Dark Matter (10 page)

His deep eyes searched mine intently.
He didn’t exactly seem like a bad person, so why did he scare me so
much?

“
I haven’t decided yet.” His
hand reached for mine.

I balled my fingers into a fist and
pulled my hand behind my back. The movement was completely
instinct. I didn’t want to feel his skin against mine any more. I
didn’t want my heart to respond to his nearness. Simply put, I
didn’t want him to have power over me.

He clenched his jaw. His lips went
rigid. “Can’t you see I am trying to help you? We need to get you
out of here. It’s not safe for you to linger.” He held his hand out
toward me again and looked at me expectantly.

As I saw it, I doubted I could find my
way out of this place alone. My lungs were starting to ache in a
way that had me nervous. I wasn’t sure what I should do, but I
placed my hand lightly in his. He clamped his fingers around mine
firmly. I could feel the tension oozing off him like a small fog.
My scar tingled, but didn’t hurt when our skin touched. In fact,
now that I thought about it, I hadn’t noticed my scar much since I
came here. I tried to make a mental connection with him again, but
a solid wall barred me from sensing his emotions. The only other
lord that had been able to keep me out of his mind had been
Zach.

The tunnel had so many twists and turns
it felt like we weren’t getting anywhere. I still held a hope that
at some point I wouldn’t be so aware of Heath—that he wouldn’t
affect me this much—but it was slowly turning to
despair.

We traveled for a long time. I was
covered in sweat and dust. My eyes felt heavy and my body weak. I
didn’t want to show him how fragile I really was, but if I didn’t
do something soon I would probably pass out. As it was my vision
was going dark around the edges every few feet.

From what Cassie had said, I had been
asleep for a couple of days. It had been at least that long since I
had had anything to eat or drink.

Heath set a steady pace, and I
struggled to keep up. He sidestepped a rock I didn’t see in time.
My shoe caught the edge and I tripped, sprawling forward. He
whirled around and caught me before my knees could hit the dirt. I
wanted to scream. I hated being this pathetic.

He pulled me up and studied me. His
concern for me was clear in the set of his eyes. “What is wrong
with you?”

I cringed. “I’m okay.”

One corner of his mouth twisted up. He
stared straight at me. “You think me a fool?”

I raised my chin. “I don’t think
anything about you.”

He cocked his head and smiled widely.
“Liar.”

“
Jerk.”

He laughed and before I could protest
he lifted me into his arms. One part of me was so relieved I didn’t
have to take another step that I could have cried. The rest of me
was so angry I had to rely on him to save me that I wanted to hit
something. Hard.

I’d never been the damsel in distress
type, and it nearly killed me to know that’s how I appeared to him.
The last thing I wanted was his help, but I needed it. I tried to
stay rigid, but I found myself relaxing into him after a
while.

The further we got away from the
castle, the cooler it became. I was beginning to shiver despite the
fact that I had put my jacket back on. Heath pulled me closer
without saying anything. I rested my head on his bare shoulder,
ignoring how smooth his skin felt underneath my cheek.

We finally reached another door.
Daylight streamed through tiny cracks around the frame illuminating
the dust motes that swirled around us. My lungs ached for more of
the taunting bursts of fresh air that managed to cut through the
sulfur. He set me down and studied me.

I cleared my throat and shifted
uncomfortably. After several moments of silence, I couldn’t take it
anymore. “What?”

With the subtlety of a practiced
seducer, he licked his bottom lip that was only inches from mine.
“I’m finding this to be a rather difficult decision.”

Well, that was vague. A myriad of
possibilities snaked through my mind trying to entrance me. “How’s
that?” I managed to ask through the onslaught of images that
refused to just go away like I wanted them to. This was bad enough
without me making it worse.

He tilted his head. “I expected more of
a fight from Finn. My victory earlier feels
rather…hollow.”

I nodded in acknowledgement, but I
didn’t feel the same way. “I know this is going to sound weird
considering all that has happened, but I think I’m glad it went the
way it did.”

A teasing light came into his eyes.
“Are you yielding to me then?”

I rolled my eyes. “As if.”

His smile suggested I had just made him
the happiest man alive. “That’s what I thought. At least our battle
won’t be so short-lived.”

His answer startled me. Was I actually
glimpsing a part of his character? Something I could use to my
advantage?

He lived for fighting. Simply put: he
was a warrior in desperate need of a good smack down. Maybe I
should suggest the Ultimate Fighter Championship? I’d watched a few
fights with Travis when I’d been bored out of my brain. I stole a
quick glance. Naw. There’d be no contest with him in the
cage.

I resisted the urge to lick my parched
lips. “I hope you like losing.”

His eyes roamed over me and a
self-satisfied grin curved his mouth. He let go of my legs then
pressed me back against the frigid wall. I told myself I was only
trembling because it was freaking cold not because he was near me.
He tucked my hair behind my ear and leaned into me. I wasn’t about
to let him claim any ground so I locked gazes with him.

“
One always has to be
willing to lose to be able to win…in battle and in life. I wonder.
Are you willing to lose, Rayla?”

Chapter Seven

The pulse of my heart set a staggered
rhythm in my ears. That was a good question. Was I willing to lose
all to fight Heath? Did I even have a choice in the matter? I
couldn’t live with myself if I just let him claim me. What about
the feelings I still harbored for Zach and Luke? I gave him a
serious expression. “I am.”

He let an honest smile curve his mouth.
“Good.” He came closer, hovering, making me wait for his next move.
Our breath mingled before he pressed his lips to mine.

For one blissful second I considered
letting him kiss me, but I could allow him to have any part of me.
Okay, so I may have gotten a little carried away when I sank my
teeth into his lip.

