She could retreat to the shelter and warmth of the caves, but she knew that she would not. She couldn’t bring herself to go back in them now, if ever. So instead she sat in silence, listening to the plop of the water upon the tent. Max and William sat beside her; they had been her constant companions since the night of the raid. William would wander out once in awhile to gather food but Max would not leave her be, and she wasn’t sure that she wanted him too. He moved closer to her, dropping a blanket around her shoulders. His hands lingered upon her for a moment, and she didn’t shrug him away. She found she needed his comfort, his loyalty, his unwavering love right now.

She leaned into him, resting against his legs. “You need to get some sleep,” he told her.

“I will.” They both knew she lied, but he didn’t argue with her.

When she shivered, he wrapped his arms around her, pulling her against his chest and cradling her gently. Though her heart did not thump with excitement, as it had when the prince touched her, his strong embrace was wonderful. She felt safe in his arms, cherished. No, he did not affect her as the prince had, but he was a good man, he loved her, and he would do anything for her.

Maybe one day she would love him too, even if that day couldn’t be now. Now she just wanted to feel something other than shock and anger and despair. Now she just wanted to sit with her friend, content in his arms as she listened to the rain fall. “It smells good,” she said softly.

Max nodded, nuzzling her hair gently for a moment. “Yes.”

Aria closed her eyes, concentrating on the beat of his heart. The prince had not had a heartbeat; in fact he hadn’t had a heart at all as far as she was concerned. But Max did, and he used it freely. He pulled the blanket tighter around her, the heat of his body, and the soft splatter of the rain slowly lulled her into a fitful sleep.

When she awoke again, the sky was just beginning to lighten; the birds had not even begun to sing yet. She stared silently at the growing dawn against the walls of the tent. Max’s arm was wrapped around her waist. She slipped from beneath his embrace, moving to the edge of the tent to pull the flap aside. It was going to be a warm day; the air was already muggy with heat. She sighed softly, slipping from the tent. She wanted to bathe, and then perhaps do some hunting with Max and William.

She gathered some of her clothes, scooped up her bow and quiver. Max and William were still sleeping; the sun had just poked over the horizon, when she dropped the flap back into place. She moved swiftly through the forest, winding her way toward the river they were camped near. She knew she shouldn’t be doing this on her own, that she should have awakened someone to come with her, but she needed some privacy today. She needed some time alone to try and sort through the multitude of emotions swarming her.

She made her way swiftly to the river. She would have preferred the lake, but after the raid they had moved far from the caves, settling in a new area of the forest. It would be a long time before they went back near the lake again. Reaching the river, she stripped quickly and plunged into the chilly water. Not for the first time she missed the hot water of the palace, and the delightful spray of the shower. The lake had been tolerably warm and comfortable, but the river was fresh water from the mountains, and it did not warm up.

Aria bathed as quickly as she could, her teeth chattering and shivering the whole time. She was glad to escape the frigid water, glad to put some clothes back on so that she could warm up. Grabbing her bow and quiver, she tossed her towel over her shoulder and slung the quiver onto her back. The sun was breaking over the mountains, casting bright rays of light over the forest. She stood for a moment, her head tilted back to allow its warm rays to caress her, to soothe her, if only just a little.

She didn’t know how long she stood there for, but the snap of a twig pulled her away from the healing sunlight to the world around her. Aria frowned, listening as she heard another soft snap. Moving behind a tree, she dropped the towel on the ground, and drew an arrow from her quiver. Kneeling, she slid the arrow easily into the bow. She didn’t have to wait long before a buck wandered out of the woods, heading toward the river. Aria admired him, he was beautiful, but even though he was a gorgeous animal, he would also provide enough meat for the encampment to last a few days. He would feed the hungry children, and herself she realized as her stomach rumbled eagerly.

She was about to let the arrow fly when she felt it. The hair on the back of her neck stood up, a chill crept down her back before seeping through her limbs. She froze, she couldn’t breathe. She didn’t move, because she was afraid that moving would only trigger an attack. She had lived in these woods long enough to know when a predator was near. Lived here long enough to know when an animal was near its end, but this time she was not the hunter and it was her end she feared. She was certain that there was the deadliest kind of predator near her right now.

Slowly, ever so slowly, she turned to face the creature stalking her, watching her. It did not take her long to spot him. Braith stood amongst the trees, his dark hair highlighted by the rising sun. Light reflected of the dark glasses he wore to cover his stunning eyes, but she could feel the heat of his gaze as it raked over her. Her heart knocked against her ribs, it flipped and beat and pounded in a rapid pace that left her stunned, breathless. He was just as magnificent, dark and handsome as she remembered, but seeing him here, in her world, she also realized just how wild and untamed he was. Just how dangerous and lethal he could be.

Excitement strummed through her, for a brief moment all she wanted was to run to him, to throw her arms around him, to bury herself in his strong embrace and shut out all the horrors of the world like only he could make her do. For a brief moment, all of the joy and wonder she had ever experienced with him in the palace flooded rapidly back to her. She had been terrified in that palace, lost and confused, and adrift in a world that she didn’t know and would never understand. But she had also been the happiest she’d ever been in her life. She’d been foolish, and naïve. And she had been in love.

Her arm wavered on the bow, dropping it momentarily lower; she could feel the hot press of tears burning her eyes. He looked wonderful, he looked amazing, and he was here. He had finally come for her. Though she hated to admit it, there had been a part of her that had wanted this. A part that had longed for him to come for her, a part that had wanted him to take her away from all of this fear and pain, and keep her safe. She hated that part of her, tried to deny its existence, but it had always been there, hoping, waiting, praying, and now he was finally here.

