Chapter Twenty-Nine

MY EYES IMMEDIATELY LOCKED ON the trees ahead of me. A figure with glowing gold eyes emerged from the smoke with the calculating prowl of a predator. My spine went rigid as the smoke cleared enough for me to see Rune stalking toward me with lips peeled back in a snarl and clawed hands curled with threat.

"Rune," I said, slowly getting to my feet. "Rune, it's me. Bria."

His glowing eyes tracked my movements, and he bared his canines at me in warning. As I froze in place, I noticed more of the state he was in. His white hair had grown dark with a dusting of soot, matching his black fox ears, and his dark shirt and sweatpants hung in tattered fragments around his frame. Twigs and leaves clung to his fox tail, and fresh, bleeding wounds cut up his arms, torso, and legs. The disheveled hair and clothing paired with his luminous gold eyes and threatening demeanor almost felt feral.

Swallowing hard, I tried taking an easy step toward him. "Rune. It's—"

He rushed me at an alarming speed, and his clawed hand gripped me by the throat, slamming me back into a tree. I grunted from the hard blow at my back and grabbed at his wrist, trying to pry off his hand. Those glowing eyes were locked on my face, but they didn't see me right now.

"Rune." My voice came out faint and hoarse from the pressure clamping my throat. I clawed at his wrist, but he was immovable. "Rune. You … don't want … to hurt me."

He growled and leaned in close to inhale deeply. Something in what he smelled triggered something in him. He suddenly jerked back to stare at me like he didn't believe what he had in his grip, and this time, instead of grabbing at his arm, I reached up to cup his cheeks. His face scrunched with another warning rumble, but I ignored it. My fingers trembled as starbursts began to flash behind my hooded eyes, but I forced my hands to stay firmly on his cheeks. The air had left my lungs, and the world began to spin.

"Rune," I croaked, fearing it would be the last thing to leave my lips.

Knowing I had little strength left, I moved my hands from his cheeks and onto the back of his neck. I pulled his face toward mine and pressed my lips to his. He went rigid, and his grip grew tighter. Just when I thought darkness was about to claim me, he let go of my throat. I sucked in as much air as I could, but immediately had to cough it back out as smoke filled my lungs.

Before I could recover, Rune gripped me by my baggy tunic. His glowing eyes locked with mine for a brief second before his claws shredded the fabric. The tattered garment fell away, leaving my bare skin exposed to his animalistic stare. He dipped his head, and my toes curled as his tongue slicked up the crease of my breasts. I held onto his shoulders to keep my knees from giving out under the lack of clean air.

"Rune," I coughed. "The smoke."

He didn't seem to hear me. His clawed fingers dug into my hips, and sharp pin pricks of pain flared along my skin as he sank his claws into my flesh and dragged them down my thighs, ripping my pants as he did. I hissed at the burning cuts now dripping blood. He gripped my legs, digging his claws into the back of them as he hoisted them up and around his waist while pressing my bare back into the rough bark of the tree.

"Rune," I panted, continuing to struggle for fresh air. Sweat coated my brow and skin with the heat of the island on fire around us. The salty moisture mixed with the gashes on my throat and legs, and it elicited a sting I couldn't ignore.

I was so busy focusing on the needle-like pain covering me that I didn't notice Rune shedding what was left of his pants. One second, I was empty, and the next, he was shoving his firm dick into me with a grunt. I threw my head back with a gasp, and his claws gripped me harder under my thighs.

"Come back," he growled, his voice no longer sounding smooth and deep but harsh and like gravel. It was like the predator inside him was speaking, and Rune was lost to it.

"I'm here," I gasped into his skin.

He didn't seem to hear or understand that.

The sharp pain of the cuts got lost with the sweet pumping of his shaft, and suddenly, I couldn't differentiate between the pleasure and pain. I just felt it all .

The biting of his claws with the delicious fullness of his cock pushing in and out of me.

The smoke filling my burning throat with the symphony of breathless moans leaving my lips.

It all tied together in an exciting rush of new sensations, and it spurred the bundle of nerves between my legs to tighten with fierce need.

