How The Warrior Fell (Falling Warriors series Book 1) (17 page)

The silence was deafening. The men all watched quietly with anticipation as Tristan slowly walked to the bag. He bent down, picked up it up, and looked into it.

“What is it?” Tyronian asked, his voice tense.

Tristan lifted his gaze to meet his cousins at the same time he turned and pulled out what was hidden inside, revealing the head of one of the scouts sent to follow the army.

Tyronian clenched his fist, his throat constricting as he swallowed. He looked over to his right when one of the soldiers asked the question they were all wondering.

“What does it mean?”

Tyronian’s and Tristan’s eyes met, each reflecting the knowledge of what’s to come.

“War.” Tristan growled, his voice filled with death. He looked down at the head in his hands one last time and released the grip he had on it.

The head landed against the earth with sickening sound, tilting so the warrior’s last expression of shock was facing everyone.

“This means war.”

L
EAWYN WAS STARTLED
awake by the sound of the door slamming open as her husband stormed in. She instantly went on guard when she saw the murderous glint in his eye. He said nothing to her as he marched straight to where his armor was and started to strap it on, his movements fluid.

When the tense silence became too much for her, Leawyn took in a breath to prepare herself.

“Xavier?” she asked timorously.

He stiffened, his fingers pausing in strapping his sword to his hip. His back and shoulder muscles bulged as his entire posture coiled at her tone. Slowly, he turned and met her eyes.

Leawyn felt her heart skip a beat with her quick intake of breath. He looked ready to kill.

Xavier kept his eyes locked on hers as he made his way to her. With each step that drew him closer, her apprehension grew. He stared down at her, his eyes boring deep within her soul.

When she was within arm’s reach, Xavier’s hands struck out lighting fast, giving Leawyn a second to let out a surprised gasp before she found herself hauled into her husband’s muscled arms. He continued to stare at her, as if committing every single one of her features to memory.

Besides the fire crackling in their room, the only other sound Leawyn could hear was her beating heart. She stayed in his arms rigidly, her guard up for any action he might take.

One thing she had learned about her husband was he was anything but predictable. He was like a wild stallion, big and powerful but with an elegant grace that could leave you awestruck.

Slowly—ever so slowly—she felt herself relax in his arms. He shifted her so he was able to bring one hand up to slide a callused finger down her cheek. Her lips parted, her breath hitching at the gentle touch.

“Do you hate me Leawyn?” Xavier asked, his voice a low timbre.

“Yes.”

Xavier said nothing in response and instead bent down until Leawyn’s back was against the animal furs on their bed again. He rested his weight on his elbows as he hovered above her. He then dipped his head and put his mouth against hers, thrusting his tongue past her lips when she didn’t respond.

Leawyn went rigid, not knowing how respond to his advances. As if sensing her hesitation, her husband grabbed a fistful of her blonde hair and tugged until her head was arched back, using her gasp of pain to further his exploration of her hot mouth.

Leawyn didn’t know what caused this sudden attention, but she did know it wouldn’t be like last time. He was not going to be gentle. Something set him off, and she knew from experience it wasn’t going to be a pleasurable interaction.

Xavier tore his mouth away from hers, staring down at her with lust-filled eyes.

“Kiss me,” he demanded roughly, and his lips resumed their attack. Tightening the grip he had on her hair, he gave it a slight jerk to further motivate her when she didn’t follow his order right away.

Leawyn squeezed her eyes shut, feeling her neck strain from the way he arched her. The pain of her hair being pulled into a tight grip made her eyes water. When Xavier bit her lip sharply, getting impatient, Leawyn brushed her tongue against his to save herself further pain.

She felt his erection against her thigh then, and she let out a whimper when he yanked his mouth away from her lips and buried it in the juncture of her neck, biting down on the skin harshly. She gave a short yelp of pain.

He released her hair and ran his rough hands down her chest until he held the fabric of her flimsy dress. Leawyn’s body jerked, the sound of fabric ripping split through the otherwise silent room as Xavier tore it completely off her. Another pain-filled yelp escaped her mouth when she felt Xavier’s teeth clasp onto her right breast, hard.

Not giving her time to recover, he quickly picked her body up and flipped her around so her face was pushed down into the plush pillow. His rough hand pushed her shoulders down and his thighs splayed her legs open when he wedged them between her. He gripped her hips, fingers digging into her flesh, and entered her with one deep thrust. Leawyn gave a shrill scream from the swift intrusion.

