Shilah whimpered. That bite of pain only heightened the sensations, as he gripped her hips and rocked her harder and deeper onto his cock, her pussy hurting on his thick girth, but such a good hurt. “Lachlan, please!”
Shilah did not know what she screamed for as she became lost, if it was more of his untamed loving or an ease from the intense wash of lust. She begged, arching, writhing beneath him as so many sensations seemed to converge on her at once. She could barely gasp for air the sensations were so brilliant. Her climax rushed over her like a tidal wave, tearing through her soul, stars exploding behind her eyes as her powers roiled through the mountains and down the valley. She took his mind under, his soul into hers, his pleasure becoming hers and hers becoming his, and with a hoarse growl, he released his seed deep inside her body.
She collapsed onto the forest floor, and he tucked her body close to his, and she inhaled, breathing in his scent, his warmth. His arms tightened around her, his heart racing as he took her into the safety and comfort of the shadows.
Exactly three hours after she had fallen asleep in Lachlan’s arms, Shilah’s lashes fluttered open. She shifted in the bed, seeking the protective warmth that had held her as she succumbed to sleep. She flared her senses, unable to feel him in the chamber. Their thread twanged, and she ran the tip of her finger over the silky, yet unbreakable bond.
“I am meeting with King Gidon, Drac, and Talon at the Western Quadrant. I shall be home within a few hours. There is a great library on the second floor. I believe you will find great pleasure there, mate.”
Home. How oddly comforting those words were? And it wasn’t Serange she thought of. But here, in his arms, at this castle. She pressed one hand to her midsection hard, desperate to stop the quaking flutters, fighting to stick to her decision. “Until I see you again, Lachlan Ravenswood.”
The presence in her mind stilled, and she felt its predatory intent as he assessed her words, the sorrow in her voice. Tension wound Shilah tight, coiling her stomach tighter and tighter. Moving from the bed with her newfound speed, she hurriedly dressed in a black caftan that molded her petite frame. Her hair was quickly caught in a tight plait, and she slipped her feet into delicate slippers. They were not fashioned for fight or flight, but they were all she had access to. After a brief hesitation, she took up the golden armband that was fashioned from snakes. She could sense no energy within them, but they had come alive when she had been threatened. Taking a deep breath, she slipped them on, and then opened her psychic eyes.
“Kala.”
Her sister answered instantly. “I am ready.”
“I am coming for you now. We will need to move with stealth. Can you see if our escape will be hindered?”
“No vision comes to me. I am no longer at the King’s castle, but I dine with Princess Saieke at her home in the Northern fort.”
Shilah slipped deeper into her sister’s mind, assessing the friendship and care she felt for the flamed hair princess, and looking at the picture of the Northern castle. “Be ready, trust no one.”
Kala’s fierce determination echoed, and Shilah slipped her mind from hers. She sank deep inside, closing off the mental pathway that led to Lachlan Ravenswood with a ruthless will. Then she flared her telepathy, sensing that his castle currently housed eighty-nine souls. Only ten of those were warriors, and she could detect them in the shadows, the brief touch of their aura, red and malevolent. Their goal was to protect her until Lachlan returned.
There was a stillness at her center, and she reached for it, drawing on white energy as she pushed her power before her. Using her telekinesis, she opened the door and exited the chamber with stealth then she hurried through the castle. She passed servants, and visitors but none saw her, for she built the illusion in their minds that she was not there. Shilah made her way to the highest tower on the highest landing of the castle. There she lifted her head to the shadowed sky and sent her mind hurtling through the air with sharp precision. She felt all the animals on the ground and all the creatures in the air. Something large rolled through the sky at a distance. Dipping into its mind she waded through its mem
ories, assessing his strength and speed.
She called it to her, pushing the compulsion deep, one the massive creature could not resist. The winged creature zipped through the air, hurtling itself toward her with shocking speed. It landed on the large balcony, standing over six feet on four clawed legs, its feline body covered in grey feathers, its head birdlike with a beaked mouth.
She went deeper into its mind, building its loyalty to her, overriding his primeval nature, binding it to her command, feeding it the urgency to escape to the Northern Keep for Kala. It crouched in a bestial grace, and she hopped onto its back, the powerful muscles beneath her thighs twisting with sinuous power. It hurtled through the air, a wild cry echoing from its breast. She held on with all her strength, lowering her face against the wind, breathing easily. The journey felt as if it took forever, and her tension mounted with each dip and roll of the massive body beneath her.
Shilah flared her psychic ability, sensing the intent of all animals and Darkans far and wide. She caught the minds of several people below assessing if they sent any alert. Their minds were filled with peace, lust, love, and war. She felt the surprise of a warrior who thought he scented Lachlan but did not see him. Her heart lurched when that warrior glanced up, but the idea flitted away from his thoughts as he went back to seducing the laughing Darkan female by his side, carrying a basket of fruits.
Though the creature’s speed was great, it took almost two hours of flight before it reached the courtyard of the Northern keep. It landed, and Shilah hopped from its back, grateful for her enhanced stamina. Her sister waited, and the Princess Saieke was by her side.
“Kala?”
“It would be impossible to disappear from beneath her nose,” her sister said with wry amusement. “Her curiosity cannot be deterred.”
The princess smiled and stepped forward, her eyes flicking to the beast. Shilah found it curious she was alone, but then she felt the auras of the warriors in the dark, and Shilah blinked, for more than twenty lingered, their aura cold and calculating, and she sensed they had one directive, protect the mate of Drac El Kyn at all cost.
“Does she know that we escape?”
There was a hitch in Kala’s breathing. “She only knows you come for me, but she is very quick and witty.”
If Princess Saieke had a similar bond with her mate like Shilah had with Lachlan was it possible she had told her mate of Shilah’s visit?
Shilah stared at the princess, and in the depth of her sapphire eyes knowledge gleamed. Shilah dipped into her thoughts, some of the tension easing when she saw that the princess did not mean to betray their actions tonight.
“You will need to see for yourself that he is the other half to your soul.”
The princess’s uncensored thought burned through Shilah’s mind, and she made no reply as Kala mounted the animal after her. Shilah ordered it toward the forest leading to the portal, commanding it to soar through the air with speedy stealth.
A ripple of awareness roiled through her. Her nerves stretched taut as Shilah sensed a dark, silent force behind her. She glanced over her shoulder expecting to see a winged creature following. There was none. Yet she knew with every fiber of her being Lachlan was close by. She could feel his rage swarming the air, the brutal resolve trembling through the sky. And she increased her pace, a sob tearing from her chest for she ran away in vain.
She glanced below, able to see the houses, the forest, and even the people on the ground. They flew over a vast lake the wind touching the surface of the silver so that ripples danced over the water. She glanced at the towering trees, some tall enough they brushed the underbelly of the animal. Leaves fluttered wildly as if something passed between them, and the taste of something dark and too primal coated her senses.