I clung to Rune's neck and held my head high to cry out into the dying woods. Rune growled, and his lips coasted over the fleshy tops of my breasts where he suddenly bit down on one. I cried out as his fangs sank into its curve, and the ache in my chest immediately mixed with the heat between my legs as Rune pressed his pelvis into my clit and ground into me with a relentlessness I'd never experienced before.

"Ah, Rune!" I gasped as the wet, throbbing heat at my core began to flare like an exposed wire.

Blood and saliva dripped from his chin when he released my breast only to sink his teeth into the other one with a groan that was all pleasure. The sound with yet another rush of pain and euphoria had my hips moving to try to meet Rune's thrusts. Sweat glistened across our skin, and his grip on me became desperate as the moisture threatened to make him lose his hold.

Growling, he pulled out of me and tossed me to the ground. I landed hard on fallen leaves and twigs, which clung to my wet skin. I sat up on my elbows and watched as Rune dropped to his knees between my legs, gripped his shining cock, and shoved it back inside of me.

I bit my lip and whimpered at the pure rush of desire that ran up my body like a shock wave. My nipples hardened, and my pussy weapt for him. He wrapped his arms around me, holding me tightly to his body as he pounded into me hard and fast. His face was buried in the crook of my neck, and I shoved my hands into his hair to clutch him to me. Something in the way he held me now was desperate, unsure, and broken. It was like the monster was trying to fuck a vision before him, claiming it before it would soon disappear.

Only I wasn't a vision.

He just didn't see that right now. Not when this part of him was in control.

Not when the animal was keeping the man back.

"I'm here, Rune," I moaned as he shoved into me again with a growl. "I'm right here, Rune."

He moaned into my throat as the muscles in his shoulders tightened. He ground his hips into me, and the fleshy contact against my sensitive clit paired with the fullness of his dick pushing into me sent me hurtling over the edge. My body shook with my release, and I gasped into the smoky air. Rune hissed into my skin as he followed, spilling his hot cum into me.

I kept my hold on him as he finished, and as I fought to catch my own breath, I whispered, "I'm here, Rune. I'm okay. I'm here. So come back to me."

His breath fanned hard against my neck. His chest seemed to even out, and he slowly lifted to look down at me. The eyes that found mine no longer glowed, but rather, they were mine. Those amber eyes that I'd come to love. And it was those eyes that immediately filled with tears when they locked on me.

"Bria?" His voice broke on my name, and he reached shaking fingers forward to gently cup my cheek as though he were afraid touching me would somehow make me disappear again.

I nodded, brushing my hands through his ashy hair. "I'm here. It's me."

Tears spilled down his cheeks, dropping onto my chest. "How—How are you … I thought—" His cries cut off his words, and he dropped his head, pressing it into my breasts. His frame shook with sobs as he cried, "I thought you were gone. I thought I'd lost you."

Emotion clogged my throat, and I had to blink back my own tears. "You didn't lose me. I'm so sorry, Rune. I got overwhelmed when we were training, and it sent me to the water. I nearly got stuck there, but I'm back now. I'm right here, and I'm not going anywhere."

We held each other in unrelenting grips as the world burned around us. The smoke still scorched my throat and burned my eyes. Trees still billowed plumes into the air as they charred and broke. But I didn't give a damn right now. All I cared about was wiping away Rune's misery. Seeing him so distraught physically pained me.

More than the bleeding gashes on my legs.

More than the throbbing bites along my breasts.

More than the fire in my lungs.

Rune's pain was like being stripped down and thrown into the belly of a volcano.

He pulled back to look at me again. Streaks of tanned skin peeked through the soot on his cheeks from where his tears had rolled down them. His eyes skimmed my body beneath his, and I took the chance to finish wiping away the grime.

"You're hurt," Rune gasped with wide eyes. His clawed fingers pressed gingerly to the teeth marks on my chest before moving to my hips where the skin had been shredded. His face went ashen, and his fox ears pinned all the way back. He recoiled as if I'd shocked him. "I hurt—"

"I'm fine," I quickly reassured him. I sat up to grab his hands, which he clutched to his chest in an effort to keep them away from me. I slipped my hands into his, and I squeezed them as I pulled them to my own chest. I pressed my forehead to his and smiled. "I'm fine. It doesn't hurt anymore, and it will heal in no time."

