pain of transformation hit him again. He shifted to his human-like form. His human form manifested the same desire to mate and it became stronger. Damnation!
“Who’s there?” he heard her say.
He froze again. He had expected a beautiful voice, soft and gentle, like the fragile little princess she was, but it was not. She spoke with a tone of authority, low and firm.
What in Odin’s blood was he still doing there, marveling at her beauty? He should kill her already. But he was at a loss. With his clothes torn during his transformation into a giant beast, he was as naked as she was.
This was dangerous. He didn’t expect the beauty of this Elf could weaken his will.
“Come on out or I’ll scream,” she threatened.
He had no choice. No matter how beautiful she looked, he had to kill her… right now.
He heard a cracking sound in the air.
He felt something sharp hit his side. The tree leaves whooshed as the birds flew away, followed by a scream of a woman.
He doubled over, grasping his middle. Damnation, what hit him?! These humans could invent the most annoying weapons. It was not an arrow for sure, but something entered his body. He could feel it inside him, slicing through his inner flesh. It hurt like hellfire!
But a Lycan couldn’t be killed by such silly weapons. He tried to stand up, finish his job, and get out of there as fast as he could, but his vision blurred as he felt blood pouring out of his wound.
He stared aghast at his middle, unable to believe he was really wounded.
Weakened, he fell on his knees.
He heard voices. Men. Several of them, and they were coming to him. He must escape. He must not be seen now, not especially as naked as he was.
But he couldn’t move.
His weight dropped heavily to the ground.
“Who is it?!”
Asra MacLeod stormed down the stairway leading to the prison cell. After the guards had escorted her back to the castle, she put on a dress and demanded to see the culprit at once. “Who is that perverted man who dared disrespect me?! I will pluck his eyes out with my fingers!”
“My Lady,” Davina, her personal servant tried to block her way. “The man is wounded. He is being attended right now. You must wait.”
She shot her servant a hard look. She was mad like hell, but the Miss of MacLeod must not be unreasonable.
After drawing three deep breaths, she calmed herself down. “Tell them to be quick. I can’t wait to get my hands on that sloth!”
“My lady, please, don’t kill him. Your father has not authorized you to punish a prisoner,” Davina begged.
“He committed a crime against me. I have all the right. Now, go tell the doctors to be quick.”
Davina nodded and scurried off to do her bidding.
Even a middle-aged woman who had been taking care of her since her infancy knew just when to shut up when she was in this state of temperament.
She was stubborn and demanding, she knew that, but only if she had a reason to be so.
She had to show strength all the time to show her father that she deserved to be named an heir apparent despite being a woman. She would make history as the first ever female Chief of Clan MacLeod, the most highly regarded of all the clans in the Highlands of Scotland.
She stood at the foot of the long narrow stairway and waited patiently. The last time she had been here was when she was a little girl, curious to find out what was hidden in this darkness. Until she saw a dead prisoner rotting in the cell. Afterward, she’d never dared come back here again.
She didn’t like the smell around here. It stank everywhere. There were probably rats and cockroaches and all sorts of pests and insects around.
To her relief, Davina came back a few minutes later.
“You may go see him now, my lady,” Davina told her, “but please, you must restrain yourself. We’re not certain what he was doing there.”
“He was peeking at me. What else?”
“Naked, my lady?” Davina argued. “Why should a man have to be naked to peek? And his clothes were ripped into pieces. He could have been attacked by a vicious animal in the forest.”
Asra was dumbfounded. She didn’t know that because she had not seen the man. After she heard a gunshot, Garr came to her and brought her back in the castle. But her reputation was at stake. She must make him pay
“I’ll deal with him,” she said and left the servant.
The doctor and his assistants who attended the wounded man were on their way out of the cell when she arrived. Each one bowed before her before turning away.
She stepped inside and found the captain of the guards, Garr, standing beside the bed.
“How are you feeling, Miss MacLeod?” He took his hat off and bowed his head. “You shouldn’t be here.”
She looked up to him. This man was the best guard his father ever hired. Not only was he six and a half feet tall but built with solid muscles that could withstand the strength of a boulder. He could have been a great warrior, but the Chief preferred that this giant look after her.
She had not wanted this man eversince. For her, he was like a shadow that followed her everywhere. He could smell her like she was some sort of a perfume. There were times when she thought him really strange because of his u
nique ability to track her wherever she went. But because of that, he had rescued her many times.
There were times when the forest seemed to call out to her, as though the forest was a home that she had left behind. Many times during her childhood, she had wandered deep into the woods and had gotten lost, but Garr had always found her and brought her back to the castle safely.
“I want to speak with the prisoner,” she demanded.
Garr turned to glance at the figure on the bed and back to her. “He’s unconscious. He might not wake up until the morning.”
“I hope he does because I want him to feel the pain of his punishment.”
Garr sighed and approached her. His towering height was frightening when he was close, but she was not scared of him. She had known the gentleness of this giant ever since she was a child. But right now, he stood like wall before her that she could not see what was behind him. “Alright. Take a look at him.” He moved aside to clear her view.
She saw a long figure covered in white sheets lying on the bed. The light was not enough for her to see his face, but he looked almost as large as Garr.
Slowly, she approached the prisoner. She could see his features more now illuminated by the lamp near the bed. She had expected an ugly face that no woman would ever want which warranted the need to peek, but she saw the opposite.
She was astounded.
He was breathtaking! So magnificent like a creature of myths. Like a great warrior from those legends!
Strange. Her burning fury was eclipsed by overwhelming curiosity.
She stared on his face. Like an artist, she tried to study each facet to understand how they had formed such splendid looks, starting from his thick, dark, wavy hair, to the large forehead, arched brows like the color of his hair, long and straight nose, high cheekbones, prominent jaws and chin. His full sensuous mouth was slightly open that she could see the tip of his ivory white front teeth, as though it was waiting for a kiss.
She was tempted. She simply had to kiss him or die. He may have had beard surrounding his mouth and down his throat, but it didn’t bother her a bit. She used to think all bearded men were ugly, but she was gravely mistaken. This man still looked splendid with beard and she still wanted to kiss him.