But it was obvious that he hadn’t come because he wanted to see her.

She could see that fact in the hard set of his jaw; see it in the tension in his broad shoulders. She could sense it in the anger that radiated from his hard body. He was here, but he hadn’t come for a good reason. Aria swallowed heavily, fear trickled through her as she realized that he was truly furious right now. She could feel the rage thrumming off of him in nearly violent waves. She didn’t know why he was so infuriated, so filled with anger, but she did know that it was directed at her. Well that was good, because she was pretty damn pissed at him too.

She didn’t know why he had finally come after her, but from the look of him it appeared that he wanted to rip her throat out. Narrowing her eyes, she clenched her jaw as she lifted the bow higher once more, leveling it right at the spot of his non-beating heart. Yes, he had finally come for her, but it was obvious that one of them would not be walking away from this encounter.

Chapter 4

Braith studied her for a long moment. He had almost forgotten how wonderful it was to see her, and everything around her. The forest came alive with her in it; the colors were vivid, sharp to eyes so accustomed to darkness. Though the woods were beautiful, they were nothing compared to her.

Her face was thinner and more mature then the last time he had seen her. The youthful chubbiness of her cheeks had vanished in the face of her hunger again. Her eyes were a bright sapphire blue that rivaled the beautiful sky behind her. There was a wisdom and maturity in her gaze, a broken air that seemed to enshroud her, and had not been there the last time he saw her. He did not know what had happened to her over the past couple of months, but she appeared older, and far more wounded than he recalled.

Her long hair flowed around her shoulders; its wetness caused it to be darker than its normal fiery auburn color that had always captivated him. Though she was thinner than he liked her, he couldn’t deny her simple, sweet beauty. She was far cleaner now than the first time he had seen her, but she was back in the boyish, ugly clothes again. Clothes that hid a figure that had once been lush, but was now lean again.

He saw the emotions that flashed over her face, the hope, the joy, and for a moment something he almost believed could have been love. But they were gone so swiftly that he wasn’t even entirely sure he had seen them. Tears shimmered in her eyes; her hand wavered on the bow as it dropped slightly down. He had almost forgotten how convincing her phony pain and emotions could be. He recalled the night she had begged him not to kill the other blood slave she had been captured with, Max. She had been so sincere, had sworn that he was nothing more than a friend to her. Braith no longer believed that, he believed nothing of what she had told him. He didn’t know girl before him, but he did know that she was not the girl he had thought she was. That she never had been.

He had come here to bring her back, to make her pay for her treachery. Now all he wanted was to destroy her himself. Her hand wavered, her eyes widened slightly before narrowing. The hand that had been going to drop the bow now raised it back up, leveling it at his heart. He had no doubt she would let the arrow fly, he just had no fear that it would hit him.

Just as he had no doubt that he would get his hands upon her, and she would pay.

“Arianna.”

Her full mouth pinched tightly, her eyebrows drew sharply together. “Prince.”

He moved away from the tree he had been leaning against, taking a step toward her. Even with the bow and arrow in her hands, he could get to her, reach her within a moment. Have her back in his arms again, her sweet blood back in his mouth. She had given it to him willingly last time, and he had almost killed her in his eagerness to consume it. Now he wanted it back, he wanted to taste it again, and have it fill him, and he didn’t give a damn if she gave it freely or not. He found himself relishing the idea of taking it from her forcefully, of making her hurt as bad as she had made him hurt.

“Have you come to take me back then?” she asked softly.

“No.”

She swallowed heavily, her chin tilted up a notch. He had not forgotten about her defiance, her willfulness, but he did not find it as delightful as he once had. In fact, it was aggravating the hell out of him right now. She should be cowering, trembling with fear. She had to know that she would not survive this meeting, and yet she did not show one ounce of trepidation. “To kill me then?” she asked quietly, her voice far steadier than he had thought it would be.

“Perhaps,” he murmured still uncertain as to what exactly he did want to do with her. He had wanted to take her back, to make her pay, but then she would be killed, and looking at her now he wasn’t sure he was willing to lose the strange sight she brought back into his life. What was he going to do with her then?

There was no tremor of fear in her. He knew there wouldn’t be. Recklessly fearless, it was how she had described herself, her brother. And it was true. She was possibly looking her death in the eye, but she was not going to back down from him. She was not going to cower or beg for mercy. She was going to stand there and meet him head on, and she was going to fire that arrow. Of that he was certain; he just needed to be prepared for it.

“I see.” Her eyes flickered briefly, darting swiftly around the forest. He could see the wheels in her brain spinning as she tried to formulate a plan of escape. They both knew it was useless; she would not be able to get away from him.

“Where is Jericho?”

Her gaze came slowly back to him. “Wasn’t my day to watch him,” she retorted sharply.

Frustration and anger built rapidly inside him, he was used to her defiance, but he didn’t like it. And he sure as hell didn’t want to have to deal with it after everything that she had done to him. “I’m surprised you’re separated at all, but then I’m sure you’ve moved on to someone else by now.”

Arianna nodded at him, a cynical smile twisted her full mouth. “You always did want to believe the worst of me,” she said softly, but there was no hurt in her gaze, only a fiery rage that turned them a darker, fiercer shade of blue.

“And you never failed to disappoint.”

True fury twisted her features; her hand shook slightly on the bow. Then she straightened her shoulders and rose slowly from her crouched position. “I’m glad I hold up to all of your expectations.” Her back foot twisted in the earth, digging in slightly, she was preparing to make her move soon. “I hope your fiancée does the same.”