Unexpected Mates ~ Book One
Chapter 26

Eyes burned holes into Sylvie’s body as she roused beside the fire.

Blinking at the dying light, a sleeping Lazuli curled beneath a large quilt materialised from the darkness. Behind her sat Kerensa, the violet hue of her eyes reflecting the dancing flames.

Sylvie went to roll away from the heat scorching her face when she bumped into two rigid forms.

One hot, one cold.

Looking up at the shadows blocking her movement, she smiled, seeing Kian and Elias sitting back-to-back, one with eyes closed, the other open.

“Are you ready to speak with me now?” Elias’ voice remained surprisingly soft as he gazed down at her.

She shrugged and sat up, rubbing her eyes. The gritty itch from crying still hadn’t faded.

Elias pulled her onto his lap and tilted her chin up to look at him. “Whatever you’re hiding from me won’t change how I feel about you.” His minty breath caressed her cheeks, and warmth rose to them.

“Even if I can’t tell you yet?” The thought of speaking her trauma out loud sent waves of nausea through her.

Elias’ eyes hardened for a moment before softening again. “I may not like not knowing everything about you, kitten, but I trust you’ll tell me when you’re ready.”

Redness kissed Sylvie’s face as he stared deeply into her eyes.

“But,” he continued with a low whisper, “If Lady Lazuli is asking you to keep secrets that will hurt you or Kian, I will not take kindly to it.”

Swallowing, Sylvie pulled her chin free and tucked her head beneath his.

He grumbled in warning, but she shook her head. “It’s not that kind of secret, Elias, don’t worry.”

Even as she said it, the lie burned her throat. While Lazuli never explicitly asked her to back off from Kian, she planted guilt so deeply in Sylvie’s mind that she couldn’t continue pushing her relationship with him.

She couldn’t be the reason for Lazuli getting abused by her father. Bile rose quickly in her throat, and she darted from Elias’ lap, slapping her hand over her mouth before running to the nearest bush.

As quietly as possible, she spat and coughed as her burning stomach acid poured from her lips. Elias appeared behind her instantly, scooping her hair away from her face and placing a firm hand on her back.

When she finished, he offered her a small cup of water, and Kian appeared at her side with a soft frown.

“Are you alright, princess?”

She waved him away, turning from both men. “I’m fine, Kian. Don’t worry about me.”

She refused to look back as she returned to the warmth of the fire, but the thought of his sad face watching her after being rejected forced tears down her cheeks.

The heat of the fire dried them quickly, and she prayed the violet eyes overseeing her didn’t notice them.

She ignored him for 36 hours, and the growing ache in her muscles seemed a fitting punishment.

Sylvie lay curled in a ball in the carriage as the group packed up to leave. She tried to help, but Elias shooed her away, claiming she was only prolonging their efforts.

The door opened behind her, and a low tongue click drew her gaze.

“What the fuck are you doing, Hart?” Kerensa’s low voice hissed.

Sylvie just sighed and stared at the back of the carriage seat.

“Are you rejecting him after you just marked each other?”

“I’m not doing anything, Kerensa. Just leave me alone.”

“You are being a spoiled brat right now. What did Lazuli say to you in the forest? Did she threaten you? Because I’ll happily kill her and her extorting father.”

Sitting up and rubbing her face, Sylvie stared at Kerensa. “No. She didn’t. And you won’t do anything of the sort. She’s been through enough.”

Kerensa scoffed and searched Sylvie’s face as if it would give her the answers.

“Whatever sob story she told you, don’t be so quick to believe it. I thought you were smarter than that.”

Disgust crossed her face as Sylvie folded her arms and scowled.

“You don’t know what you’re talking about.”

After Sylvie’s childhood, she could never dismiss someone’s accusations. She promised she would never stay neutral, as her foster mother did, quickly learning that to remain neutral in times of abuse or oppression meant taking the oppressor’s side by default.

There was no fucking way she would do that.

No. No. No.

Kerensa growled and dragged her from her thoughts. “I know she is wrong for Kian, and as much as I hate it right now, you are right for him. I’ve never seen him as content as when he is with you, and I’ll be damned if I let you give that up.”

Frustration seized Sylvie’s aching limbs. “It’s not up to you,” she hissed back.

“So you are rejecting him,” Kerensa whispered, her violet eyes hardening. “She better be worth it because once your marks start to fade away, you’ll destroy him.”

Kerensa backed out and slammed the carriage door, the force rattling Sylvie’s teeth.

“Fuck!” Her eyes and throat burned as she flung her head back into the seat, letting the sharp pain in her scalp steal her attention. She didn’t want to hurt anyone, yet everything she did lead to death and suffering.

How many creatures had already died because of her? The carriage started moving, and Sylvie’s heart squeezed, realising Elias wouldn’t accompany her for the day of travelling. He must have been with Kian.

She gasped, realising he would have heard her conversation with Kerensa.