He swallowed hard. "I never wanted to hurt you. I never wanted to be this fucking monster again."

"You don't have to be. Everyone is okay."

He looked around us at the fiery scene. A tree crumbled near us, sending a gust of black smoke and embers into the air. His shoulders slumped with remorse. "This place isn't."

With Rune safely back in my arms, I finally surveyed the damage around us. There were no lively greens or vibrant island flowers anymore. They'd been lost to the roaring orange flames and consumed by the gray ash. The island was indeed dying, but it wasn't completely lost yet.

"That's not true," I finally said to Rune.

I closed my eyes and looked within myself for that connection to water. I'd been too focused on finding Rune before to worry about anything else, but with my Fox now back in my arms, I found the clarity I needed to help the island. As soon as I found that cord, I reached out to the distant waves surrounding the island, and with my mental guidance, the sound of rushing water headed toward us.

I opened my eyes just in time to see the water sweep along the ground like a flood, climbing up individual trees that were still being eaten by flames, and over us, cleaning us of any signs of the fire. As soon as the water swept over me, the wounds on my thighs and breasts closed, and the burning in my throat from the smoke soothed into a distant memory. When the water drew back the way it had come, the land revealed the barren, dark landscape that was left.

Rune's jaw worked as he surveyed the naked trees. "What have I done?"

The anguish in his voice made my heart clench painfully. I looked around at what had no doubt been a beautiful place before, and I couldn't help but feel sad over the loss. Rune had been blinded and taken over by his grief, and the loss of self had made him ruthless. He'd needed some way to release those raging emotions inside him, and he did that by burning everything in his path, regardless of what that would mean later.

I placed my hand on the tree he'd pressed me against earlier to pay my respects to the dying land. As my palm pressed into the crisp bark, I felt something . It was like faint static tickling my palm, so soft I nearly missed it. But as I focused on the feeling, I knew it was real. Honing in on the sensation made it stronger.

Save them.

My eyes widened at the faint whisper that seemed to come from everywhere yet nowhere at the same time.

I turned to Rune and asked, "Did you hear that?"

He glanced around us. "Hear what?"

Heal them .

Use me .

Realizing the whispers belonged to the water, I furrowed my brow in confusion. My hand was still pressed against the tree, and as I felt the static tingle grow fainter beneath my palm, everything inside me seemed to freeze. I looked at the trees all around us and recalled something my mother had said.

Water was everywhere. Including in plants.

Looking back at the towering tree above me, I realized what I was feeling had to be the water within the tree. And if there was water …

"Water is life," I whispered.

I took a deep breath and focused on the tree beneath my hand. I reached out to it and the water running through it. When I released my breath, I pictured the bark hardening into its rich brown color and the vibrant green leaves resprouting in healthy foliage.

The tingles beneath my hand turned into a full vibration as the crumbling layer under my palm hardened. I watched with wide eyes as the tree began to regrow, starting at my hand and working its way up and around. The color returned to its trunk and limbs, followed by emerald leaves sprouting right before my very eyes.

And it didn't stop there.

The ground beneath my knees became soft like a bed of clovers, and when I looked down, the earth began to regrow green and lush, crawling along the ground toward the island's edges. Some trees stayed broken and lifeless, and patches of ground remained charcoaled beyond repair. But any tree or inch of ground that still clung to life regrew with vibrant rebirth until all you could smell was fresh dirt, pine, and the ocean.

Rune's wide eyes found mine, and his mouth hung open in shock. "How did you do that?"

Still trying to wrap my mind around what I'd just done, I gave a slow shake of my head. Laughing softly, I repeated, "Water is life."

Judging by the dozen or so dead trees and scattered patches of scorched earth, I gathered that water allowed me to heal and give life back when life wasn't already lost. Those trees and clumps of burned land had been dealt a deadly, irreparable fate, but for the rest of the island that still had a chance to regrow, the water flowing within it allowed me to help it.

