Faren felt Leiya wince in surprise and then yell out in shock, seeing her father in danger, but Faren was already moving, and the first traitors were already dead. There was little time to calculate the honor in fighting these wretches, when Faren now had to protect two other living creatures in the hall.#p#分页标题#e#
Alone, he could have killed them all barehanded if he needed to, snapping their necks like he did with the first two that stood in his way, but time was of the essence. He chose the warrior whose grip on his spear was the most unskilled and drove his fist up under his chin so hard he dislocated his jaw. The spear almost dropped into his hands.
It seemed tiny and too light, but Faren was a general, and Brion generals were all at least passably good with every weapon they knew. And he had never been one to do things passably.
Even while his mind was on the battle and ending it quickly, Faren could barely fight down a pleased smile. Leiya and her father seemed to be doing everything right for people in their position. She’d run to the senator as soon as he’d left her side. They kept away from the fight, but behind his back like they should. There was a spear in Senator Tawren’s hands, with a graceless grip, but at least he wouldn’t stand helpless against a rogue attacker.
Just like before, Faren aimed to kill against his better judgment. He would have wanted them to suffer, a deep and dark part of him called for that kind of revenge, but he pushed it aside for Leiya. The only wounds he dealt were to incapacitate those he didn’t have the time for at that particular second. Many were groaning on the ground with horrendous wounds in their thighs, waiting until he had the moment to finish them off.
The leader of this band of sell-swords even managed to block a few of his blows. That was all the victory he got to taste, before Faren broke through his defense with a quick move and slashed his gut open with one fell swoop.
A startled scream from behind him made Faren turn in horror, but it was just Primen, the last one still standing. He was approaching Leiya and her father, a spear in his hand, but his hands were shaking so hard even Tawren could have unarmed him easily.
Faren knocked the weapon out of his hands, and only then did the senator appear to truly see him. Up this close, he was a pitiful creature, with mad eyes and shivers wrecking his body. Either from exhaustion or simple fear, he dropped to his knees. The loathing was still there, lurking behind his terrified eyes, but it had lost its bite.
Primen searched for words, but didn’t seem to find any. It seemed to Faren some of them were pleas that he discarded as pointless. Finally, although his voice shook, he whispered,
“Make it quick.”
Everything in Faren wanted to refuse Primen’s plea. After all, he wasn’t known for his forgiveness. Yet, when he looked at Leiya, he found the strength to push that desire away. For her.
The man didn’t deserve it, but death was death, and that would be Faren’s comfort. He raised the spear and delivered a clean blow, cutting his head off his shoulders. Then, he let the spear fall and went to retrieve his ax. Primen’s death hadn’t been satisfying in any way, but the fact that he was finally gone and righteously so was good enough.
With tact he didn’t normally portray, he gave Leiya and her father a moment to embrace the fact that they still drew breath. Only when Senator Tawren finally released his little girl from his hug did he return to them.
“Thank you,” Leiya said at once, her eyes shimmering. “I knew you wouldn’t let my father die.”
Senator Tawren seemed less certain of that.
“I must thank you as well,” he said. “But you must forgive me if I don’t share my... daughter’s belief. If I hadn’t moved away, I would have had my throat cut. Is that not so?”
“No,” Faren said. “I would have done as he asked. You gave me a chance not to do that.”
Tawren’s eyes barely held his surprise, but only for a moment.
“I find that very hard to believe.”
“I know.”
Senator Tawren looked at Leiya, nodding slowly.
“At least I know my little spark will always be protected.”
“Yes,” Faren said, although it was stating the obvious.
Only when they were already on their way back to the Unbroken, with Leiya in his arms, pressed against him like she was never going to leave, did she ask,
“Would you really have done that? For me?”
“Yes.”
“I can’t imagine it. I think you would have found some other way.”
“If there was one.”
Leiya laughed then, the sound so much more precious to him now that he’d had to face the possibility of never hearing it again.