Fury and fear twisted her belly as she stared out the window, watching the wild landscapes roll by. Kerensa knew what she was doing, the bitch. If Elias knew of Sylvie’s intention to hurt Kian, he might reject her too.

As the tears rolled down her cheeks, she felt a growing numbness. It was what she deserved anyway.

To be alone.

She was damaged goods.

“Stop it,” she cursed herself, swiping the tears away stubbornly. Years of therapy would not be washed away because of one damn woman. The urge to scream in frustration stalled in her throat as she took a few deep breaths.

Sylvie believed Lazuli’s abuse at the hands of her father, but she couldn’t let her get in the way of her happiness.

Sylvie deserved to be happy, and so did Kian.

It vexed her to think it, but Kerensa was right. She wasn’t stupid enough to believe he would eventually become happy with Lazuli. Seeing his sallow skin and dead eyes at his engagement was a clear indication, but maybe she could do something to help Lazuli replace her person.

Someone that Sylvie wasn’t already deeply in love with.

The thought hit her in such a rush that her adrenaline only kicked in a second later, her heart jackhammering in her chest fast enough to make her feel faint.

She loved him.

Maybe it was the bond forcing the feelings, but she liked it. The warmth swirled in her chest, and for once, tears of happiness prickled in her eyes.

Basking in the serenity of the new experience, she hardly noticed the hours pass by and the world outside turn from thick forests to rolling hills.

After sitting with a sporadically racing heart and mind for a few hours, Sylvie poised herself to tell him the truth.

The carriage slowed to a stop, and she withheld an excited squeal as she pushed the door open and dropped onto silky brown dirt. She looked forward to a proper shower, especially after watching the dust plume cling to her dress’s hem.

With a quick pat down of her gown, she bit her lip, holding back a beaming smile before racing towards the leading vehicle.

Both Elias and Kerensa were nowhere in sight, probably safety-checking the perimeter.

Before Sylvie could pull the door handle, it cracked open slightly, and soft kisses and breathy moans hit her ears. Her heart all but stopped beating as Kian’s low throaty growl sounded, and she could smell the musty trace of sex.

Freezing, she stood listening to the sounds for way too long before turning and walking back to her solitude, slamming herself inside her tiny lodgings.

She vowed, with a hardening heart, that she would not come out until they arrived at the Stone Court, where she would tell Lord Trion that his daughter could marry her mate.

The winking lights of the Stone Court flickered on the horizon as they pulled over for the last night of camping under the open sky.

“Why won’t she come out?” Lazuli’s concerned tone grated on Sylvie’s ears. Confliction swirled in her head as she tried to hold onto her empathy despite the betrayal she felt.

It wasn’t her fault, Sylvie reasoned.

Lazuli loved Kian too. If anything, it was Kian’s responsibility not to cheat, and he failed.

Considering his ‘kind’ nature, it was hard for Sylvie to hate him. But replaying the free erotic audio in her head helped reignite her inner fury.

“Just give her space,” Kian said. His tone sounded sad, and Sylvie’s face scrunched, imagining his stupid perfect face with a downturned smile.

“Let me,” Elias growled low in his throat before rattling the handle on the carriage door.

After tearing the gown to shreds, Sylvie had tied the hem of her dress from the door to a strong beam support behind her seat. It had kept the door locked pretty well and stopped any unwanted conversations.

It held for about one second before Elias ripped the door off its hinges and scowled at her through the darkened doorway. “What are you doing?”

Rolling her eyes, she turned away and curled her knees to her chest.

“Answer me, Sylvie.” He leaned into the doorway and pulled her across the plush seat until he could grip her chin and force her to look into his eyes.

“Go away.” Her voice came out in a defeated sigh, and she noticed his jaw ticking before closing her eyes. “I’m not coming out until we get to the Stone Court. So unless we’re there, kindly, get the fuck out.”

He moved her from the carriage quicker than she could take a breath.

Her whole body flinched, expecting a punishment, but his arms wrapped around her and pulled her into a nearby field, flitting up the rolling hillock until the small camp Kian and Kerensa were tending looked like a speck on the dark landscape.

He dropped her onto the damp grass and crossed his arms. “Kian told me what happened.”

The plainness of his words shocked her, but it wore off quickly, and she laughed angrily. “Oh, did he? Well, I don’t need you to rehash it, thank you very much.”

Standing, she tugged on the new hem of her dress that kissed the crest of her knee and started marching down the hill back towards camp.

“She’s holding something over him, Sylvie.”

Her eyes rolled, and she spun, staring at the giant shadow blocking out the light of the two moons. “Bullshit.”

“It isn’t. He’s been charmed so that he can’t say what it is, but-”

“How fucking convenient! What did he say happened then? How do you know she’s the problem when he won’t tell you?”

“Sylvie,” he warned. “I have known him for centuries. And have you forgotten she sent her handmaid to kill you?”

