Into the Ashes [The Arcadians 2] (25 page)

dragon warrior,” Silas said, his

voice rough with emotion. “Make

sure they take care of you or they will

answer to me.”

He waved his hand and Raven’s

vision dimmed until the world faded

to black.

* * * *

Raven was met with a blast of heat

as she pushed open the heavy

wooden door to the forge. It was a

large, open building with a stone

wall surrounding it with no ceiling to

allow the abundance of heat to

escape easily.

She turned and waved at Savitar

and Kadan who watched her with

concerned expressions apparent on

their faces. They had wanted to

accompany her on her task, but she

had made it clear that she wanted to

go find Tristan on her own.

Well, her and the three guards that

trailed after her.

Her three new elite guards, Arkady,

Tirk and Jordyn had been given the

task of being her bodyguards

whenever she left the palace. At first

she thought the elite guards would

have grumbled at being given

babysitting duty. Instead, the three

brothers were honored at being given

the task and took her safety very

seriously.

When she had woken, she had

opened her eyes to find she was back

in bed, tucked safely between her

mates. Afraid it had all just been a

dream, she had jackknifed up on the

bed, pressing her hands to her

stomach as she sat up. She had still

been wearing the Grecian-style

liquid-silver dress that Silas had

dressed her in when he had

transported her out.

Kadan and Savitar had woken and

immediately searched the room for a

disturbance

while

automatically

shielding her body from any potential

attacker. She had grinned about that.

Before she had even begun her

explanation, she had asked them not

to share with Tristan because she

wanted to tell him everything herself.

They had agreed and she quickly

explained about how she had been

converted. She had decided to leave

out a few details, like the baby, to

tell them later.

Knowing how much it meant to

him, she wanted to tell Savitar about

that when they were alone before

they told the others.

Her mates had been overjoyed that

she had turned down the offer to be

sent home and the relief she’d felt

coming from both of them made her

ashamed that they had been so

worried.

Their relief had been just as intense

when she had told them that she had

been converted into an Arcadian so

they wouldn’t have to worry about

her aging. It had never occurred to

them that her lifespan was different

than theirs and their fear of losing her

was practically tangible.

Conversation had quickly been

forgotten when the hunger for her

mates had taken over. Kadan and

Savitar had taken turns making love

to her again. The desire to sink her

teeth into them had shock tearing

through her as the scent of their blood

stirred a hunger inside her that was

completely foreign. She had been

pretty damn surprised when she felt

her human teeth elongate into sharp

fangs, like a vampire or something.

Silas had obviously forgotten to

mention a few things…damn him.

When she came, the desire to sink

her

fangs

into

them

was

uncontrollable. They had welcomed

it, even urged her to do it. Refusing to

think about it so she wouldn’t freak

out, she gave into the urge, wanting

the bond with them. As soon as she

bit their necks, they had climaxed

with her, making their mutual release

even more intense.

When they were done with their

bed play she had bounded out of bed,

eager to seek out Tristan. She had

dressed in the leather pants and

warrior’s vest and Savitar and Kadan

had joined her in eating a quick meal

in the main hall. After her visit with

the Gods, Raven no longer cared how

the others viewed her or if they

thought her behavior was strange. As

long as her mates were happy with

her she felt free to be herself.

She had plowed through the meal

with gusto then had been formally

introduced to her new guards. The

three

warrior

brothers

were

handsome males, with hair almost as

dark as hers. They had thick, corded

muscles, just like her mates, but no

one compared to her men in her eyes.

She was aware of how carefully

Kadan and Savitar had watched her

reaction as she was introduced to the

new trio. She felt a mixture of

jealousy and rage surge through both

of them as they fought against their

desire to pick her up and take her far

away from any other male she may

find attractive and their need to

ensure that she was safe.

She had given her mates a fierce

frown, telling them to chill out

through their bond. When they had

both shot her a confused look, she

had sighed and explained that they

needed to relax. Even if she thought

another male was good looking that

didn’t mean she was going to jump

him.

They should show her some damn

trust, especially after this morning.

Kadan and Savitar had relaxed and

sheepishly apologized, although they

had both mentioned they would

probably react that way whenever

she was in the presence of unmated

males. She had rolled her eyes at

them and had set out on her task after

she found out that Tristan was

working in one of the large buildings

where materials were made from the

iron found in the surrounding

mountains.

Her mates had insisted on escorting

her to the location, but she told them

today was her day with Tristan and

that she would see them both later.

Her desire to spend time with Tristan

was a compulsion. It was a deep

burning need to soothe the worry that

she knew he felt. No longer angry at

how they had met, Raven was eager

to bond with him and wanted to do it

as soon as possible.

