27. TWENTY-FIVE

twenty-five

“Careful, my love. I’ll think you aren’t happy to see me,” Graydon warned in a soft voice.

“I’d be happier if you’d cut the shit.”

Kira was tired. Graydon wasn’t here because of sentiment. This reunion could have waited until the adva ka was over. For him to be here, breaking tradition, there had to be a reason.

She wanted to know what that reason was.

Graydon regarded her with a contemplative look before he rose, crossing to her side with a few powerful steps.

Kira held carefully still, the sensation of being hunted by a dangerous predator hard to ignore.

He leaned down, planting a hand on either side of her body.

Kira’s breath froze in her lungs at the sight of his face so close to hers. Despite the serious nature of his presence, she couldn’t help the curl of awareness that made her all too conscious of everything about him.

The heat of his body next to hers. The scent wafting off his skin. The dark look in his eyes that made her want to close the little bit of distance between them.

His hand touched her cheek, leaving a trail of fire in its wake. “I’m hurt.”

His gaze lingered on Kira’s lips, leaving her feeling restless.

“And here I was about to impart useful information to you.” His thumb brushed across her lips, the pupils of his eyes dilating at her harsh inhale.

Possessive desire showed on his face, and for a brief second Kira thought he’d forget his purpose here.

The moment lengthened.

“Get on with it then,” Kira said through an act of will, wanting nothing more than to investigate what lay between them.

The need she knew they both felt.

She’d never wanted to give into something as much as she did right now. It had been too long since they’d let themselves seek pleasure in each other.

The wait was killing her.

Despite that, she resisted the urge to submit first. Perhaps it was childish, but she couldn’t shake the hope Graydon would be the first to fall this time.

His gaze deepened in understanding as his lips twisted in a smile that she could only call evil.

“Stubborn,” he whispered.

Kira’s eyes narrowed grumpily. He was one to talk.

Or did he not remember the last time they did this dance?

Graydon rested one hand on the settee by Kira’s head. “We’re quite the pair. Each as headstrong as the other.”

Kira sniffed. “Speak for yourself. I’m perfectly reasonable.”

Amusement touched Graydon’s eyes. “Is that why you let Jin accompany you into the adva ka?”

Kira froze. “You knew.”

Of course, he did. Baran probably informed him the second he noticed something strange.

Kira’s reaction sparked a chuckle in Graydon. “It’s kind of hard not to when you talk to him right in front of my oshota.”

Kira glared up at the ceiling.

Damn it.

Graydon had always seen too much. It was one of the biggest reasons she hadn’t wanted to get involved with him.

That ship had long since sailed. A fact she was glad for.

Still, she couldn’t help but worry that someday she would push him too far. That her insistence on doing things her way would spell the end of them.

A frown formed as she took in his playful expression, not seeing any of the anger or rebuke she was expecting.

“You’re not angry.”

That was strange. He had every right to the emotion. In his place, she would have pitched a tantrum if someone had brought a dangerous and untrusted person to her super-secret rite of passage.

“It would be a waste of energy to get mad at something I know will never change,” Graydon said with a soft look. “I’ve chosen to see it as fortuitous that he included himself.”

“Why is that?” Kira asked cautiously.

Don’t get her wrong. She was grateful not to be dealing with an annoyed, grumpy Graydon, but it was confusing.

Graydon’s touch was affectionate as he smoothed a piece of her hair off her face. “He is Tuann; no matter his form. That makes the adva ka his birthright.”

“Even though he’s soul bound,” Kira pressed.

“Yes.”

Graydon’s gaze seemed to see straight through her as Kira searched his expression.

There was no deception in his eyes. Only a sincerity that stole her breath.

Kira made a small sound. A tiny mewl of need.

Before Graydon could move, Kira hit the bend of his elbow and tangled her legs with his. She heaved, toppling them both to the floor where she landed on top of him.

She crouched over his body, her hair sweeping forward to brush his face.

Graydon froze under her, his gaze taking in the abundance of emotion in her expression.

His body relaxed as his eyes clung to her face, seeing all the feelings she had trouble putting into words.

