Page 6 of Obsidian Throne
As soon as my arms brushed against the sharp wooden edges of the box, those pins and needles raked down my spine even faster.
“Are ye all right, Highness?” Cray asked, his face twisting in concern.
I gave him a quick nod, pasting a smile on my face that was more genuine than I felt.
“It’s just a little cramped in here, even for me,” I told him.
His shoulders relaxed a little.
It may not even happen.Rayan had said he was being overly cautious. I repeated the thought over and over again, though I couldn’t quite bring myself to believe that in my soul.
“Oh, sweet girl!” Uncle Sai said, tucking the rest of my dress into the lined trunk. “If you be needing anything at all, just send word.”
“Thank you, Uncle Sai—”
He cut me off by placing a gentle kiss on my forehead. “We’ve been over this. You can call me Faada, since I am, after all, practically your stepfa—”
“Ach, ye crazy bastard,” Cray broke in. “She’ll no’ be callin’ ye anything but a nuisance if ye get us caught because ye couldna haud yer wheesht.”
Sai winked at me before he donned an expression of mock offense and argued back. That was always the way with the two of them; arguing to fill the silence in between Sai’s proclamations of love for my mother that had me wondering if there had been more between them than my father liked to admit.
Mamá maintained that it wasn’t the case, but that hadn’t deterred the man for as long as I had known him.
My smile broadened as Cray paused his arguing to give me a kiss as well, while Callum nodded his head at me in respect.
“Be safe,” he said fervently.
Then they closed the lid to my trunk, and everything was dark. I felt the presence of the box even stronger as whatever was inside thrummed with energy.
What in the stars-blasted hell did Rayan give me?
There was a small jerk of the carriage as we came to a full stop. Then the door creaked open, and a familiar voice shushed the men around me.
“Is this it?” Taras asked, his tone clipped and distant.
“Ach, no. We kept the very important package with the ones on the back of the wagon. Of course this is it, ye wee eejit,” Cray hissed, and I stifled a laugh.
The mere idea of my two worlds colliding this way would have made my head spin only a few months ago. Now, I just wished I could see the look on Taras’ face as he tried to form a response.
“Well, then,” he said brusquely, and my trunk began to move.
I had the faintest feeling of falling through the air before jerking to a stop and swaying to and fro. The sound of steps on the loose stones morphed into shoes clacking on hard floors.
“Lady Mila’s things sure are heavy,” Kirill’s voice sounded near my feet, his tone teasing.
Taras chuckled. “Indeed.”
A smile tugged at my lips. Even though I had left my family behind, I couldn’t help but feel like I was coming back to one, too.
CHAPTER FOUR
EVANDER
The day of our wedding was already not going well, in large part due to my father.
He seemed to be especially lucid today, which at least boded well for Ava’s frequent attempts to sway him away from allowing this alliance. But it also meant that he was in the mood to issue edicts.
So instead of focusing on preparing for my wedding, I was headed to deal with that. I supposed it provided a nice distraction from obsessing over whether Rowan would arrive safe and on time.