*Eliza*
I knew Jared was following . I knew Archer and Brandt would be close behind as well. I had it in mind to turn into my bedroom but turned toward Jared’s room instead. If the evidence of our night was still scattered around the room, well, I wasn’t going to give Archer the satisfaction of seeing it. I threw open the door and stepped inside Jared’s room without hesitation.
“Hey!” Jared hissed, catching the door before it slamd shut. He locked it behind him.
“Brandt and Archer are going to want to see the scroll too–” I began, but he snatched the scroll from my hand and tossed it on the bed, taking a step toward .
“Last night,” he said, then hesitated, his jaw rigid with tension.
I relaxed a bit, but my stomach was tying in a knot as I looked up at him and held his gaze.
“Was it not good for you?” I asked.
He looked shocked.
“Eliza that’s not–”
He ran his fingers through his hair, then down over his face as he exhaled deeply.
“That’s not it all. It was great. You were... great. I just–”
“It’s okay,” I said hurriedly, turning away from him to hide the pain on my face.
I didn’t want to know what he was going to say next. I went to his bed and slowly picked up the scroll, telling myself I was testing the weight of it in my hands and not trying to distract myself from the searing pain of rejection blossoming in my stomach.
“Eliza,” Jared breathed.
I didn’t turn around. I’d been wrong, of course. This was just a very intense case of lust, primal lust... primal lust for my captor. There had to be a na for that, so physiological term or condition....
“Eliza, the curse,” Jared said firmly.
I turned to face him, furrowing my brow. “What about it?”
“I’m losing my wolf. I don’t want to hurt you if you think–if you think that we could be–”
I blinked at him, clutching the scroll to my chest. I bit back the hurt, focusing on the word “curse” to distract myself from the pain and roaring feeling of stupidity rushing through my blood.
I’d heard of people losing their wolf powers, but it was usually because of so kind of severe psychological trauma, like the abrupt loss of a mate. It wasn’t always permanent, either. I’d never heard of soone losing their powers because of a curse.
“You said the Cryptex might be sothing that’s capable of keeping ti,” he continued, taking a step toward . “I think you’re right, and that when I have all the pieces, I’ll be able to break the curse and stop it from stealing what’s left of my powers.”
“What does that have to do with last night?”
“I told you what I was–”
“You guys had all night to do whatever it is you’re doing in there. Co on. We want to see the scroll,” Archer said from behind the door.
Jared let his breath out in an annoyed growl, his eyes moving toward the door.
“We’ll talk about this in a mont,” he said, but I turned away from him and walked toward the door, opening it wide for Archer and Brandt to enter.
Get yourself together, I told myself. You’re being insane, Eliza. I sucked in my breath and steeled my expression, locking everything else away.
Archer entered and gave a playful look, wiggling his brows. I smacked him soundly on the arm with the scroll.
“Eliza!” Jared hissed, eyes wide with shock.
“It’s fine,” I said, closing the door. “It’s a fake.”
“What?” the n said in unison.
I smiled to myself, twirling the scroll over my fingers before tossing it in the air and catching it in my other hand. Jared winced, looking incredibly annoyed that I was handling his precious scroll so roughly. “Sll it,” I said, tossing it to him.
“Sll it?” Archer said, cocking his brow.
Jared eyed suspiciously as he raised it to his nose, then narrowed his eyes.
“It slls like tea, and charcoal,” I said, watching with interest as he carefully unfurled it. “That’s how you process parchnt to look older than it is. It might just be a copy of the actual scroll he promised you, but still. I knew the second he pulled it from his jacket that it was a fake. He’s playing you.”
“I had a feeling he would,” Jared said under his breath as he handed the scroll to a very curious Archer. Archer sniffed, shrugging, before handing it to Brandt.
“Why would he be trying to lead you astray?” I asked, accepting the scroll back from Brandt.
I looked at the text, which was obviously copied, and recently. If I had a lab with the appropriate equipnt for the job, I could have dated the ink.
When none of the n spoke, I looked up from the scroll, noting how intently Archer and Brandt were looking at Jared, so silent conversation obviously taking place over mindlink.
“Whatever it is,” I continued, looking back down at the scroll, “it’s written in Pritian, I believe. I’ll need so ti to work through the translation.”
I felt the air in the room shift as the n turned to look at , stunned.
I blinked up at them, shrugging one shoulder. “What?”
“How do you know any of this for certain?” Brandt asked.
“And what the hell is Pritian?” Archer added.
I rolled it up and tucked it in my back pocket. “Pritian was the na of the language spoken by the people who existed before the ti of Morrighan and Lycaon,” I said, matter-of-factly. “Artifacts have been found throughout the northern territories in my realm–” I sucked in a breath, glancing from man to man and settling my gaze on Jared.
“I was wondering when you were going to admit that,” Archer mused with a smirk.
I broke from the intensity in Jared’s gaze and glared at Archer.
“Fine, I’m from the Realm of Light,” I said in surrender.
“What’s it like?” Brandt asked, a boyish longing in his tone.
I smiled at him, but then my gaze drifted back to Archer, who had a distant look in his eyes. My chest tightened as I watched a shadow pass over Archer’s face, so distant mory of the war with the vampire king drifting to the forefront of his mind, no doubt.
