Okot is true to his word. Soon after claiming a cabin, he leaves to go see if there’s any way we can get to the guys.
Meanwhile, I switch out of my servant’s uniform for the finer gown and heels that Duru packed for me. My skin is still dark pink enough to pass for high fae, so at least I don’t have to worry about that, but I do need to tidy myself up a bit if I’m going to pass for a noble. Even lesser nobles don’t walk around with frizzy braids and naked faces.
Okot doesn’t come back to the cabin until nightfall. I’m pacing around the small wooden space when he walks in and I nearly jump out of my skin. “Where have you been? I was worried! I thought you got caught or something.”
He tilts his head at me like my freak-out confuses him. “I apologize, my beloved. I did not mean to cause you distress.”
“What happened? You were gone for hours.”
“Come,” he says, holding out his hand for me.
Giving him a curious look, I place my small hand in his, and he leads me outside.
There are still fae arriving from the portal on the hill, so the rows of cabins are busy with fae coming and going as they claim their spaces. Word is that the culling will start first thing in the morning, although I have no idea what time or what to expect.
Okot leads me past the cabins, all the way to the amphitheater. At night, it looks ominous. Its sheer size is intimidating. A guard stands at one of the entrances, but all he does is nod to Okot as we pass him by.
Inside, he leads me down a curving passageway until we get to what can only be the backstage area. But instead of a green room, there are prison cells. Another guard stands watch here, and his steady gaze meets Okot’s.
“Ten minutes. That’s it.”
Okot nods and pulls me forward toward the passageway where the cells are. The guard closes the door behind us, making it even darker than before. A lone lantern hangs on the wall, but it casts more shadows than light.
The further down the passageway we go, I notice that the constant pain in my gut lessens significantly. My body is tingling, too, and with more than just anticipation. I can feel the magic of my anchors trying to grab hold of me. My missing arm buzzes.
As we pass by the cells, I notice they’re all slightly different than the others. Some are visible through bars, some are completely enclosed in stone or wood, and one is made entirely of iron. Some of the contestants eye us as we walk by, but none of them say anything.
At the very end of the hallway, I find them. I run up to their cell, my hand gripping the bars, and I’m unable to stop the sob that escapes me. At the sound, the three figures lying on the hard floor stir slightly.
“Okot, can you bring over that lantern?” I whisper.
He turns to go get it while I continue to stare inside the cell. When he gets back, he hangs the lantern beside their cell so I can get a better look. What I see makes my jaw clench.
My guys are curled up on the hard stone ground. They’re dirty, and I can only imagine how uncomfortable and hungry they must be. They weren’t given a pallet bed or even a blanket. There’s a single bucket in the corner that I’m sure isn’t filled with water.
“Guys?” I call out, my voice shaky.
At my voice, three heads pop up on high alert, their sleep immediately ended. Evert gets up so quickly that I can’t even track his movements. He’s just suddenly in front of me, his tired face taking me in like he was afraid he’d never see me again.
“Fucking hell, Scratch. I’ve been worried.”
I can’t help the tears that start to trickle from my eyes. ‘Me too,’ I say, my voice cracking. ‘I missed you guys so much.’
I try to memorize his face, his thick black beard, his bright blue eyes. The dimples are hiding, but I know they’re there. I look over at Sylred and Ronak as they come over to join Evert by the bars. With all three of them in front of me again, all I want to do is squeeze into the cell with them.
“Don’t cry,” Sylred says quietly.
“Yeah, it fucking kills me when you cry,” Evert chimes in.
I raise my hands to wipe away my tears, but I stop awkwardly. Duh, Emelle, you’re still missing a freaking arm. Could I be any more obvious about it?
Ronak’s eyes zero in on my empty sleeve. “What happened?”
His strong hands grip the bars until his knuckles turn white. Ronak’s intense gaze makes my heart stutter a little. She gets excited when he goes all alpha-mode.
“Nothing,” I say, quickly shifting away.
I’m not quick enough. Ronak’s hand snaps out from between the bars and grips the empty fabric where my arm should be, yanking me forward.
