Page 77 of Obsidian Throne

He paused, a thoughtful expression crossing his features. “I think it might be good for them to see the wife of Bear.”

I tilted my head to the side, allowing him to see the disbelief in my eyes.

“Cursed hair and all?”

Kirill laughed then but nodded. “Cursed hair and all.”

I thought about that for a moment before deciding to go for it. I wanted them to see that I was more than a princess of Lochlann. That I could help them. That things could change from how they were before.

That I was not Ava, and that Evander was not his father or the monster they believed him to be.

With that, we gathered Yuriy and a few other soldiers before loading a wagon with food from the castle larder and heading out into the crisp morning air.

When we arrived at Hymi, the nearest village to the estate, everyone who was walking through the streets scrambled out of the way at the sight of the carriage, terror evident in each expression.

It wasn’t any better when I emerged with my red curls and my more comfortable black Socairan gown.

They dipped their heads in a bow, not one of them making the superstitious sign to ward off evil that I had grown so used to. But right now, that was from fear, and that wasn’t what I wanted from them.

I uncovered the wagon and had the men help me pass out the food. Kirill and Yuriy both stayed close to me, their expressions open and comfortable.

By the time the wagon was empty, the villagers were far less suspicious of my presence in the village.

A few of the people dipped into lower bows as Kirill and I walked the streets, buying things from the small shops or the street vendors. The baker was amazed when I purchased an entire tray of pastries to share with the women and children outside.

We spent the next several hours like that, purchasing what we could from the sellers and sharing much of it back with the people.

And slowly, slowly, the expressions the villagers wore shifted from fear to wariness, and eventually into something almost like hope.

When we finally returned to the castle, I had hoped to feel better than I had before we left, but that wasn’t the case. There was still an oppressive weight to the air that weighed down all that I did, everything I felt.

I made plans to follow up with as many villages as I could, offering the same support and assistance as I had in Hymi. Maybe if I poured myself into helping them, it would help me ignore the impending sense of doom that hovered over us like a thundercloud, waiting to break apart.

* * *

In spite of filling my days with lunches and teas and food distributions, or seeing to the immediate needs of the castle, I still struggled to sleep through the night.

Most nights I woke to the sound of Evander’s quill scratching from the other room. I never told him that was what woke me, not when he had so much on his plate as it was.

I missed him, though. And it didn’t escape my notice that he wasn’t sleeping, either. Instead, he was throwing himself into everything he could possibly find to do, late into most nights.

Tonight was no exception.

I threw my dressing gown on and padded barefoot to his study. He didn’t turn when I entered, but I knew it was more because he was finishing his thought than because he didn’t hear me.

He was always aware of his surroundings.

I crept behind him, putting my hands on the tense muscles in his shoulders and gently kneading them. He lifted his head, groaning softly and letting his quill drop to the desk.

“What time is it, Lemmikki?”

I leaned down, placing a kiss against the side of his neck. “Late.”

He reached his hand up to cover mine, tugging me gently until I was standing in front of him. Heat flooded his gaze when he took in my loosely tied black robe and the nothing that was underneath it.

He raked his eyes all the way down my body and back up before pulling me in closer, pressing his mouth against the bare strip of skin of my stomach. A shiver ran through me, and his lips skated lower.

Deft fingers untied the sash of my robe, pushing the silk fabric out of the way, and he worked his way down to the indentation inside my hip bone, eliciting a gasp from me.