Chapter 3: A Throne of Ruin: Chapter 3

Shadows draped across the path as I made it to the birch next to the everlass field in the Forbidden Wood. With the sun holding any demonic creatures at bay, I approached it with a scowl. As soon as I got close, out came the jig. Snitch.

“One day I’m going to bring my axe, and then how cheerful and zippy will you be, huh?”

my animal grumbled.

I thought cheerfully.

As I passed the shaking birch, the most delicious smell caught my attention. All my senses snapped taut as it slithered across my skin and soaked into my body. I groaned, recognizing it immediately.

. Pine and lilac and a hint of honeysuckle. It spoke of lazy afternoons with sex hair and oversized T-shirts. Of fingertips gently grazing bare skin. Of hard bites while soaked in exquisite pleasure.

I turned toward it slowly, attuned to the feeling it evoked in me. Melting even as I breathed it in.

Nyfain had been here. Recently.

Within a thick bush at the base of the birch, I could just make out a rectangular package wrapped tightly in waxy material. Bright yellow. With my animal’s power, I could largely see in the dark using a white, black, and yellow color spectrum. This would stand out, even at night, especially if I were also using my animal’s increased sense of smell. The covering would prevent any sort of weather getting at whatever was inside, and coarse brown string kept it closed.

My animal pushed not so patiently for me to get inside the package.

I unslung my knapsack from my shoulder before reaching into the bush and hooking two fingers through the string. I pulled it to me, sliding it across the ground.

my animal whispered.

I pulled an end of the string and watched the bow fall away. Pushing the rest of the string off, I then peeled back the material, one side at a time. A folded piece of parchment waited atop a leather-bound book.

My heart surged. Excitement shot through me, and I grinned like an idiot.

my animal asked in confusion.

I unfolded the parchment first. To maximize anticipation, you should always read the card before opening the present.

I let out a long, slow breath.

I didn’t quite know how to feel. He was still taking care of me, just doing it in a way that didn’t require direct communication. How the hell was I going to forget him if I knew I would alert him every time I came to this field? Every time I asked for a type of book (because I was going to use the hell out of that library)? Every time my way was clear at night? Whenever I walked through the everlass, I’d be able to smell him. I’d imagine him walking through the tidy rows, singing to them and touching their leaves. How was this going to work?

“Oh goddess, please shut this fucking animal up,” I bit out, feeling the heavy volume and holding it to my chest. “A new book,” I whispered, half forgetting why I was here in the first place.

But seriously, a new book I hadn’t read yet? That hadn’t happened in…a very long time. I couldn’t wait to open it.

“Maybe just a peek,” I murmured, pulling open the cover. I gritted my teeth and pushed it back down. “No. Mustn’t. Must do work…”

I pulled the healing supplies for Nyfain out of my knapsack, wrapped them into the yellow cover, and stashed it back into the bush. His note went into the knapsack. The book should’ve gone with it, but I couldn’t bear to part with it yet. He’d said it was his favorite of late. That meant he wasn’t just protective of his library because it belonged to him—he enjoyed reading, too.

As if the man needed to be any sexier.

“What was up with the formal-sounding letter?” I murmured, clutching the book to my chest as I headed into the everlass field. “His handwriting is super elegant, too.”

my animal thought, and it was a sobering reminder that his education and childhood had been different than mine.

Finally, grudgingly, I put the book in my knapsack, pulled out my crossbody tweed bag that I used to carry the everlass leaves, and got to work in the everlass field, harvesting leaves and checking his pruning work. That done, I took the leaves I needed and went on my way. I had a book to read.

The next day, I could barely keep my eyes open as I worked the leaves. I’d just intended to read a couple chapters. Then just until the exciting bit slowed down. Then…

Before I knew it, the sun was peeking through the window and the book was finished. It had been a wild ride, filled with treachery, sword fights, escape, and vengeance. The happy ending had been fantastic, and I couldn’t wait to read it again. Nyfain had chosen well.

“Finley…” Hannon popped out of the back door before looking down at the metal tins and buckets arrayed around me. “What are you doing?”

“Nyfain is making good on his promises, so I need to make good on mine. I’m making elixirs.” I pointed at a metal canister with a red stripe. “I have the demon sex magic-be-gone draught for the people in the palace.” Although they hadn’t been beset by the sickness, time had stilled for them. They didn’t age, they couldn’t have children, and they lived at the mercy of demons who’d sexually twisted them. I pointed at the metal canister with the blue stripe. “Nulling elixir for the other villages. The potency will wear off because of the travel time, but that can’t be helped. Plus, there’s more salve and healing stuff for him…”

“How are you going to transport all of that? How is going to?”

“I’ll stow everything in a big bag for his dragon’s mouth. Might take a few trips, but it’ll be fine.”

He gave me a flat stare. “I told you so.”

“He’s not playing games. He really is making good on his promises.”

“Whatever happened to you hating him?”

I scowled. “Don’t worry. Give me five minutes in his presence, and I’m sure I will go right back to hating him. His personality is hard to take.”

“Uh-huh. Well, you should check on Dad. He’s plateauing. He’s weak as a kitten and groggy, but that’s to be expected, given how long he was on the brink.”