Okot suddenly steps up behind me, grabbing my other arm gently but firmly. I feel like I’m about to be the rope in a tug-of-war match.
“Do not manhandle her,” Okot growls.
It’s like my three genfins suddenly notice his presence, and crackling tension fills the air.
Evert’s gaze flicks from me to Okot and then back again. “Who the fuck is this, Scratch?”
Hmm. How to introduce them… I open my mouth to answer when I feel Okot step closer, his chest pressing against my back. I can’t help but relax against him, and the movement is not lost on anyone.
Did I just see flashes of jealousy cross their faces? I perk up a bit. I shouldn’t love making them jealous, but…Yep. I love it.
“Are you okay?” Okot asks me, ignoring the other’s glares.
“I’m fine.” Okot relaxes slightly and even releases his hold on my arm, but not before he leans down and inhales the scent of my hair.
“What the fuck? Don’t smell her,” Evert snaps.
“It’s okay. We sniff. It’s our thing,” I explain.
The genfins just frown more.
“Right. Introductions. Okot, Evert is the one who says ‘fuck’ a lot. Sylred is the nice one. And that muscley one who always frowns is Ronak. Guys, this is Okot. I’m his mate,” I say, wagging my brows.
All three genfins stare at me incredulously. Evert pinches the bridge of his nose and closes his eyes as if he just can’t deal with me. I’m pretty sure I can hear him counting under his breath.
He looks up at Sylred. “She’s been gone for a week. A. Fucking. Week. And she has a mate?”
“I’m right here, you can talk to me.”
He shakes his head, still looking at Sylred. “No, I can’t. Because if I look at you, then I’ll have to look at him, and if I look at him, then I’ll want to punch him in the fucking throat. And based on the fucking size of your so-called fucking mate, that probably wouldn’t end well for me.”
I can’t help but snicker. “You should see his bull form.”
Evert tilts his head back and sighs. “Great. A fucking lamassu.”
Sylred holds his hand out through the bars to shake Okot’s hand. “I’m Sylred. Nice to meet you.”
See? Always the nice one.
Evert rounds on Ronak. “This is your fault.”
Ronak frowns. “My fault? How is this my fault?”
“You were a dick, and now she has a fucking mate!”
Ronak clenches his jaw. “Fuck you.”
“No, I wanted to fuck her, but you put some covey guilt bullshit on me so I couldn’t. I told you assholes this is what would happen. I told you she’d leave. And I told you, I’m fucking done with this covey if that happens. You want to go chase some female genfin’s tail? Go for it. I’m done.”
Evert is pissed. Like really freaking pissed. The way he’s glaring at Ronak makes my stomach hurt, and I’m almost positive they’re about to flip to beast mode and go at each other. I don’t want them to get hurt.
Even more than that, I don’t want them to destroy the tentative peace they’ve rebuilt over the last couple of weeks. I know the friendship is there, and I won’t let them ruin it. Not over me. I’m supposed to be the glue. I’m the cupid that’s supposed to heal their hearts. Not rip them further apart.
“Wait a minute,” I interrupt. “Let’s back up here. First of all, who said anything about me leaving? I didn’t leave. I’ve been trying to see you this whole time. You’re a hard covey to get to, you know? And I don’t want you three to break up. I told you that already, remember? You aren’t leaving your covey, Evert.”
He levels a glare at me. “I can do whatever the fuck I want.”
Gods, he’s infuriating. Also really hot when he glares like that.
I narrow my eyes on him. “Stop. You three need each other. You have to get through this culling, and to do that, you need to have each other’s backs. But even after that, you three belong together. I’m not going to leave, but if you dissolve the covey, I won’t speak to any of you ever again.”
The three of them stare back at me in varying frowns. “Is that clear?” I prompt.
Evert clenches his jaw but nods tersely.
“Good.”
“What about you?” Evert snaps.
“What about me?”
“Scratch. You can’t have a mate,” he says through clenched teeth.
“Uh, he’s right here, so obviously I can.”