Seeing their dejected faces, she had

asked Savitar and Kadan to give her

the day with Tristan, but to come

meet them later so the four of them

could spend some time together. They

had immediately perked up, telling

her to reach out through their bond to

let them know when they would be

allowed to join her and Tristan. She

promised she would then gave them

one last kiss before walking to the

building.

Once she pushed the large wooden

door open, the sounds of metal being

pounded came from all directions.

Mentally turning down her hearing,

she walked around several stations

where warriors worked making

various items while her three guards

trailed her discreetly. She was

oblivious to the stares of the other

males, completely focused on finding

her mate.

The heat had a light sheen of

perspiration coating her skin and she

could feel her hair sticking to the

back of her neck. She would have

pulled it back, but she knew how

much all three of her mates enjoyed

seeing her curly hair loose so she left

it down.

She smiled as she finally saw him.

Tristan was sitting at a table in a

shaded corner, focused on working

on something that she couldn’t see as

she approached.

“Tristan,” she called out through

their bond, shielding her mind enough

so he wouldn’t know she was there

yet. She watched as his hands stilled

and his head lifted. One of his hands

moved to rub against his chest as if

his heart hurt and it filled her with

sadness.

“Good rising, Raven,” Tristan

replied, sending his words with a

feeling of warmth and welcome.

“I was hoping we could spend the

day together,” she said.

She could feel his surprised

pleasure and her mood lifted.

“I would love that, little one,”

Tristan said quickly. “Shall I come

find you now?”

“I’ve found you,” Raven said

aloud, watching him freeze. His head

whipped around and his glowing

eyes blazed with hunger when he saw

her.

“Raven,” Tristan said, standing

quickly. “It is too hot for you in here.

Come, let me take you away.”

She smiled at him as his eyes

roamed over her outfit and felt a

surge of lust through their bond.

When his eyes met hers, his

narrowed. “Your eyes…”

Raven stiffened in alarm. “What?

What’s wrong with my eyes?”

“They have silver and gold flecks

in them now. How is this possible? I

have dreamed of your beautiful green

eyes since I last saw them. The flecks

were not there before.”

“Oh, umm…does it look weird?”

Tristan’s

expression

softened.

“Nay, I did not think it was possible

for your eyes to get any more

stunning, but they are. It is as if there

are stars shimmering in your beautiful

green eyes now. It was just startling

to see.”

Wow, who knew Tristan was a

poet? Still, it would have been nice

to have a heads up that her damn eyes

had

been

changed

during

the

conversion. Or was that because of

the Gods’ blood? Either way it was

another thing she could thank Silas

for. “Err…I can explain that, later.”

Or at least she’d try to.

Desperate to switch the subject, she

looked around. “Kadan explained

that the three of you try to help with

the work here at least once a week. I

wanted to see what you were doing.”

She noticed him shift to block her

view of the table. His lack of

expression and tense body had her

hesitating. “If now isn’t a good time I

can go. We can meet later—”

“Nay!” Tristan yelled. He blew out

a breath and his massive shoulders

slumped. “I had just finished making

something for you. I would have

waited until my brothers were with

me to gift it to you, but—”

Oh, crap…

“I ruined your surprise. I’m so

sorry, Tristan. I just wanted to come

and surprise you.”

He smiled at her and made her

heart speed up. In her peripheral

vision she noticed her guards falling

back a few steps, giving her and

Tristan as much privacy in the corner

as they could.

Tristan held out a hand to her.

“There is nothing to apologize for. It

was a good surprise. Come, little

one. Let me show you what I have

made for you.”

Raven stepped forward and took

his hand, allowing him to pull her

closer to the table. He was very

careful to respect her space and she

hated the distance that she felt

between them, emotionally and

physically. Propriety be damned, she

snuggled up to his side, wrapping an

arm around his waist. He looked

down at her with such love and

happiness it made her knees go weak.

“Tristan, I forgive you. Please

don’t hold back with me,” she said

softly. “I want us to start over. Clean

slate, okay?”

Tristan smiled, his eyes glowing

with pleasure. “I would like that very

much.”

He turned back to the table and

lifted the most gorgeous necklace

Raven had ever seen into his hands. It

was an intricate torque made of thin,

woven threads of a deep gold the

same color of his eyes. The threads

held three large gems the color of

dark silver that sparkled in the

sunlight.

“This is a mating torque,” Tristan

explained quietly. “These are called

ironstones. They are extremely rare

and can only be found in the heart of