“You would have found it,” she said then. “They say you don’t even know the word.”#p#分页标题#e#
“That is ridiculous,” Faren said, but Leiya giggled happily in his arms, shaking her head.
“I know, I know,” she said. “I know you know the word please exists, it’s just a joke. I’m just saying I can’t imagine hearing you say that.”
Faren caught her in a kiss, the feel of her pressing herself against him becoming more and more unbearable by the minute.
“I can’t either,” he confessed, looking at the way her eyes clouded over in desire. “It doesn’t suit me. I would like to hear it from you instead.”
The little starlet smiled the most disarming smirk he’d ever seen.
“Is that so,” his gesha whispered against his lips in a tease of another kiss, pulling back just when he reached for it.
“Make me say it then.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
Leiya
Oh gods.
Leiya couldn’t really be sure if she was more scared or more aroused by the look in Faren’s eyes. And if she was brutally honest, she didn’t know if there was a real difference between those emotions anymore.
Oh yeah. Such a great idea. Teasing Faren. That has ended well for people before.
Only of course it was different with her. Her gerion ended her attempts at teasing him by pulling her hair gently but firmly until her throat was bared to him. Leiya shivered from head to toe, but it was nothing to Faren’s lips suddenly pressed to her exposed skin. He kissed a line from her shoulders up her neck, his breath tickling her – surely that was the reason she was trembling out of her skin – and over her chin to her lips.
“I like a challenge,” Faren said.
You definitely have the right gesha then.
“And I don’t make empty promises.”
I know. By the gods, I believe you. What sucks is that you can probably tell how much my body believes you too.
Faren’s voice dropped even lower.
“So you can hold me to my word. I’ll make you beg.”
Mmmm. Definitely more aroused. But also very, very scared.
Considering the events that had taken place over the last few days, Leiya just nodded when Faren informed her that he was needed on the bridge for just a bit. At the very least, he had to accept a call from Eleya and the other senators to give his full report on what had happened.
They’d wanted to question Leiya as well and confirm the rumors about her, but she had no wish to discuss anything. She was very busy trying to block out all the death she’d seen, so Faren had told them a firm no, at least for a few days. The only person she'd talked to had been her father. She was still mad and not ready to forgive him entirely, but the love they felt for each other was unshakable.
Senator Tawren agreed to deal with the matter of making it public while Leiya handled her binding. It simply overshadowed everything else, like it should. Only after that would she allow herself to think of what was next for her. She was a human on Briolina. Things were definitely going to change.
Leiya had no idea if Faren had bought her a few days to recover, or because he didn’t plan for them to come out of the bedroom for that long. Both were fine with her.
The general had told her to rest up. She’d been on the run, and then they’d gone to Nelya Hill. In truth, Leiya was tired, but if he thought she’d be able to sleep, he had to be out of his mind.
It was funny, it really was, the way Faren’s name seemed to change in meaning depending on how much danger she was in. On Briolina, she’d given in to the bond, at least in her heart. Not simply because he’d come to her rescue, but because of the bond itself. There was no denying it. She couldn’t spend one day away from him anymore. Even the hour Faren had predicted he’d be gone seemed too much.
So there was no dilemma or doubt in her heart about that. She was his gesha, and while certain things still needed to be solved, like the fact Faren tended to kill most living creatures he met, Leiya was happy. Something about Faren made her happy – she couldn’t put it into words, but it was there nonetheless, as undeniable and mysterious as the bindings ever were.
No, her willingness to say yes very loudly wasn’t the issue. It was just the small matter of being very close to getting fucked by the Monster of Briolina. The thought alone made Leiya’s knees go so weak she had to sit down on the bed. That most assuredly didn’t help since her mind kept imagining being bent over it as soon as Faren returned.
She knew what the warriors were like. The flight up to the Unbroken hadn’t been long enough for the battle hormones to be out of the general’s blood. There was little chance he’d be in a waiting mood. And besides, why should she make him wait?#p#分页标题#e#