“I don’t give a flying fuck about him. I care about you. I’ve been going crazy in here worrying about you. You’re supposed to stick with us. You landed on our island, remember?”
“How could I forget when Not-First shot me down with an arrow?”
“Never gonna let that go,” Ronak mutters under his breath.
“So you’re really sticking with this mate shit?” Evert asks, glaring at Okot.
“Yeah. He sniffs me and calls me his beloved,” I say. “It’s super nice.”
“What the fuck about us?”
I frown. I hadn’t expected this reaction. Sure, Evert and I have always flirted, but they all made it clear that I couldn’t be more to them, and I made it clear that this cupid needs some love and sex of her own.
“Last I heard, you guys needed to find a genfin mate to fix your powers and your covey bond. I promised you that I’d use my cupid mojo to help with your mate, and I stand by that promise.”
Even though the thought of that leaves a bitter taste in my mouth. They all share a look that doesn’t communicate anything to me. “So I won’t leave,” I repeat. Not that I can leave, but they don’t need to know that.
“Is that still what you want?” I ask quietly. “To find a genfin mate?”
Please say no. Please say you want me instead.
Ronak nods tersely. “Yes.”
Evert shoots him a scathing look. “I said I’m done with that. Fuck the magic. We have enough.”
Ronak sighs, and Sylred mumbles something I don’t catch.
“But—”
“Scratch,” Evert interrupts. “Enough. We’ll talk about it later. But you said you’re not leaving us, which means you don’t need a fucking mate. So get rid of him.”
I narrow my eyes. “So you all can go get a mate but I can’t? That’s not how this works, you selfish ass. You should be happy for me. He wants me.”
“And what if I said I want you?” he snaps.
Well. I didn’t expect that.
My mouth opens and shuts a few times before my brain can catch up. “You want me? As what?” I challenge, growing angry. “A quick screw? Maybe I offered that in the beginning, but I want more than that now. And you aren’t offering me more. That decision is a covey thing. Not just an Evert thing. And the covey already voted against me.”
How dare he act as if this is my fault? Like I’m the one who rejected them, when we all know it was the other way around.
“We already established you’re not breaking the covey up. So unless you, as a covey, are offering me something more, this matter is closed.”
“Unfuckingbelievable,” Evert says, throwing his arms in the air. “Syl. Take over. I can’t talk to her when she does the thing where she disagrees with me.”
I let out a big breath. “Look, I don’t want to fight. Please. I just wanted to see you. I’m worried about you guys.”
“We’ll be fine, Emelle,” Sylred assures me.
I so badly want to fall against his chest so he can wrap me up and hold me.
“Can’t you just use your super strength powers and break out of here?” I ask Ronak.
He shakes his head and raps a knuckle against the cell bar. “Iron and magic-infused cells. No one’s powers work inside these.”
Well that sucks.
Okot cuts in before anything else can be said. “We don’t have much longer.”
The thought of having to leave them again so soon kills me.
Okot’s eyes soften at my pained expression. “I will try to get you back to see them again.”
“You will?” I ask, crying again.
Ugh. How do I cry so fast? I must have tears with super-speed.
“Of course. These are the genfins that have my mate’s heart. I will do anything to make my mate happy.”
Okot’s words impact the guys immediately. The three of them stiffen, and I feel their assessing stares burning into me. I guess they didn’t expect to hear how much I care about them from a stranger.
I clear my throat awkwardly and change the subject. “Yeah, umm, so anyway…I really missed you guys ,and I also really needed to see you, and…”
“You still didn’t answer my question,” Ronak says, cutting me off with at tug on my sleeve. “You’re missing your arm. Just like you were when you got back from Arachno’s island. Tell us why.”
Evert and Sylred’s gazes lock onto the spot of fabric that Ronak’s still gripping.
“Oh, this old thing?” I shrug with a fake laugh. “This…umm…happens sometimes.”
I can’t tell them the truth, especially not right now when they have plenty else to worry about. They need their heads on straight for the culling tomorrow.
