The Nymph King (Atlantis #3)(68)

"I'm sorry, moon," Valerian said, gazing down at Shaye. Color flushed her cheeks; her pale hair splayed over the bed like ribbons of white silk. Her breasts, covered by the violet sheet, were outlined, her nipples pearled. "I must go."

She didn't respond.

He didn't know what else to say. Withdrawing from the bed, from her embrace, was the most difficult thing he'd ever done. He wished there was time, at least, to sate her desire and give one of them relief.

As he hurriedly dressed, tugging on his pants and retrieving his chest armor - still stained with blood from today's practice - he realized he was still not at full strength. His grip wasn't as tight, his limbs not as steady. There was no help for it now. He laced up his boots.

"You're going to war?" Finally his woman spoke, but her voice gave no indication of her emotions. It was as blank and cool as if he'd never caressed her. Never moved his fingers inside her.

That angered him as much as Broderick's interruption. "If that is what is required to keep this palace, then yes, I will go to war."

"But... you're injured."

"Yes."

"You shouldn't be fighting. You'll make your wounds worse."

He kept his back to her as he gathered his helmet and shield. The Skull rested inside. "Do not begin doubting me again, moon. I am well able to protect and defend."

"Why don't you just give the dragons back their palace?"

He would not have his army become wanderers again, no real home, no real refuge. "It is mine now, and I keep what is mine. Always." He uttered the words as a warning to her. She was his now, and he would never let her go. "Get dressed."

She glanced down at the sheet she clasped, at her gaping pants. She gasped as if she only then realized she had yet to cover herself completely. Motions stiff, she grabbed the black shirt from the floor and tugged it over her head.

Valerian mourned the loss of her seminakedness. He held out his free hand and motioned her to join him. Surprisingly she did so without protest, anchoring her belt into place as she walked. However, she didn't take his offered hand.

"Where are you taking me?" she asked. Deep concern swam in the dark pools of her eyes. For him? he wondered hopefully. He doubted it was for herself.

"I want you safe, which means I'm going to place you with the other women."

"Where?" she insisted. "The room we were in earlier today?"

"No. I will show you." He knew she would balk if he told her where she would be placed. If he simply took her there, her steps willing, he would save them both time and exertion.

Urgency battered him. He must get Shaye to safety.

He grabbed her hand and tugged her through three separate hallways. Several of his men rushed past him, nodding in acknowledgment as they headed for the arena. That was not his destination. As he continued on, the air became cold, thick with moisture. Mist curled toward the ceiling.

"You're taking me to the portal?" Shaye slapped him on the shoulder. "I thought you said I'd drown if I went back through."

"I am not, nor will I ever send you into the portal. Not for any reason." Cave walls came into view. Rocky. Jagged. Sensual murals painted all around. He bypassed the swirling portal, careful not to touch the dappled liquid separating him and Shaye from the sea.

"I don't understand," Shaye said.

The sound of female voices filled his ears. Twigs and bones - left over from when the dragons owned the palace and killed every human who strayed into Atlantis - snapped under his boots. More than once Valerian had wondered why Atlanteans could not survive upon the surface but humans could come and go as they pleased. Armies had once passed through, which was why the dragons had killed so unmercifully, why this cavern had once been a place of death and destruction.

Still, Valerian thought it was better off in his hands. Innocents did not deserve to die. What if Shaye had passed through before his arrival? She would have been slain.

"Are those bones?" Shaye covered her mouth with a shaky hand. "I didn't notice them before."

He explained about the dragons, about the portal. "Humans have tried to destroy the creatures of Atlantis in an attempt to steal their riches. Dragons did what they thought was right to protect the Atlanteans."

Valerian descended a flight of stairs, this one hidden in the narrow crevice between two bloodstained boulders. The portal was exactly why the dragons wanted control of this palace again. They would fight to the death to have it. Darius, King of the Dragons, was Guardian, a slayer of trespassers.

"You never told me the most erotic place on a woman's body," Shaye said. Fear layered her voice, as if she was desperate to think of anything but war and death.

"Nor will I," he replied. The mystery would occupy her mind, keeping her distracted. "Not until I have you in bed again."

"Jerk."

"Beauty."

A pause. A sharp intake of breath. Shaye ground to an abrupt halt. "What is this place?" Her voice echoed around them.

They had reached the bottom of the stairs, had entered a new room. Valerian propped his shield against the wall and slipped a hand around Shaye's waist, urging her to his side - if only to prevent her from running when she spied the prison cell. "Welcome to the dungeon, moon."

The gaggle of voices tapered to quiet a second before happy coos sprang forth. "Valerian, you gorgeous thing! I'm so happy to see you."