“We don’t know the truth about Zephrinah, and I don’t care right now, okay? I’m hurt! I’m pissed off actually, and I don’t want to hear you making excuses for him, Elias. Honestly, I just want to get out of here and go back to my life before all this mate shit.”

She knew she had gone too far when Elias’ hands clenched at his sides, and a vein in his forehead appeared.

“Is that so?”

Swallowing, she gnawed her lower lip and backed up.

His voice held frigid iciness. “I gave you space, but now I think it’s time you told me what Lazuli spoke with you about in the forest. You haven’t been the same since that night, and I need to know. Now.”

Backing away slightly faster, she turned to run from him when his hand darted out and gripped her bicep. “You aren’t going anywhere.”

“Stop it, Elias.”

His hand cupped her face, and she squeezed her eyes shut against the tears. “I can’t tell you,” she cried. “It isn’t my place.”

Sudden flashes of a buried memory resurfaced— a drooping face, gibberish words and begging.

She slammed her fist into her scalp. No, no, no, this was not happening. Opening her eyes, she blinked until her unshed tears dribbled down her face and stared up at him with fear churning in her gut.

If he saw her at her worst, he’d leave her.

No one wants a broken plaything.

He searched her face, a guarded look hiding his emotions.

“This isn’t about her, is it? Or even Kian.”

“Don’t.”

Elias pulled her bunched fists into his hands and smoothed them against his chest. “Tell me what she said, kitten.”

“I can’t!” Choked sobs escaped as he held her steady, despite her frantically trying to pull away.

The way he watched her, like a predator toying with its prey, made her heart thump painfully in her chest.

“You don’t need to keep her secrets. She wouldn’t do the same for you.”

Sylvie’s legs buckled, and she dropped to her knees, their height difference forcing her to hover awkwardly above the ground. “Let me go.”

Her voice cracked, and he did as she asked, lowering her slowly until her shins kissed the earth.

Elias crouched and kept his hands off her as he raked his gaze across her shaking frame.

“Tell me,” he whispered gruffly. Sylvie was surprised he knew how to speak so softly, the urge to spill every secret threatening to overcome her.

He shifted until he sat beside her, the air between them sizzling with electricity. Without a second thought, she leaned into him and felt her fury melt.

It wasn’t Elias’ fault.

He was the only one always there for her no matter what, while Kian went off fucking Lazuli any chance he could.

Maybe that was what Fern meant about ‘nice guys’ being the worst.

It pained her to think of Kian that way, but he proved himself to be a cheater yet again.

“Her father,” Sylvie croaked, smearing her wet cheeks with the back of her hand. “He’s abusive.”

She paused.

“Sexually,” she whispered.

Sylvie shuddered, suppressing the images of a bearded face with white hairs growing along the cheek like a broken crescent moon.

Elias’s growl broke the silence, and he quivered at her side, rage trickling from him to her.

“Something happened to you, didn’t it?” he asked, voice thick and gritty.

A ripple of pain and terror sent shockwaves from her body, and she pulled away from him, her head shaking violently. “N-no, I-I never said that...”

“Sylvie.” His glowing red eyes followed her as she tried to make herself look small. “Who hurt you?”

She shook as more sobs clutched her body. “It-it doesn’t matter anymore-”

Elias was in front of her in an instant. “Of course, it matters! Tell me a name, and I’ll-”

“It doesn’t matter anymore,” Sylvie hiccoughed, interrupting him before revealing the terrible truth.

Or maybe it was the perfect retribution.

Nobody else saw it that way, though.

“It doesn’t matter,” she tried again, “because he’s dead.”

Elias stroked her cheek and pulled her into his arms, still trembling with rage. “How?”

“He - he had a stroke,” her voice cracked, and her face contorted in pain. “On top of me.”

The night grew silent around them; no creature or gentle brush of wind interrupted her.

“They said if I’d called for help, the doctors could have saved him, but I- I didn’t. I got away from him and watched him suffer for a few hours. Then- when I... I got my pillow, and I- I.”

“Shhh, Sylvie. You don’t have to say anymore.” Elias held her against him, his rage ebbing as his soft touch calmed her panic. “It’s not your fault.”

“It is.”

He stood and started walking with her back to the camp. “He deserved far, far worse, my love. He’s lucky he’s dead.”

Sylvie felt Elias’ muscles tensing as he tried to hold her gently. She was so grateful to him right then. “So you don’t hate me now?”

He pulled her back to see her face, his own twisted into a look of disbelief.

“What? I could never hate you or think any less of you because of things that happened to you. When I told you I was yours, I meant it. No matter what, Sylvie. Forever.”

Her heart thudded in her chest, and she buried her face into his neck. She never thought the man she wished to dominate her could be the one who brought her so much peace.

Maybe she didn’t need Kian after all.

“Don’t be so hard on Kian,” Elias murmured into her hair as if reading her mind. “We’ll replace out the truth about Lazuli soon enough.”