Rule (Roam Series, Book Five) (15 page)

“Excellent.” He gestured toward a building near the edge of the range, and I lifted my eyes as the giant dome began to mechanically retract. “This is the first time we’ve been able to open the dome, during the day, in over a year. It’s very good to have you here, your majesty… for many reasons.”

“Just Eva. I get titles and respect and all of that, but you’re Will’s best friend. I’m okay with informal.”

“Eva, then.” Something about his sardonic smile reminded me of Liam. I sized him up in one unfair glance, carrying the rifle with me. “You can leave that here-…,”

“I still don’t have a sidearm. And honestly, my instincts are telling me something’s up with you.”

He stopped in midstride, turning to me. The sunlight streamed through the dome, onto the Astroturf-like grass. His eyes, tawny in color, reflected back at me with amusement.

“You don’t trust me?”

“Should I?”

He looked up at the sun, and then back down to me. “If I tell you more about myself, would that ease your mind?”

“That depends. If you have some kind of dark past, I’m kind of not in the mood today. I just want to keep things light.”

He chuckled, and I grinned at the flush that brightened his cheeks.
He is less intimidating when he laughs.
“I am very… direct, Eva. If I explain what I am, you may not understand, or believe.”

“I am the queen of a mythical kingdom. You can pretty much say anything and I won’t be surprised.”

We arrived at the building, and he pulled the large doors open to reveal a surplus of bows in many different sizes, shapes, and styles. He turned to me, and though he wasn’t as tall as Will, he still had to bend to touch my shoulders. “Hold your arms out…,” he ran his fingers down the tops of my arms, gently taking my wrists in his. The rifle dangled awkwardly from my right hand. “Palms forward… there… I’d say the twenty pound bow.”

I shivered at his touch, taking a step backward. Never had I felt lightheaded in my life, not even the two times I’d fallen to my death. Now, I was unbalanced, pulled toward Eric in an unexplainable, magnetic way. I thought of the other two times he’d touched me, once to lift me to the horse when I’d first arrived, and the second when he pulled me into the men’s bathroom to lecture me on my wedding night.

Something is wrong with his touch.

“Are you magical?” I demanded, lifting the rifle at him. “I need answers. Everytime you touch me, I feel like I’m going to faint. And I don’t faint.”

Again, that smirk returned, and I glared at him. “You are affected?”

“Don’t flatter yourself.”

“No, no… what I mean is…,” he held his hands up defensively. “Allow me to explain.”

“Will says he trusts you, so I’m going to lower this rifle. But- please know that I can protect myself without a weapon.”

“I will not hurt you, Eva.” He shrugged, as if my threats were as common as rattling off a grocery list. “I am a selkie.”

“Well, I am a
Perry
, and I don’t trust anyone unless given a reason.”

Still grinning, he looked down. “Do you know what a selkie is?”

I stared blankly.

“I come from your land,” he leaned against a wall of hay, crossing his arms. “While waiting for your mother to be born again, Troy spent much of his
time combing your world for… creatures… to build his army here. I was a child when he found me.”

“Creatures?” My fingers twitched over the rifle.
Mythical creatures... damn it! Why didn’t I pay attention to my dad’s rambling lessons?
“Like in Greek mythology?”

“I am Icelandic, of the Faroe Islands. Here, on land, I have been given a human form. However, I come from the sea.”

“You’re a freaking
merman
?”

“Not at all. I appear… as a
seal, in the sea.”

“So, you’re a
seal
.” I threw my hand in the air, shaking my head. “Great. Just great. I have no idea how to fight a seal. Thanks Dad.” His shoulders shook, and I scowled at him. “I’m glad you think this is funny.”

“You do not have to fight me, Eva.” He angled his head, his dark blonde hair catching a gust of wind.

“Troy was just a man, right? An immortal man, I get that, but how did he wrangle up mythical creatures without possessing magic?”

Eric gestured toward the castle. “He tortured spells from your grandfather. For centuries.” He kept his gaze firmly locked in mine. “Eventually, the old man’s powers grew weak.”

I thought of my grandfather’s washed, pitiful stare, and had a quick, indulgent daydream about tearing Troy’s head off with my bare hands.

Just then, Eric’s
eyes caught the light, and I nearly dropped the rifle at my feet.

“Your eyes change colors… they were brown when
I first met you, and then yellowish-brown a few minutes ago… and now green?”

He turned away from me, reaching for a long bow from the wall. “You
affect me.”

“I
affect
you? Is that Icelandic-seal talk for ‘I have a crush on you?’”

Eric stepped behind me, and I stiffened, my lungs stalling. “Perhaps you shouldn’t flatter yourself, either.”

I felt the heated flush crawling up my chest and neck, burning my cheeks. His breathy laughter, near my ear, only infuriated me further. “I’m done.”

“So quickly?” He stepped back, shaking his head. “I’ve given you more credit than you deserve.”

“Give me the bow.” I yanked the longbow from his hands, dropping the rifle to the bale of hay at my feet.

“Wait-…,”

Drawing the arrow back, I carefully aimed at the target across the building, releasing the arrow. The point reached the center of the target just as the pain in my hand registered in my mind. “
Goddamnit
!” I dropped the bow, gripping the flesh between my thumb and palm. Blood surfaced and trickled down to my wrist.

“Hold still,” he yanked his shirt off in seconds, wrapping my hand in the soft, white material. The multiple tattoos across his muscled shoulders and chest drew my attention
, most of them symbols of water and astronomy.

“Seriously? Did you booby-trap my arrow just so you’d have the chance to take your shirt off?”