Plus, I already promised myself that I wouldn’t guilt them into choosing to stay with me. They might not want me to leave, but that obviously doesn’t mean they want to take me for their mate. I refuse to guilt them into that.
Instead of admitting what’s going on, I quickly reach my other—still tangible—arm through the bars. “I just need you all to touch me. Please.”
Ronak holds the others at bay with an outstretched hand and then turns back to me. “Tell us why.”
“Do you always have to be so difficult?”
“Do you always have to be so stubborn?”
“You haven’t told them?” Okot asks with surprise.
When the genfins start glaring at me again, I look over my shoulder and glare at Okot.
Are we about to have our first couple fight? Wait. That actually sounds kind of fun. Domestic stuff excites me. After we fight, we could have hot angry sex. Or frenzied makeup sex. That sounds super fun. I’ll take one with a side of the other, please.
Except…oh, who am I kidding? I can’t have sex while my genfins are in prison. I need them safe first. Safe and alive, and then I’ll get the sex. All the sex. Sex for days.
Under my glare, Okot’s expression falls. “What?” he asks, all innocent-like.
I make a face at him for spilling my secrets. “Just…play it cool.”
He frowns. “I don’t know what this playing cool means. It is nearly summer. It’s hot out.”
I grin, barely holding back the impulse to squeeze his big cheeks. “I just can’t stay mad at you when you say adorable stuff like that.”
He grins back at me, but the moment is interrupted when Evert claps his hands. “Hey! Break it up,” he points at me. “Scratch, tell us what the fuck is going on already, where the hell your arm is, and why you need us to touch you. And then get your ass over here and kiss me because I fucking missed you.”
He practically growls that last part, but it doesn’t matter because Ohmygodshewantstokissme. I barely suppress the urge to squeal.
Before I can reply, we hear the prison door open and the guard yells over to us. “Time’s up!”
Using this momentary distraction, I quickly jam my hand against Evert’s arm, then Sylred’s chest, and then slap Ronak’s hand, making him let go of my dress in surprise.
Immediately, the pain in my stomach disappears and my missing arm pops back into view. I breathe out a sigh of relief and move it around.
“Whew. That’s better. Thank gods for that.”
Evert stares wide-eyed at my reappeared limb. “What the fuck?”
“Let’s go!” The guard shouts.
“I’m sorry, we have to leave, my beloved,” Okot says, taking my hand.
“Wait!” I press my cheeks against the bars, smashing my face in as far as I can so I can peck a kiss on Evert’s lips, then Sylred’s, and I even get Ronak’s cheek.
“Be careful tomorrow. Don’t you dare get hurt or die. Understand?”
Okot pulls me away, but I feel like I’m leaving three pieces of my heart behind.
“You have to win, okay? Protect each other!” I say over my shoulder as Okot continues to lead me further away.
“Don’t worry about us, Emelle,” Sylred calls back. “Just take care of yourself.”
“And you’d better fucking take care of her, too, lamassu. Anything happens to her, and I’ll do more than just punch you in the throat,” Evert adds.
A half-laugh, half-sob escapes me, but before I can say anything back, I’m led through the door and the guard shuts and bolts it behind us. Okot passes him something and nods his head in thanks before leading me out of the amphitheater.
I walk, numb, all the way back to our cabin.
When we get back inside, Okot sets me on the small couch before going over to the little kitchenette. He places a steaming cup of tea in my shaking hands. “Drink.”
I do as he says, but I don’t taste it. My throat burns as I swallow but not nearly as much as my tear-filled eyes.
Okot sits next to me and puts his huge arm around my back, pulling me close. He doesn’t talk; doesn’t press me for anything at all, even though there were plenty of discussion-worthy moments back at the cells.
He’s content to simply be here for me, giving me quiet comfort. I appreciate it more than he can possibly know. We may not know each other very well yet, but this—this moment right here tells me more than a thousand words ever will.
When I’ve finished my tea and my tears have dried, Okot picks me up and settles me in the small bed against the wall. He tucks me in and kisses me on the forehead, breathing me in slightly.
“Sleep now, my beloved,’ he tells me.
So I do.