He didn’t make a sound, but he did pull
back. His eyes never faltering from my gaze, he touched the line of
blood flowing down his chin, quirking a brow. “You fight dirty?
We’ll see how long you can keep it up.”

I was worried about that too, and I
didn’t want him to see any weakness in me. I hadn’t meant to really
hurt him, but I wasn’t going to apologize. Pushing with all the
strength I had left, I shoved at his chest. “Get off
me.”

With a chuckle, he stepped away
casually and opened the door. Snow blasted into me. My teeth
started chattering immediately, but I wasn’t going to grovel to get
something warmer to wear.

I rubbed my arms brusquely, walking
ahead of him. He grabbed my elbow. The perpetual smirk was still on
his lips. “So you’re stubborn too. Good to know.”

I yanked my arm out of his grasp and
began walking again. He caught up to me effortlessly.

“
You would rather freeze to
death than ask for help?”

I glanced at him but kept going. That
was all the answer he was getting. Suddenly, I found myself covered
from head to toe in fur. I kept my relief to myself and trudged
ahead. I still had no idea where he was taking me, but I figured
anywhere away from the tunnels was better than slowly roasting,
freezing, or suffocating.

We came to an absolute dead end after
laboring through miles of snow. Nothing but icy cliffs surrounded
us. I whirled around and glared at him.

His hair appeared nearly black in this
light only adding to his dark charm, but I refused to get
distracted by his obscenely good looks. “What’s the point in giving
me warm clothes if all you’re going to do is keep me out here
forever? I’ll freeze anyway.”

He shook his head. He was still
shirtless, and I was sure it was to make me uncomfortable. Steam
rose from his skin as snowflakes melted into rivulets that raced
down the valleys of his torso. How was it then that I couldn’t see
even one lousy goose-bump? Being immune to the cold was an unfair
advantage.

He sighed. “I have come to a decision.
I know you are trying to save the lord of void. I might be willing
to assist you…”

Was I really hearing him correctly? He
was going to help me? He was honestly the last person I thought
would.

“
For a price,” he
finished.

Of course. I frowned. “What’s that?” If
Heath was asking for payment, it wouldn’t be something
small.

“
I haven’t exactly decided
yet, but trust me you’ll know when I have. There are a few things
to take care of before we can go. We need to attend the ceremony
tonight and make it look good. One thing is critical. They have to
think you escaped. With the security measures currently in place, I
may have to enlist help to get you away from the
castle.”

“
Who?” He couldn’t be
thinking of Levi. At least I hoped he wasn’t.

“
I have a few friends that
will most certainly want to assist in this effort.” When I stared
at him dubiously, he said, “I know it’s probably hard to imagine,
but I did have a life before you came into it.”

I ignored his distraction attempt.
Something about the way he was looking at me told me there was more
to the story. “What aren’t you telling me?”

“
I believe you are
acquainted with at least one of my friends. He comes in handy from
time to time.”

I shook my head. Why was he being so
cryptic? “Just tell me who it is.”

“
Gibbit.”

My eyes flew wide when realization hit
me. “Where you the one that hired him to get me
fae-nipped?”

He looked at the ground, a naughty
smile tugging the edges of his mouth. When he glanced back up at
me, light played in his eyes. “That’s your first mistake. You
assume I am the only fae that has a stake in your
future.”

I thought I knew, but I had to ask.
“Who else?”

“
Ainessa…among
others.”

I groaned inwardly because I didn’t
want to let on how much it bothered me that people I didn’t even
know were conspiring against me. “Are you working with
her?”

“
I wouldn’t say we are
collaborating if that is what you are asking, but we do have
similar goals in mind.”

“
What exactly are your
goals?”

He folded his arms across his chest.
His gaze didn’t waver when he answered me. “To claim
you.”

Another helpful answer. “Yea, I already
got that part, but isn’t there something else behind your desire.
Is it my power you want?” I asked bluntly.

“
I don’t have political
ambitions if that’s what you’re thinking.”

A strange thought struck me. He loved
the chase. I knew that about him already, but what if that wasn’t
his only motivation? What if he was merely trying to prove himself?
At this point, I didn’t care what his reasons for helping me find
Zach and Luke were. I needed to get out of here, and I would take
any assistance I could get.

The stories I had read about the fae
seemed absurd to me now. People being stolen and forced to dance
for eternity. Petrified townsfolk leaving food out to appease the
fickle whims of the brownies, as if those blessed souls could ever
hurt anyone. They don’t even like human food. Changelings? Uh,
there are no fae children to exchange. Exaggeration after
exaggeration, but who was behind it?

Although, if I was being fair, I had no
idea how I would recount my story in a few hundred years. I could
see myself embellishing a bit to make the whole thing sound better.
I was sure I wouldn’t remember everything that was going on,
either. Maybe that was why Lily had written her journal. I still
kind of thought she might have started it after she was returned to
the human realm based on the glaring differences between her
experience and my own.

From how I understood it, memories of
fae life tended to fade rather quickly when Elementals are returned
to the human realm. How had she been able to recount what had
happened to her at all?

I was a bit excited that I was going to
be able to see Gibbit again. The little troll had been a pain in my
backside back at school, but he could be useful to me here. I
wanted my book, and he was going to give it to me even if I had to
compel it out of him.

I sifted through drawers of jewelry,
looking for just the right thing to bribe him with. I had picked
out some of the better pieces to choose from, but the dress I was
wearing tonight didn’t exactly come with pockets. I only had a few
minutes until Lysanne would be here to help me get ready, and I was
finding it difficult to decide on a necklace. I was already wearing
a beautiful garnet bracelet that I was quite sure was goblin made
from how delicate it was, and I had slid several rings onto my
fingers. My dress was blood-red and sleek. Heath was the one that
picked it out. The nerve of that man was epic.