“Very different from here,” I said softly.
“You can ask her whatever you want about her realm later, Brandt,” Jared said sternly.
I t his eyes, noticing the sa apprehension behind his gaze in regard to explaining my realm in front of Archer, who had witnessed a very different side of it.
“Anyway,” I breathed, crossing my arms over my chest, “this scroll is likely copied from sothing written on stone. I’ll translate it to the best of my abilities and we will go from there.”
Jared gave Archer and Brandt a look and tilted his head toward the door, his way of telling them to “Get lost.”
I turned to leave as well, but Jared stopped with a gentle touch to the back of my arm.
“Wait,” he said.
I waited to face him until Archer and Brandt closed the door behind themselves and their footsteps retreated down the hall.
“I’m sorry about the scroll.”
“I don’t care about the scroll,” Jared said as I turned around. “This is probably one of his tricks. I know you think you played him today, but Aeris is cunning, and if he finds out who you are–”
“I’m not afraid of Aeris,” I replied, sitting on the edge of the bed and crossing my legs. “I don’t think he’s as cunning as you think he is. I was sold at the auction against my will. I’m not his.”
“You’re wrong.”
“How?”
“Aeris always gets what he wants one way or another. You might slip through his fingers as a breeder, but he will find so new way to use you and make it impossible for you to leave without violence. I have to keep you safe–”
“I’m not asking you to do that–”
“I’m not asking for your fucking permission,” he said in a clipped tone, his eyes darkening with frustration. “Who do you think I am? Soone who takes you to bed and then throws you to the wolves afterward? I ant it when I said no one else can have you. I an to keep it that way.”
“Do you even want ?” I bit out. “You snuck out of my room this morning. Were you just in it for so fun? So distraction from your bigger problems, like your curse? Or are you–did you feel it too–” I bit down on my lip to stop myself from saying anything further, my cheeks going rosy with emotion.
“I felt exactly the sa thing you did, Eliza. I knew exactly what you were feeling during that dance and how you felt when you left. That’s why I followed you back to your room. That’s why I locked the fucking door behind when I ca inside because I didn’t know if I could handle being interrupted again. I’ve wanted you from the mont I laid eyes on you.”
I was at a loss for words. He took another step toward , then another.
“I can’t keep you safe,” he said. “So I’m going to find a way to get you back to your realm.”
“I’m not ready to leave yet–”
“I don’t care–”
“I’m the only person who can help you and you know it!”
“That scroll that you just told was fake was my last shot of finding the person who gave the Cryptex in the first place. Those powers you felt within it? Eliza, they were my powers. They didn’t belong to the Cryptex. It’s been taking those powers from for years. I tried getting rid of it, trust , I have, but no matter where I bury it, no matter what body of water I throw it into, I find it back in my study, untouched.”
“Why didn’t you tell this before?”
“Because the more I think about it, the less I want you to be involved. You an too much–” he bit down on the words, eyes flashing with regret.
I went rigid, a flickering of girlish hope sparking deep within my heart.
“If Aeris has anything on the person who cursed in the first place, he will try to bargain with for it. I’m guessing he knew exactly what he was doing with this fake scroll in particular. He’s testing us, Eliza.”
I didn’t want to talk about Aeris anymore. I wanted to talk about what was happening between us and why he was pushing against it, but I could tell I’d hit a dead end with Jared, at least for now.
“He thinks I’m not actually educated in this. He thinks I’m faking it.”
“Possibly, yes.”
“Then I should continue to play the part, right? He’s going to show his collection. I could find sothing–”
“There’s nothing to find.”
“Then you’re just giving up? Because you think it’s too dangerous for ?”
“I’m giving up,” he said, his voice dropping an octave. I stiffened at his tone, sensing the seriousness in his voice. “I’m giving up because your safety ans more to than dragging you on a fruitless quest. I’m guessing your parents are alive, and well, and very much loved, are they not? How would they feel about their daughter running around the fucking Dark Realm with a Dark Lord–”
“A Dark Lord married the Princess of Valoria,” I cut in.
“He is not like ,” Jared sneered. Unease rippled over my skin as I looked up into those dark eyes of his, rembering that dark shadow of power that’d followed his wolf when he left in the woods–that sa shadow he’d cast over like a net in the witch’s house, protecting , even if just for a minute. “I could rip you to shreds without realizing it–”
“I’m not afraid of you,” I hissed. “I proved that to you last night!”
“I wish you were,” he replied. “That would make this so much easier!”
A crack ford in my heart, sowhere deep in the sa place I was stuffing my feelings for him. He’d said he felt it too, whatever it was. But now?
“I’m not going to let you give up on this,” I whispered, letting that hurt ring loud and clear. I could see the effect of it on his face as I rose from the edge of the bed, looking up at him through my lashes. “I didn’t believe in fate until I ended up with you, Jared. You said you’d protect . You promised . Now I’m promising you sothing in return. I’m going to help you find the person who cursed you, and I’m going to help you break the curse.” I ran my tongue over my lower lip, my mouth going dry around my words as I continued. “Then you’ll be rid of , I promise. I’m sorry about last night. I don’t know what I was thinking.”
“Eliza–”
But I was already gone.
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