Betrayals of Spring (29 page)

Traveling at night is not the safest
thing to do, but staying here with an army full of lustful Tyvar definitely
isn’t. I bow my head in respect, “Thank you, Bayleon, but I really think I
should be on my way. I have lost so much time already.”

“As you wish, Princess, but I would like
to escort you to the edges of our territory to see you off,” he advises.

I smile, “I would be honored.”

I am given a few moments to gather my
things and begin dressing. I find all my armor and I begin placing it on my
body. My bow and arrows are on the floor so I pick them up and strap them to my
back. I notice the floor is hard packed soil so curiously I look around for the
first time. The only light in here comes from the torches that are lit and
mounted on the wall. They actually give this room a romantic appeal, and I
thank the stars that I will be out of here soon. Bayleon is waiting by the door
for me, but before I take another step further I sneak a glance over at
Bastian. He looks at me with such longing and sadness. I never gave thought
that he might have the same feelings as Bayleon. Judging by the way he looks I
would say he does.

Am I really going to do this again? Here
I go with putting another’s needs before my own. When everyone finds out what I
have done they will never let me live it down. My heart goes out for these men
and it makes me sad that they live like this every day not knowing what real
love feels like. Bayleon nods his head in understanding before walking out to
leave me alone with Bastian.

Bastian is standing there motionless,
awkward and confused, and I can’t help but feel pity for him. This is the last
time I’m going to do this, and I am only doing this now because he was gentle
with me earlier. The sincerity in his soul was genuine and easy to see.
Bastian’s eyes widen at my approach and I waste no time in crushing my lips
against his before he has any time to speak. He stands frozen at first, but
then returns the kiss with a passion of his own. The love in my body explodes
out in waves and I know Bastian can feel it all. He lifts me off the ground and
crushes me tight against his body. I don’t know how these men survive without
love, but it does however give me joy to be able to share this with them. His
lips are warm and soft as he embraces my lips with his own.

When the kiss is over Bastian sets me
down and I notice a sparkling tear rolling down his cheek. I wipe it away while
he smiles warmly at me.

“You didn’t have to do that, Princess.”

I smile back. “I know, Bastian, but I
wanted to.”

He leans down and kisses me once more on
the lips. “The fact that you wanted to kiss me makes it all the more special.
Thank you, Princess Meliantha. I will treasure this moment for all eternity.”

“You are most welcome,” I reply
whole-heartedly.

He walks me out of the dwelling and
Bayleon is waiting for us just outside. He smiles at us and takes my arm while
Bastian takes the other.

“I’m going to escort you, too,” Bastian
says with a smirk. I gasp in wonder as I peer around the Tyvar camp. My eyes
were closed earlier, so I was unable to take a look at my surroundings. I
wouldn’t necessarily call it a camp, but more a village of sorts. I curiously
look back at the dwelling I just came from and I am amazed by the way it’s
built. His home looks like it was carved out of a mound of earth. It is set
inside a hill and covered with vibrant green colored mosses and grass. I
noticed there are no flowers on the vines that cross over and around his
dwelling. There also are not any around the territory either. I secretly call
upon my magic and I send it to the baron vines that lie across Bayleon’s
dwelling. Flowers begin to sprout of various colors and I silently laugh as we
make our way through the village. Neither Bayleon nor Bastian has looked back
so they will definitely have a surprise when they come back here.

We’re walking through the camp and all
the Tyvar fae immediately stop what they are doing and stare at us in
amazement. I look several of them in the eyes and they all freeze in place,
wide-eyed and open-mouthed. Both Bayleon and Bastian laugh and it snaps
everyone out of their stupor.

“Carry on, everyone!” Bayleon shouts
while waving his hands in the air.

Everyone goes back to doing what they
were doing until someone catches my attention and I freeze. “What the hell is
she doing here?” I exclaim, nodding in the direction of the woman I see hanging
all over a Tyvar fae. The woman I speak of happens to be the evil Winter bitch
Breena. Why is she here?

They both look in Breena’s direction and
then down to me with somber expressions. Bayleon is the one who answers, “She
was left here by the man you consider to be the dark sorcerer. He said she was
a gift, but obviously he used her to get you here.”

Well, it worked getting me here, but the
dark sorcerer is going to be none too pleased when I catch up to him. When I do
find him I will make sure to tell him how much of a spineless bastard he is by
having everyone else do his dirty work for him. He hasn’t succeeded yet with
bringing me down.

I usually love helping people because it
makes me happy, but when I look at Breena I have no desire in my soul to help
her. She betrayed our people and
she
is the reason Kalen is gone, and
for that she can rot in hell.

“Oh, I know he used her to get me here.
That’s how he works,” I express fiercely.

The angry side of me wants to just walk
right up to Breena and kill her, but the compassionate side tells me to try and
save her. Unfortunately, it is too late to save her. She has already been
enthralled by the Tyvar’s power of seduction. She deserves this fate though,
and deep down I am glad for it. I am actually doing her a favor. Dying by the
Tyvar will be way more enjoyable then dying by my hands.