He held my hand steady, and I cringed. “Did you know that your nostrils flare when you’re angry?”

Scowling, I moaned.
“It’s burning… it won’t heal,” I realized, my heartbeat doubling in panic. “How do I fix this? How do I-…,”

“Calm yourself,” he pressed the side of his hand against my cheek, and I backed against the bale of hay, searching for my bearings.

Letting the dizzying euphoria of his fingers on my skin filter through my brain, I tilted my head back. Every muscle in my body relaxed, and my breathing labored beneath the myriad of pleasing sensations coursing through my veins. “Stop...
touching me…,
” I whispered.

“It’s just a small scrape. If you’d listened to me, you’d have avoided this,” his chastising voice, almost musical to my ears, forced me to recline against the hay.

Watching his eyes change from green to gold to a frightening black-brown, my mind and my words lost their logical connection. I reached for his face, unable to speak, but pleading with my eyes for him to put his body on mine.

“Enough of this, your majesty,” he pulled his hand away from my face, and I sobered almost immediately, sitting up and backing away from him.

I scrambled to my feet, mortification burning my skin.

Holy shit.

“
Don’t touch me- ever again!” I had never felt so out of control in my life.

“As I said, you are affected. We shall keep our distance.” He gestured to the scrape on my hand. “I’ll escort you to the infirmary to have this treated.”

I walked next to him in silence, still unsettled by his ability to knock me senseless with only his touch. As we reached the interior of the castle, I stopped moving, turning to him. “Are there more… creatures… like you?”

“Yes,” he answered easily, waiting for me to continue into the castle.

“Is Will… a creature?”

He sighed deeply. “Will is an immortal. Define ‘creature.’”

Did I offend him?

“I’m sorry… I just meant…,”

“This way,” he gestured toward the atrium, and I looked down, following him.

I’ll ask Grandfather.

In the infirmary, Eric waited until Will arrived before bowing to me and leaving. I tried to smooth down my hair and sit up straighter as Will rushed to my side, gathering my hand in his.

“I’m really fine. I just overreacted because it wasn’t healing-…,”

“You were obstinate with Eric’s instruction?”

Rigidly, I pulled my hand away. “Is that what he told you?”

“Eva, if you wish to learn, you must pay attention to training.” He tenderly brushed my thigh, and I shifted away. “How is your leg?”

“
It’s healing. And I don’t want to work with Eric anymore.”

He softened, pulling me against his chest as a nurse wheeled a silver tray
covered with antiseptic and bandages toward me. “Because he reported your behavior to me?”

“No, because he’s a… mythical
seal
, and every time he touches me, I turn into some kind of… um...,”

My words barely left my lips before Will moved to his feet, snapping at the nurse. “Leave us.”

“Yes, your majesty.”

“Will! That was rude-…,”

“How and where did he touch you?”

“Just to measure my arms for the bow, and then he put his hand on my face. That was it.” I stood as well,
lifting my eyes to his urgent gaze.

“I w
ill instruct you going forward, and will speak to Eric.”

“Why didn’t you tell me that there were… other
beings
in this castle? That your father collected these beings to fight in the army?”

He lowered his fac
e to my ear, whispering quickly against my skin.

“My father has kept these creatures detained in the dungeons; few in the kingdom know of their existence. Many of these beings are evil and unpredictable. He found that he couldn’t control them without magic. Eric and I became friends when I was kept imprisoned, and I trust him for reasons that I need not explain to you, Eva. However, given our new arrangement… I have no intention of allowing him to put his hands on you, in any way.”

I nodded quickly, reaching for him with my uninjured hand. Pressing my fingers against his cheek, I met his fevered gaze.

“Will, I don’t want him. I told you that.”
He caught my wrist and pulled my hand away from his cheek. “And even with whatever magic he has… he doesn’t make me feel the way that
you
make me feel… when you just look at me.”

His blue eyes clouded over,
and he exhaled slowly. “Nevertheless, Eric will keep his distance. Nurse,” he called, and the woman hurried back to my side, curtsying to us both. “Thank you for attending to the queen. Eva,” he turned to me. “You’ll meet Valerie in your room in twenty minutes.”

“Etiquette,” I remembered, saluting him playfully. “And thank you for my note this morning. I like notes.”

A tired smile forced his cheeks into attractive dimples that I’d never noticed until then, and he caught my saluting hand, rolling his eyes. “Then I shall write you one each morning, my queen.”

“That would be awesome, my lord.”

He laughed, nodding once before leaving me to the nurse.

“Wait until you have finished chewing your food before taking a sip of your drink,” Valerie reminded me, smiling gently.

I pulled my hand away from the water, exhaling through my nose. “I know I have food in my mouth, but I can’t wait to ask you something.”

“Yes, your majesty.”

“How old are you?”

She lowered her eyes. “I shall be seventeen in two months.”

“So what do you do for fun around here?” I reached for the glass of water, finally swallowing the last of the gigantic bite of the salad I’d taken. “Do you have… parties?”

She adjusted her long braid, and I admired her perfectly arched eyebrows. Her dark, brown skin was flawless, and I doubted she wore any make-up at all. “
Parties?”

“
Music, dancing… you know, hang out. Parties.”

“
There are celebrations held for various occasions.”

“
Oh.” I dropped the knife and fork to my plate and sat back. The scrape on my hand was irritating beneath the white bandage.

“Place the utensils parallel on your plate. Like so,” she adjusted my fork and knife, turning my knife inward.

“Valerie, I’m finished. We still have a half an hour.”

“That is due to the speed at which you consume your food, your majesty.”