A Sinless Betrayal - Cherie Benjamin (paper ebook reader .TXT) 📗

the pain out of me, quite honestly." The corner of his lips pulls up slightly and I lean over and kiss his tattooed bicep since I'm not tall enough to reach his cheek.

"How did you even get here? I assumed you were safe in Castle Rock. I even left Black Bear to guard the perimeters so you weren't completely alone. I know of your fondness for him." Abigor says.

At his words, I look away and down at my feet. It brings back the painful memories of my good friend and the horrendous act of betrayal that landed me here. "Black Bear has died," I murmur, tears forming at the corners of my eyes.

He gives me a funny look to see if I jest, but the look of pure sadness in my eyes shows him that I do not. He stands up from my bedside with fury in his eyes. "One of my best warriors? How?"

I struggle to say the word. "Arrow."

His face turns bright red. "Tell me how he died. You seem to know something that I obviously don't."

"Black Bear gave his life to save me. An archer from Bellechester was taking shots, and he pushed me out of the way before one pierced me. He was shot three times before he died and I was taken away." I sniffle a little. Reliving the memories is definitely not something I wish to do, but it's something I must do. The king must know the truth.

"And why," he muses. "Were you outside? I thought I told you to remain inside Castle Rock at all times."

I narrow my eyes while looking into the fire. "You should have told Ivona that."

"Iv…Ivona?" He cocks his head, his long black hair flowing over his shoulders. "What in Azazel's name does Ivona have to do with anything?"

I stand up to feel less inferior to him as he towers over me. "She's the one who locked me outside after falsely alarming me that you were home." I look him straight in the eye so he can tell I'm not lying to him.

"My brother's whore…" he whispers, his eyes widening. "…did this to you? Got us into this whole mess?"

I nod my head. "I've no reason to lie about this. She told me you were home so I went out the special door she told me to, and then closed it right behind me in the middle of a snowstorm. That's when the archer started to aim."

Abigor stares at me, his eyes full of despair. "Ivona tried to kill you," he murmurs softly, his voice barely even audible. "And in doing so, has killed one of my best warriors. She shall feel the wrath of a king."

He begins to shake a little, just like he used to before he shifted. I don't want him to turn back into a wolf so I stand—a little too quickly (as I feel the pain on my back)—and try to comfort him. "But I'm here now, and I'm okay. I'm safe here with you."

He raises his hands and tugs at the roots of his hair, his mind in obvious distress. "It does not matter! What would have happened if that palefale you once called your lover did not take you to me and in fact killed you? Or if Black Bear did not push you out of the way? You'd be dead! Buried beneath the ground! And I'd be alone, yet again!"

He begins to curse and pace around the room again. I stare at him in shock, his lean muscles bunching up and then loosening as he tenses and relaxes. The feelings of shock and anger and fright swell up into him until he's fighting to hold back his tears. "You can't leave me!"

I rush to him and grab his face in my hands, bringing his face down to mine. "You didn't. You didn't lose me, and you won't lose me." I can't stand when he's upset. It makes me feel upset too.

He finally forces back his tears, gulping down his sadness. The wetness at the corners of his eyes is evidence of how he's feeling. "I'd die," he murmurs. "I'd die without you."

All I want to do is make him feel better. My hands slither up his arms, over the lithe muscles in his neck and to his face. I tilt his face down towards mine so that he's looking at me. "Kiss me."

He looks deeply into my eyes as if he's searching for something. He slowly lowers his mouth to mine, savouring the taste of my lips upon his. Our lips begin to move together, his tongue slipping into my mouth on timed intervals. It makes my knees weak.

He places his hand on my neck and tips my chin back with his thumb, allowing him access to the sweet spots on my porcelain skin. He kisses them and I moan in pleasure. His fingers run through my hair, entangling themselves in my curls. "How I've missed your touch," I whisper between kisses.

Abigor's breathing becomes heavier and more laboured the more we touch and kiss. "Stop this," he says suddenly, pulling away. I'm left in shock, wondering if I'd done something wrong. He turns his head so I can only see the profile of his face. "Or…I might be tempted to ravish you."

I stand there with sweat clinging to my skin, my chest heaving from not catching enough breath between dizzying kisses. "I want you to ravish me."