I can't give life, but I can heal.

Rune's eyes scanned me where I still knelt in front of him, and awe clouded his features. "You never cease to amaze me." He swallowed hard, and he reached forward to cup my cheeks. "I'm so sorry, Bria. I'm so, so sorry."

I placed my hands over his. " You're sorry? I'm sorry. I didn't mean to disappear the way I did. It was one of the previously lost powers I have taking over, one I'll try to avoid tapping into from now on."

I dove into what happened, how the water seemed to make me forget everything outside of it, as well as who I found stuck there.

Rune's entire body seemed to cling to my words as he repeated. "Your mom ? Your mom is alive?"

I nodded with a sad smile. "Alive but stuck. I have to figure out a way to bring her back, Rune."

"I'll help. In any way I can. We'll bring her back."

I searched his amber eyes. They looked at me with such profound love, and it was something I counted myself lucky to have. I was lucky to have Rune in my life. I was lucky to have his love and support, as well as the opportunity to return that.

It was that love and support I'd have to give him now as I prepared to turn everything he knew about his father's death on its head.

"Did you …" I paused and tried again. "Did you know anything about a friendship between your dad and my mom?"

Rune's eyebrows rose in surprise before slowly seeping into confusion. "There were always rumors that my dad had been best friends with Alesta. Before the war. He never talked about it, though, so I never believed them. He always ignored conversations regarding Alesta or Water Fae."

That made sense. A friendship between the Queen of Water Fae and the Land Fae King's seemingly prized killer wouldn't fare well. It wasn't shocking to hear that Balgair had tried to minimize his friendship with my mom and keep it secret, even from his own family. He probably did it to keep both parties safe.

"I want to show you something," I said softly. I called water from the ocean once more, and when it reached my outstretched hands, it hovered in front of Rune like a screen. "This is something my mother showed me. Water can act like a viewing screen for us, and with it, we can revisit memories. My mother showed me this skill, because she had a memory she wanted to show me. I think you need to see it, too."

He seemed to weigh my words, and unease pulled his shoulders taut. "What memory of your mom's would I need to see?"

I took a deep breath. "My mom and your dad were best friends."

His brow immediately furrowed. "What?"

I nodded toward the floating water. "Just watch."

His gaze slowly pulled away from mine to stare at the water, which lit up in the center before images filled the screen. His eyes traced my mother and me on our stools, and he listened intently as Alesta revealed her relationship with Balgair. Then the memory she'd shown me filled the screen, and fresh tears filled Rune's eyes when Balgair appeared. Rune sat as still as a statue as he watched and listened to the truth with silent tears rolling down his cheeks. I waved my hand over the screen before the fight really broke out, pulling the water back to my hand and stopping the memory.

Rune stared into the space where the memory had been. "Why would he do that?" he asked in a low hiss. "We could've figured something out. We could've run. We could've—"

"He thought he was out of options, so he did what he thought would protect you," I said, reaching forward to grab his hand. "He did what he thought would keep you and Myra safe."

Rune tilted his face up to the sky and let out a humorless laugh. "I didn't ask you to save me, damn it."

He clenched his teeth, and his shoulders shook. I realized he was yelling, hoping his voice reached wherever Balgair was now. But his words fell for me and the trees alone. Balgair wasn't here to see the anger and pain haunting his son's eyes. Balgair wasn't here to hold Rune and explain why he'd sacrificed himself.

So I pulled Rune into my arms instead. My arms would always be open for him, ready to help, heal, and hold. No matter what happened.

The screech of a raven sounded overhead. Rune and I looked up as the black bird circled above us. I knew right away that was Akira coming to check on us. It also reminded me that Rune and I were still very naked.

Cheeks heating, I wrapped my arms around my bare chest to shield myself and called up, "Akira! All is okay now. Could you fly back to the palace to grab Rune and me some clothes?"

He cawed in response before turning back in the direction he'd come.

Meeting Rune's eyes once more, I leaned forward to place a soft kiss on his lips. "Let's go home. Together."