“What would you like us to do with her?”
Bayleon asks.

“I don’t care what you do with her. If
she wasn’t here I was planning on killing her myself. She betrayed our courts
and sided with the dark sorcerer. She is of no concern to me anymore,” I say
with venom.

Bayleon and Bastian nod their heads in
understanding and we continue our way down to the fog beyond where Aki and my
horse, Prince Ashe, are waiting patiently. Seeing them lifts my spirits and
knowing that I will be back on my way to finding Kalen sends the adrenaline
spiking through my body.

Aki is wagging his tail excitedly while
Prince Ashe is pacing back and forth. I know they must have been worried. They
head straight for me and my escorts let me go so I can greet them. Aki reaches
me first and I bend down to hug his neck while he licks my face. His excitement
makes me laugh so he continues to bombard me.

“Thank you for staying, Aki.” He huffs
and licks me one more time before moving away so that I can greet Prince Ashe.
I rub his muzzle and the sadness he feels dissipates when he senses that I am
alright.

“I’m OK, Prince Ashe. Are you ready to
go?” I ask urgently.

He bumps me with his muzzle in reply. My
saddle is in place along with my satchel. I climb upon his back and look down
at both brothers and smile.

“Thank you for letting me go,” I say to
both of them.

Bastian walks up and places his hand on
mine when he speaks. “I hope you have a safe journey and that you find your
prince. Farewell, Princess Meliantha.” He lets go of my hand and steps back to
give Bayleon the chance to say his goodbye.

Bayleon comes forward and takes my hand.
He kisses my hand gently and says, “I wish you a safe journey as well,
Princess. When the time comes and you need more warriors, we will be there to
fight by your side.” His face turns serious with his last words, “I
promise
to always be there if you need me.”

I’m astonished by his promise because it
puts him in my debt if I need help. Tears sting my eyes and I let them fall.

“I’m going to hold you to that promise,
Bayleon,” I say while laughing through the tears. I squeeze his hand one last
time before letting go. I came in here thinking I was going to be a sex slave,
and now I’m leaving and have acquired a powerful ally. I think the tables are
starting to turn in this demented game the dark sorcerer has me playing.

The beginnings of night have already
begun and it’s time for me to be on my way. I wave to both men before Aki heads
off in the direction we must go. I look back one more time to see Bayleon and
Bastian waving, at least until the fog takes over and they are no longer in
sight. It’s a strange feeling, but I honestly think I’m going to miss their
company
.

The direction Aki leads me is the
opposite way from the bridge I crossed over to enter the Tyvar territory. It is
late in the night and my eyes are feeling heavy from lack of sleep. There will
be time to rest when I have Kalen back, so for now, I will push through it as
hard as I can. The forest is dark with slivers of moonlight peeking through the
trees making it look beautiful, yet ominous somehow. The night has cooled off,
but I can still feel the humidity of the forest sticking to my skin. The forest
is eerily quiet and the only sounds I hear are the clomping of Prince Ashe’s
hooves on the ground below. The silence reminds me of how alone I truly am.

I haven’t been riding long, but I think
I’ve gone far enough to where I can let Ashur know that I am well. If I spoke
to him earlier I’m sure he would have found a way to catch up to me. I hesitate
for a few minutes because I know he’s going to demand to know where I am at. He
won’t understand my reasoning for wanting to be alone.

“Ashur?”
I call out
sheepishly to his mind.

“Meliantha! Thank the stars you are all
right. Where are you? Are you OK?”
He speaks frantically in my mind. I
knew he would be worried and it breaks my heart that he is probably been going
crazy for the past few hours not knowing what was happening to me.

“I’m fine...the Tyvar let me go,” I
confess.

“WHAT?! What happened? How did you get
the Tyvar to let you go?”

“It’s a long story and I will tell you
later. Where did they take you and Finn?”

“They took us across the bridge and
blocked us from coming back across. They did something to the fog to keep us
from entering. Tell me where you are and we will come to you.”

I knew he would want to come find me,
but I can’t let him or Finn risk their lives for me anymore. What was the
reason for my training if I can’t defend myself without a warrior’s help? I
honestly think I am strong enough to handle this journey on my own.

“Meliantha?”

I take a deep breath before responding.

“I am so sorry, Ashur, but I’m going to
find Kalen on my own.”

“No, you are not!”
he screams in my
mind. The blast from his scream actually makes me flinch.

“Yes, I am. I just wanted to let you
know I was safe and away from the Tyvar. Go back to the Winter Court and let
everyone know what’s going on. I will see you soon, my Guardian.”

I quickly put my shields up to block him
out of my mind. I hate to have to do that to him, but all I wanted was for him
to know that I’m well. I honestly hope he does what I say and heads back to the
Winter Court. Knowing him and Finn they will keep searching for me until they
find me.