Chapter 11

Trinity

We run through the jungle until my muscles burn, until sweat drips, until I am shaking. Then we run some more, jumping over fallen branches and thick roots. Ducking under branches and vines. My skin is streaked with sweat and blood from scratches. I ignore them. They'll heal up soon enough. I ignore the fatigue. I ignore all of it. Titan is here. It's him.

Then Octane grips my arm, yanking me against a tree. He covers me with his body. I know the drill. The three dragons are circling above us again. If they see us, hear us, catch any kind of wind of us, they'll land and come after us.

I can't have that happen.

Please, no!

It's Titan. He hates the Draigers probably more than Octane hates us. He'll kill Octane in a hot minute. Although I suspect that Octane would give him more than he bargained for. That the Draiger might just win, even against three. I don't want to test the theory, so I stand completely still. I feel Octane's heart beating against me. His breath is in my ear. It is oddly reassuring.

The flapping of great wings sounds above us, together with the rumbles of dragons communicating. They circle and then slowly move off. Octane keeps me covered for a few more minutes. Then he pulls back and takes my hand. We start running again, trying to be as quiet as possible, which isn't easy in the dense undergrowth. It's a catch twenty-two because the vegetation is what is keeping us hidden.

I can't go on for too much longer. I'm exhausted. My muscles are aching. I put a hand to my belly.

Hold on, little one.

Octane must see a potential hiding place because he changes direction, gripping my hand tightly.

"This way," he murmurs.

I nod and follow him. I don't see anything but a sheer cliff wall ahead of us. We run along the cliff. Long minutes go by; we're moving slower.

What is he doing?

Octane seems to be looking for something. He lifts branches or pulls up vines every so often. Then we run again. I'm about to ask him when he lifts a thick blanket of vines, revealing a small entrance.

Octane sighs, and his shoulders drop. "We can hide here. Do you want to go first, or shall I?"

"Are you serious?" I ask him. "That doesn't look safe."

"It's out here that isn't safe, little Red." He winks at me.

I nod. "You're right."

"Follow me." Octane crawls inside. The entrance is only just big enough for him to get through. I don't like this, but I follow him, anyway. After navigating a ten-foot tunnel, it opens up into a small cave. It's airy and not as dark as it should be, telling me that there is an opening of sorts somewhere toward the back. Octane leads me deeper. The ceiling is high. I hear dripping water, and my mouth feels dry.

We reach the back of the cave, where there is a small pool. The water looks clear and inviting. Octane kneels down to drink, cupping his hands and dipping them into the water.

"Drink," he whispers, his voice echoing. He winces, putting a finger over his lips.

I nod. We have to be quiet. We're sitting ducks if they find us.

I kneel next to him and drink my fill. I want to wash off the sweat, blood, and grime, but I don't dare for fear of making any noise.

Then we sit with our backs to the cool limestone at the far wall. Octane puts an arm around me. I'm not sure if he's offering comfort or if he's afraid I'll attempt an escape. I don't care one way or another. I lean against his solid frame, putting my head against his shoulder. It doesn't take long before exhaustion takes over, and I am fast asleep.

When I awaken, I am lying on top of Octane, who is on his back. My chest is against his middle. My cheek is against his upper torso. I'm not just using him as a pillow but as a mattress, too. My leg is pulled up. My arms are around him.

"Sleep well?" he asks, his voice groggy.

"Um…hmmmm…ahhh…yes." I lift my head and rub my eyes. "Sorry." I look down at his amused expression. "I didn't realize…it…um…"

"There is a rock digging into my back."

"Oh, shit! Sorry." I scramble off him, noting how light streams in through the far side of our small cave. "It's morning," I say, sounding shocked.

"Yes, it is."

"We made it." I huff out a breath.

He nods. "We did."

I stretch, feeling his eyes on me. I ignore him, going over to the pool, where I drink. Then I start washing myself. My face, my chest, under my arms. The scratches are mostly healed.

I glance over at Octane, who has moved to a sitting position. His eyes are on me, watching me intently.

"What?" I ask.

"You know what."

I ignore him, washing my feet and legs. "So, how did you know about this cave?" I try to change the subject.

His eyes narrow. "My father used to take me fishing and hunting in these parts when I was a boy. I came back often later…after…" He stops talking.

"After?" I ask as I wash between my legs.

Octane growls. It's menacing. "Stop that," he says, almost under his breath. "We need to talk."

Crap!

"About what?" I know exactly what he wants to talk about.

"Don't plead ignorance. I need you to talk to me and right now. Why didn't you call out last night?"

"You would've been caught and killed. Titan wouldn't have hesitated. I…I just…"

"You care. How fucking sweet. Try again."

"I don't care anything for you. Not a damned thing. That doesn't mean I could just stand by and watch him kill you."