A loud groan escaped his throat. Resuming his fistful of her hair, he yanked her head up until her neck was straining toward him. He relentlessly thrust into her, her body sliding away from his each time their hips connected from the force of their joining. Leawyn’s pain induced tears spilled over her eyelashes and made a trail down her smooth cheeks from Xavier’s rough assault.

Her hands scrambled to get some kind of purchase to pull her body away and escape him, but his hard thrusts kept her body off the bed for no more than a second. He gripped her hips harder to keep her still and buried his face deep into her neck. The sound of his growls and grunts were loud in her ear.

“Xavier, please!” she whimpered weakly in protest.

Ignoring her pleas of respite, Xavier picked up the pace of the teeth-clattering thrusts as he plunged into her body time and time again, driving as deep into her as he was able.

“Mine,” Xavier growled into her ear. “You’re mine, Leawyn.” He groaned, sweat dripping down his brow as he pushed into her harder still. “MINE!”

With one last sharp twist of his hips, Xavier’s breath escaped as his release came, his seed pulsing into her and solidifying his ownership.

It was silent as Xavier threw himself off Leawyn. She was motionless as he tucked her stiff and shaking body against his side. He kept a tight hold of her, his arm thrown possessively across her hip.

The sob Leawyn was trying to hold in broke free when she felt the sticky substance of Xavier’s climax running down her thighs.

“I hate you,” she cried coarsely, squeezing her eyes shut tightly against the pain of her abused body and emotions. “I hate you!”

Xavier ignored her, staring up at the ceiling.

“I hate you,” Leawyn chanted over and over again, until she had no more energy to cry or speak.

“I hate you . . .” she whispered one last time before she gave in to the blackness and slipped into a restless sleep.

The next morning, Xavier woke to the quiet of his hut and faint sounds of his village waking up.

Blinking against the stream of sunlight, he slowly sat up and turned his head to look down at his wife.

His eyes took in her bruised lip, the bruises in the shape of his fingers on her hips, and the various bite marks covering her body. His gaze shifted to her breast, the skin around the area raised and red from his bite. His semen was still visible on her thighs.

Xavier looked away with a grimace. He knew she wouldn’t be forgiving, and a part of him was angry at himself for losing control, but the other—the more savage part of him—was filled with pride and satisfaction of his doing.

He marked her like no one had; his ownership was there for everyone to see. Everyone would know she was his. He’d kill any man who tried to touch her the way he had.

He thought of the way it felt to take her so mercilessly—the feel of her body clasped tight around him and the knowledge she was his—no one else had ever been given the privilege he had with his young wife, and it constantly drove him insane with lust. He wanted to dominate her. Possess her.

It didn’t matter that she hated him, or that an unknown army was swiftly coming to try and destroy his village. All that had mattered in that moment was the feel of Leawyn against him.

Xavier smirked, his eyes glittering with dark possession at the knowledge. He gave himself a moment more to admire his wife before he rose from the bed and strode shamelessly to the chest holding his clothes and armor.

Leawyn regretted coming aware of her surroundings the moment she tried to shift herself to a sitting position. The sharp sting of pain had her body protesting at the small movement. Every part of her felt like it had been run over by a horse. The pain in her thighs and inner muscles made her eyes water.

“You will stay in the hut today.”

Leawyn shivered at the sound of her husband’s cold voice. She turned her head, bringing her narrowed gaze to match his.

“And if I don’t?”

Xavier’s eyes flashed. Growling, he strode over to her in two quick strides until his face was pushed against hers.

“If you disobey me, you will be punished.” His hands struck lighting fast and grabbed her chin.

“You will stay here,” Xavier repeated lowly, staring her in the eyes. “You will be waiting for my return.” He leaned in closer, firming his grip on her chin when she tried to jerk away from him. “And you will be prepared to please me, Leawyn.”

Leawyn tensed. He let her go abruptly and stood, turning away from her.

She held her breath until the slamming of her hut’s door. She lay back down on the bed and buried her face into the pillow, letting it catch her tears. Her small hands tightened into a fist, hitting the pillow as she screamed. She screamed, and screamed, and screamed. Each scream became more gut-wrenching than the rest.

She didn’t stop screaming, even as Namoriee’s warm arms embraced her. In silent comfort, Namoriee stayed like that as Leawyn broke apart.