“I checked on him earlier. There are no visible signs of the sickness, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t there in small amounts. It’s impossible to tell if he’s been cured without more time. I’m going to work on a weaker elixir tomorrow for Old Man Fortety down the street. He’s not nearly as far along as Dad, and he’s been asking all his neighbors to just kill him off before he starts wetting the bed. I figure he’ll let me try out a new concoction on him if I promise it might finally end his suffering. I just won’t tell him which type of suffering I mean.”

Hannon cracked a smile. “Wise. What time are you headed to the field tonight?”

My pulse fluttered. “Not sure. I need to check Nyfain’s chart. Late, though. I’ll go to bed early.”

A night bird cried out a warning as I worked my way through the Forbidden Wood. Gnarled trees lurked in the darkness, shadowy shapes hunkering by the small trail. Stars crowded the sky, but a slice of pale moon only gave weak light. My animal was right near the surface, helping me discern any dangers that might be hiding nearby. So far, Nyfain had stayed true to his word. The way was clear.

The enchanted birch rose in front of me, and everything in me said to go around it. It had been drilled into my head from an early age that to set foot in this wood was death. To get out was lucky. The tree’s habit of shaking like some clown on drugs was not great for my comfort level. But Nyfain had said he’d run to help if he thought I was in danger. Plus, I had a shiny new dagger, thirsty for demon creature blood. Or maybe that was just my animal.

The tree started up like a dancing girl trying to shake her boobs out of her dress as I ducked around it and darted to the bush. Nyfain’s smell zinged through me, heavy in the area. It wasn’t as fresh as it had been yesterday, but it was more plentiful. He’d lingered.

I reached into the bush and then yanked my hand back. The yellow package had been filled again.

Biting my lip, suppressing a smile, I hooked my fingers through the brown string and carefully dragged it out. I pulled at the end and then disentangled it off the package. Another parchment lay folded up inside, over an additional leather-bound book. My stomach fluttered.

His writing was not nearly so delicate this time. A bit of a mess, really, as though he’d brought the supplies and written it here, crouched down next to the bush.

I pulled out this volume and noticed there was extra parchment and a fountain pen stashed beneath it. I smiled to myself and pulled it out, sitting back against the birch, whose antics had simmered down, and spread a piece of parchment over the smooth surface of the book.

I took a moment to glance at his list of books, twenty in all, and only eight I recognized.

I sat with the pen in my hand, thinking about what else I could say. What else I might want to tell him, or get him to tell me. I didn’t want this to be the end of the conversation—I also didn’t want to use up all of our topics in one go.

With that in mind, I took a chance.

The birch shook when I left, and I had a smile on my face all the way home.

The next day I went back in the afternoon, carrying more canisters. I knew it was probably too early to hope for a return note, but I figured I could add at least more canisters to the bag. A dragon could carry much more than I could. Besides, I wanted a few more crowded plant leaves so I could start experimenting. I’d also written out a bunch of questions about everlass for Nyfain.

At the birch, his smell caught me again, snapping my focus taut and sending a zip of fire through my body. It was recent and potent, deliciously curling through my senses and wetting my panties. My animal purred in delight, and I wondered just what had created the extra depth to his scent.

I spat out a laugh, settling back against the shaking birch to read.

I giggled as I read, nodding. He’d figured it out I twisted my legs together and fanned myself. Even when talking about deliciously crude sex scenes, he was well spoken. It was insane. The author of these letters did not sound like the gruff, rough-and-tumble, scarred beast I’d met and constantly fought with. It was like two different people.

Though I did remember the guy from the everlass field. The guy who’d opened up about his mom and easily worked past my angry defenses. That guy was fun to talk with. He was interesting and engaging.

Even that guy, though, hadn’t been this eloquent. He hadn’t sounded this regal. And while normally that might bother me…somehow, right now, it didn’t. He was almost too charming to exist in this twisted version of real life.

My grin spread wider. He had me. That was a pretty epic scene. It was when the hero stopped treating her like she was breakable, and they started working as a team. It made the action more exciting and the sex scenes hotter. Still, the horse-riding scene was a close second. I wasn’t going to lie. I’d also always wanted to try it.

A Journey to Wastrel

Breakout “First we heal,” I murmured to myself, “then we’ll have numbers to fight.”

I sat with his letter for a while, not able to ignore my aching heart or the fire in my body. I didn’t think I could compose a letter right now. Not after that. His apology and confession about the tower…

His delicious sexual comments…

His gratitude and the admissions about his dragon…

It was all so much to unpack.

I didn’t want to leave him hanging, though. I didn’t want him to think he’d overstepped. I definitely didn’t want to stop this communication. Plus, night was creeping in quickly.

I hurried away with the new books and letter stored in my knapsack, along with more crowded everlass leaves. I needed to get that book for Nyfain. I also needed to read the ones he’d passed to me. Damn life for getting in the way of my new books!

I wondered what Nyfain would think of the next book on the list. If he’d thought of me in that last one, he’d definitely think of me in the next one. The main couple’s relationship was turbulent, and they always ended up hate-fucking. It was the book I still had at home.

Probably time for a reread.