"He wouldn't have. I am greatly skilled in combat," he says.

I roll my eyes. "Yeah, yeah, whatever. You males and your egos. He wasn't alone. Three against one, the odds were against you."

"You might have been surprised."

"Why didn't you fight them, then? Why did we run?" I ask.

"I couldn't risk you, little Red. They might have used you to get to me. They might have hurt you when you tried to intervene and save me."

"Don't flatter yourself," I scoff. "Besides, why would they hurt me? They're my kind. They're on my side."

"Yet, you were afraid of them. Why?" he growls.

I shake my head.

"Tell me. Give me that one small answer. Why were you afraid of them?" he asks deliberately, never breaking eye contact.

"I shouldn't be here. I'm going to get into huge shit for coming to Draig. I followed those males who went after Kim. I wanted answers."

"You got more than you bargained for." His jaw tightens.

"I was stupid and reckless. I never for a second thought I would end up here, but I guess I should have known."

"By here, you mean Draig." He scrutinizes me for a few seconds. "How are they doing it? How did you do it?"

I shake my head. "I've told you enough. I've never liked Titan much. I will get into trouble for coming here…that's all."

"It isn't all. We haven't even scratched the surface yet. Igor… Who is he?" Octane looks angry.

I look away, keeping my mouth firmly shut.

"It sounds to me like he's your mate…like he was your mate. He's dead, isn't he?"

"Igor was never my mate, and yes, he is the father of this child, and, yes, he is dead," I say through gritted teeth. "There! Now you know. We can move on. You can either let me go or take me back to your camp. I refuse to say anything more."

"Answer me one thing: why did you lie to me about being mated? Unless, of course, you are mated to another male. Do you have more than one? Is that it?" Again, he sounds angry. His golden eyes are blazing.

I level him with a stare. "I told you that having more than one male isn't for me, and I meant it."

"I don't know what to believe anymore. You've been lying to me, Trinity."

"You said so yourself; you're the enemy. Why wouldn't I lie? Why wouldn't I bend the truth if I thought it would help keep me safe?"

"How did he die?" Octane growls.

"I don't know. All I know is that he died on this island," I say, injecting venom into my voice. "At the hands of your kind. It happened a couple of weeks ago."

"Trespassing, then. Did you love him?" he rasps, his eyes narrowing in on me.

I shake my head. "No."

"Is that another lie, Red?"

"No! What is it to you? You shouldn't care either way." My voice is filled with frustration. "Why do you care so much?"

He stands and stalks over to me, making the space feel even smaller. Even more oppressive. "I do care. I care very fucking much. Were you sad when he died?"

Why is he asking me all these questions about Igor? You would think he would want to know more about Titan. More about how I got onto the island. Not this. This seems personal.

"It turned out that Igor wasn't the person I thought he was. I broke it off with him even before I found out that I was pregnant. When the test came back positive, he redoubled his efforts to get me back, but it didn't work. So, to answer your question, no, I didn't love him. We grew up together. I was in love with him as a teenager. Then he left, and I didn't see him for years. When he returned, I thought I still loved him. I was in love with the memory of him. Turned out that he had changed."

"What did he do? Did he put his hands on you? Was he abusive?"

"No." I shake my head. "He was in with some bad people. Him and Titan both."

"The Reds who have been coming onto Draig? The Reds working for the Mainland?"

I nod. "I think so. He was continually seeing people I'd never met before. Having all these secret meetings. Leaving for days on end. He promised to tell me everything once we were mated. He kept pushing for it to happen."

"Is that where you overheard about Tributes being sent to Mistveil?"

I nod.

"What happened? Why did you break up with him?"

I huff out a breath. "Igor wanted nothing more than to mate with me. At first, I wanted it too, but something told me to wait a little, just to be sure. The more I got to know him, the more question marks there were. I got a bad feeling. The more my feet got cold, the more he pushed and pressured me. Then he…" I lick my lips, feeling angry all over again. "Then he had sex with me without a condom. He pretended to put one on, but he didn't. When I realized what he had done, I was furious."

"The bastard tried to trap you?"

I nod. "Yes. He told me it was because he loved me and wanted to spend the rest of his life with me. That he wanted me to have his baby. And, of course, I was ovulating when he did it. My scent had changed. He knew exactly what he was doing because the signs were there. As soon as I realized what he had done, I broke up with him and told him I didn't want to see him again. The truth is that I was starting to wonder about us. I was thinking of ending it. I planned on taking something to make sure I didn't get pregnant, but, in the end, I couldn't do it. I had the emergency contraceptive pill in my hand, but I couldn't take it. I knew there was a good chance that I would become pregnant. That I would be tied to Igor if it happened, but I couldn't do it." I put a protective hand to my belly. "The pregnancy was a mistake, but I wanted this baby. Igor kept trying to get me back. He wouldn't let me move out. I had to pack and run while he and Titan were on one of their missions. Then, about six or seven weeks ago, Titan arrived at my door and told me that Igor was dead. He had been taken down on Draig Island. You've pointed out the penalty for trespassing on Draig territory."