He goes over to the bed by the wall of the cabin and lays down on it. He obviously wants me too, with the way that his cock stands proudly up against his belly. But he quickly conceals said want with a blanket. "You are hurt, and you are pregnant. Come lay with me tonight, and I may consider ravishing you tomorrow."

I make my way over to where he lays on his bed and sit down next to his resting form. I slowly shift to lie on my back, trying to find an angle where it won't irritate my wound. We both look up at the top of the cabin. He entwines his fingers in mine and brings my knuckles to his lips. "I promise you that Ivona will feel my wrath. This will not be left unsaid."

I want that woman to burn in the pits of hell for what she's done. She's the reason that Black Bear died, that I was captured and almost killed, and that Abigor phased. "What do we do tomorrow?" I ask him.

He sighs. "We go back to Castle Rock."

I turn my head to look at him, my eyes wide. "But what of your expedition…? You surely mustn't call it off to take me back home."

"I am not calling it off," he tells me. "Three Horses shall take command of my army and lead them into battle. I am taking you home in the early hours of the morning. I will deal with Ivona and I will make sure you are safe. War has no place for a woman…a woman as delicate and precious as you."

The cabin's wooden walls creak as the wind tries to blow it down with all of the force it could muster. I cling to my husband. I'm not ready to let go of him quite yet. That day was very eventful and something we both need is sleep to put our minds at rest.

But tomorrow still lies ahead. Tomorrow we must journey miles back to the safety of Castle Rock if we aren't attacked on the way there. Each day is a struggle, but we shall take it one step at a time.

I turn my head to look him in the eyes. The corner of his mouth tugs up in the corner. He is so beautiful. "Why do you look at me so?"

"Because you are the epitome of youth and beauty," he replies. I nuzzle my nose against his and press my lips against his. I lay my head on his shoulder and sigh. He covers my body with the blanket and my hand skirts down his waist until it lays on his pelvic bone. "Sleep," he whispers. "I think we both need it after today."

I wordlessly agree, clinging tightly to him as I drift into peaceful blackness.
Betrayal

In the early hours of the morning, we headed off into the horizon to begin our journey back home. We took our two horses, Daybreak and Midnight and loaded them with supplies we'd need for the trek.

It's been about an hour into our ride back to the castle through secret routes only Abigor would know of, using them as shortcuts. I keep my furs wrapped tightly around my body and urge my horse on through the terrible cold of the winter. I've never been so miserable in my entire life.

Abigor constantly looks back at me to see if I'm still hanging on, and like the stubborn woman I am, I always remain determined, even through this weather. It shan't disarm me of my strength. He scopes out the surroundings before waving me on as his horse gallops down a hidden pathway in the forest. It's surrounded by thick pine and the snow is not as deep as compared to when we're out in the vast fields that once had abundant plant life.

"Can you believe how dead this forest is?" I say, my voice echoing out in the quiet area, my voice cutting sharply through the crisp air. He turns around and shushes me. I nod my head quickly, forgetting myself. The enemy could be anywhere. They could strike at any time. And what an opportunity to capture the queen and the king of Stauckana?

As we travel through the small pathway, he answers me. "Winter kills all. I despise the demons of the cold." He looks back at me through his peripherals and sighs. "Winter and I have had long histories."

My horse huffs loudly beneath me. I smooth a hand along her smooth, warm neck and scratch behind her ear. "Good girl. Keep going. Only a little more to go…right?" I look up at Abigor, who has turned back around. His long animal skin cloak hangs down over the sides of his great black steed and blows in the wind.

I remember some of the surroundings around me but not all of them. I remember when I'd rode off into the forest on this very same horse and saw the barbarians massacring a nearby village in a raid. We're close to him.

My mouth doesn't seem to want to shut as I ask a question that renders my husband into a shocked state. "Why do you raid if you know that it causes problems with other lands? Is it greed?"

After a few moments of stunned silence, my husband finally lets out a growl. "Greed," he whispers. "My people have had long histories with the surrounding kingdoms. Centuries ago, Stauckana was no more than a small tribe in the south that had a castle the size of a nobleman's house and no riches. The three kingdoms stomped all over us like we were the scum of the earth."

My eyes widen as I'm listening to him. He leads me further and further into the shortcut path.

"Scum of the earth, we wanted to be no more. Slowly, we