Chapter 180

I couldn’t believe he would say that. It was so clear that he agreed with her. Had she been comparing me to him? Had she really had such an effect on him? This couldn’t happen. This couldn’t go on. I had to get rid of her.

I bet if those leeches hadn’t been on me, I could have caught her. I reached up to my face which still throbbed painfully. I caught sight of myself in a window and my jaw trembled. Maybe he hadn’t been tempted because I looked a mess. My face was swelling and purpling. I could still taste blood in my mouth.

She didn’t have to punch me so hard. My eye was swelling and I wasn’t even sure if one of my teeth hadn’t gotten loosened. There were ugly bleeding rings on my neck and chest, bleeding through my wet almost transparent white dress.

Something warm settled on my shoulders. I looked up and saw Cillian. He’d placed his temple red cloak on my shoulders. He said nothing as he tied it around my neck and eyed me.

“Is there a reason that you look like you got into a fight and dropped in the lake?”

My jaw trembled. “I… Estella did this to me.”

He tilted his head and leaned close sniffing my face.

“Hmm. I could believe that she did that to your face… She held back if you’re not missing any teeth.”

“Held back?” I shrieked. “Look at my face!”

“I am,” he said. “I assure you, with Estella’s training and her wolfsbane knuckles, the damage could be much worse… What happened? You just vanished from the temple. I thought… perhaps the Goddess had called you, but never returned.”

My jaw dropped and I leaned into his arms, letting the tears fall as I thought about everything. He wrapped his arms around me and drew the hood of the cloak over my head. I wished Candido had done this when he saw me wet and tied up. When I’d gone to him and cried into his chest. The thought just made me cry harder.

“There, there. The Goddess has an… interesting sense of humor occasionally. Are all of the leeches gone?”

“I don’t know.”

“Come with me and let’s get you cleaned up, okay? Perhaps something to eat? The festival is still going.”

“No,” I said thinking of Estella’s parting words. It was likely that Candido would be somewhere in the city with her, laughing and chatting, maybe making wedding plans. Maybe they were already having sex and consummating their bond. My heart ached. No matter what. I didn’t want to see him right now.

If he was out doing that, it meant he didn’t care about me and what I thought anyway. Besides, he said that he wanted us to be apart. So fine, we’d be apart. I wouldn’t go looking for him, but I knew… I knew in my heart that he’d come looking for me soon. That he’d apologize for saying that, for making me so angry.

For now, I’d just… enjoy Cillian doting on me.

“No, you’re not hungry?”

“No, I don’t want to eat at the festival.”

“That can be arranged. Come on.”

He led me down the main road, keeping me close to him and shielding me from the people we passed. Soon, the light of the city started to fade and we arrived at a little cottage. He opened the door and ushered me in. Lights came on, but I saw no switch. He removed the cloak from my shoulders and hung it up on a coat stand near the door. Then, he ushered me to one of the seats.

“What is this place?”

“A cottage we used occasionally. Not the palace, but I figured you would be a bit too tired to walk all the way to the palace.”

“I don’t want to go there.”

“I figured that too.”

He walked away and went rummaging through a closet and pulled out a box. It looked like a bigger version of the box Candido had.

“Was that made by Estella?”

“It was.”

“I don’t want it. Just… give me some bandages.”

He cocked an eyebrow. “You’re not concerned about scarring?”

I froze. “I’m a werewolf. We don’t scar.”

“When you have wolfsbane and silver poisoning, you do,” he looked at me. “And given that you’ve had a run-in with the leeches, you will definitely scar, but let it never be said I don’t abide by people’s wishes.”

“It was just a punch.”

“Her knuckles are designed to subdue. It’s coated in needles, tiny ones, that deliver just enough wolfsbane and silver to slow down werewolf recovery, but not kill.”

I scowled. “How could she have a weapon like that?”

“It works on vampires too,” he said, putting the box back. “And I meant for her to be able to protect herself.”

I looked at him. “You… like her.”

“Of course,” he said. “She’s very likable. A warm heart, a strong spirit…”

I turned away. “She’s not. She’s greedy and selfish and after Candido.”

He chuckled. “I’ll see if I have some bandages around.”

“Wait,” I said. “I don’t want to scar.”

I was already at such a disadvantage. She was already putting her claws in Candido. I couldn’t let him see me again looking like this.

“Very well,” he said and came back with the box. He eyed me. “I have a feeling you are going to have to undress… unless you’d rather apply it yourself?”

I met his gaze and shook my head.

“I’ll start with your legs,” he said, opening the box and pulling a few things out. He opened one of the jars and a small glass bottle, dabbing it onto a piece of cotton. I braced myself for the sting, but none came.

“What is that?”

“Antiseptic.”

“It doesn’t sting, though.”

He smiled. “Estella is quite good at her potion work.”

“It seems like she’s got everyone fooled with her healing knowledge. You know if I knew anything about healing, no one would be able to say anything.”

He said nothing for a moment.

“You’re not saying anything?”

“It is normal to be jealous. Normal to be insecure of your place in someone’s life when things changed so drastically,” he said. “It’s a sign of love in most cases.”

I looked down at him and thought back to Candido. He had mentioned Cillian, but there was no jealousy in his tone. There was no anger either. It seemed like he didn’t feel anything.

Maybe I was more right than I thought and he didn’t love me.

“How’s that?” He asked. I looked down at the bandages he’d wrapped around the wounds he’d treated.

“I.. didn’t even notice.”

“I am efficient at it,” he smiled and stood. “Now… about the rest.”

I swallowed and stood. For the second time today, I undressed, but this was totally different. As soon as my dress came off. I felt the heat of his gaze dragging over my body, taking me in as if I was the most beautiful thing he’d ever seen.

“You… are quite lovely, aren’t you?” He said softly. His eyes were dark with desire. “It is a wonder that Candido has managed to resist you… Turn around.”

I bit my lip. The order felt different than when Candido had said it earlier. I turned slowly, the hair on the nape of my neck stuck up as I felt him getting closer. His hands were feverish and they trailed gently across my skin, lingering even as he applied the antiseptic and whatever else he was putting on me. He treated the wound on my arm and every other leech mark, but I couldn’t focus on that. I could only focus on the sound of his breathing and how every graze of his skin against mine sent a pulse of heat straight to my stomach.

“Turn around,” he whispered against my neck. I swallowed and turned, meeting his gaze.

“You are a sweet and lively little thing,” he smiled. “Did you manage to land a single hit?”

I shook my head.

“With time and training, perhaps,” he smiled. “Though I would… perhaps prefer for you to remain just as you are, untainted by war and fight.”

He gripped my hips. I gasped as he lifted me onto the table. He stood between my legs, looking down at me. For a moment, I thought he would kiss me. I could feel how much he wanted to from the way he leaned close, but he turned at the last minute and started applying the antiseptic to my chest and stomach.

He licked his lips. His eyes glinted.

“Y-Your eyes…”

“Your blood smells good to me,” he said. “You needn’t worry. I am more than capable of control.”

I was disappointed as he finished and stepped back, taking the heat of his body with him.

“All done. Shall I scrape together something?”

I licked my lips and shook my head. “I changed my mind… let’s go to the festival.”