"He would have been killed."

I nod. "I felt nothing but relief. I know that makes me a bad person, but I couldn't help it."

"It doesn't make you bad. This Igor sounds like he was a piece of work. His brother is cut from the same cloth. You're right to be afraid of him."

"Titan never liked me much. I overheard him telling Igor that he could do better."

"Seems like you overheard a whole lot. Enough to make you follow a group of males onto this island."

"I didn't realize that the—" I catch myself. "I like you well enough, Octane. I think you have more honor than those males, but I won't give you ammunition against my people. I won't do it. You can lock me up and threaten me all you like."

"I'm not going to lock you up or threaten you. I'm going to ask you to trust me."

"You'll always do what's right for the people of Draig, for your people. It might mean that some of my people get hurt in the process. I can't allow that. I can't tell you anything more than I have already. Yes, it is almost certain that there are those in touch with the Mainland. It looks as if the humans will be sending Tributes to Mistveil and soon. There is a way that the Reds are getting onto your island undetected, but I will never tell you how."

"If you don't tell me, more people will die. More humans could be abducted. It would be on you."

"I won't take responsibility for the actions of others," I push out. "I refuse!"

"You have an opportunity to stop it, Trinity."

"I would never forgive myself if Reds got killed. If innocents were slaughtered. No! It isn't going to happen. I should never have come here. I was stupid. My curiosity got the better of me. Can we please get going? The sun is up, which means that Titan and his friends have more than likely left Draig."

Octane looks at me. He stares at me for so long that I have to force myself to stand tall, to keep my eyes on his. I have nothing to feel ashamed about. I refuse to hand these Draigers a way onto our island. They could overrun us. Kill us! They see us as a threat, so they might want to neutralize that threat. No! I won't do it.

"I understand that you would want to protect your people but know that I feel the same way about mine. I would never harm innocents. I thought that you would know that about me by now."

"I've known you all of five minutes, Octane, and as you love pointing out to me at every opportunity you get, we are enemies. That's all I know."

I see his jaw tighten just before he turns away from me, making for the opposite side of the pool. Then he is cupping water in his hands and washing himself. His face, his strong torso, between his legs, and, as always, I can't stop watching him.

"You really shouldn't keep looking at me like that, little Red." His voice is a deep rasp. "There is no longer a mate standing between us."

"There is so much more that is," I tell him.

Octane keeps washing, and I keep watching him do it. I watch as the water drips down his muscled body. I watch as his cock lengthens and thickens under my scrutiny.

"Careful, little Red, I don't have too much willpower."

I swallow thickly. My breasts feel heavy. My nipples tighten. That familiar tightening is happening low in my lower belly. "We're enemies."

"Enemies who are attracted to one another." He walks around the pool. It's like he's stalking me. His eyes are narrowed. His muscles are bunched.

"You flatter yourself." Why do I keep saying the same stupid thing?

He laughs. "You want me, Red. You want me inside you. You want to come all over my cock. I know it, and you know it." He comes to stand right in front of me. So close I can feel his warmth, even though we aren't touching. "Tell me I'm wrong."

I can't do anything of the sort, even though I dearly want to. He isn't wrong. "You want me, Draiger. You want to put that big cock inside me and fuck me until you can't remember your own name."

He lifts his hand; he's about to cup my jaw.

"Stop!" I whisper, and he does. He pauses, his fingertips mere moments from my skin. "It doesn't matter what we want or how much we want it. We're enemies, and as you keep saying, enemies don't fuck. Not ever!"

He smiles, and my knees almost buckle, which bugs me because I'm not that kind of female. One who goes weak at the knees for a man. It's never happened before, and I don't want it happening now. I pull my shoulders back and set my jaw. His smile turns lopsided, which is somehow even sexier. I hate him so damned much.

"I think we should call a truce, Red." He lowers his hand.

"A truce?" I choke out a laugh. "That's a good one."

"I mean it. We call a truce. We get this…whatever this is…out of our systems, and when we leave this cave, we do so as enemies once again. Hopefully, this raging need will have abated. I can't think clearly right now. I need to be inside you. I need to taste you. It's wrong…I know it is, but I can't fucking help it, Red. I can't move past it. I can't take the scent of your arousal and how your breasts beg me to lick and suck on them."

Holy shit!

Shivers run up and down my body. My clit is tight and yet swollen. I am so turned on I'm vibrating.

He leans in, his cheek almost touching mine. "Tell me not to, and I won't. It would be better if you pushed me away right now. Or we call a truce, and I'll fuck you out of my system. What do you want, little Red? Tell me."