Kira had always been a person who felt action spoke louder than words, but right now she wished she had the skill to convey everything she was thinking and feeling.

Her gratitude at the way he saw beyond Jin’s exterior to the truth of him. Her gratefulness for how he was always on her side. A steady presence at her back when she’d grown used to solitude.

She loved this man, she realized.

That vow he’d given her? She’d return it if she could.

He was worth every risk.

Graydon cupped her neck, drawing her down to him. “You leave me speechless, my soul.”

The breath Kira drew sounded clogged with tears as she lowered those last inches to touch her lips against his.

Wet spilled down her cheeks, the taste of salt mixing with the flavor of Graydon.

Their fingers intertwined as Kira pressed their hands against the floor next to his head, needing control in this moment.

Graydon let her have it, the kiss they shared sweet and soft—until it wasn’t.

Kira wasn’t sure quite when it happened. When she forgot about being gentle and got lost in the sensation that was Graydon.

It wasn’t until his fingers tangled in her hair, angling her head to deepen their kiss that she realized she’d given up control.

A fact she couldn’t bring herself to care about as Graydon devoured her.

He lifted his hips, grinding his hard length against her center.

Kira broke away from the kiss, needing to catch her breath.

That didn’t stop Graydon as his lips trailed along her jaw and throat up to the lobe of her ear, nipping as he left little zings of sensation that rocketed straight to her core.

Kira groaned, needing to be closer to him.

It was a craving she couldn’t quite scratch. A fire she’d willingly burn herself out on.

The world tilted as Graydon scooped her off the floor and into his arms.

Some time while Kira had been preoccupied, he’d taken the opportunity to retract his armor, leaving his upper half bare.

He placed her on the bed, climbing onto it with her.

Kira watched him crawl toward her, anticipation making her breaths short.

As always, she couldn’t help but appreciate the perfection of his body. The broad shoulders that tapered into a narrow waist. The ropes of muscle that defined his chest and the hard grooves of his abs.

Graydon lived a life of violence and it showed.

Scars dotted his skin, proof of how hard he’d struggled to survive.

Graydon held still, a faint quiver running through him as Kira’s fingers danced over the raised ridges of his muscles before sliding down to investigate his length.

He hissed, the sound making Kira’s lips curve in pleasure.

“Careful, Coli,“ Graydon warned.

Kira lifted up, her breath stirring the hair next to his ear. “What if I don’t want to be careful anymore?”

A growl left Graydon as he pounced, spilling her onto her back as a giggle left her.

Graydon made quick work of her armor, divesting her of it in no time.

When she was finally bare, Graydon stopped. Hunger filled his face, his hands clenching in the sheets next to her.

“What’s the matter?” Kira taunted. “Afraid?”

Graydon’s mask slipped, the monster he kept carefully leashed staring out at her.

Kira swallowed the words she’d been about to speak, holding very still even as a part of her thrilled in anticipation.

Graydon swooped forward, yanking her flat as his body came over hers. Kira arched into his touch, twisting at caresses that didn’t quite fill the need ballooning throughout.

Her breath shuddered as his fingers found her, teasing and light as Graydon spared no effort in driving Kira wild.

She cried out as Graydon’s gaze never left Kira’s face.

Sensation jolted through her as he finally speared one finger into her center.

“Yes,” Kira crooned.

Just a little more and she’d be there.

Graydon’s husky laugh made her stomach drop, a protest leaving her as he withdrew his touch.

“Not so fast, my soul.”

Kira growled at him, wanting him back. Needing it like she did her next breath.

Her response made him grin as he lowered his face between her legs.

“I have plans for you tonight,” Graydon told her.

Kira’s response died as his lips closed around the sensitive bud at the apex of her sex.

A moan left her as sensations that were almost too good to be true flooded her.

Kira’s body coiled as Graydon drove her higher, never quite letting her fall over the edge. He consumed her, holding her hips still as she tried to deepen the sensation a tiny bit more.

Kira snarled.

Just he wait. They’d see who would be laughing in the end.

Even as she thought that, she knew it was a losing battle. Already, little flashes of ki were condensing in the air around them.

Kira was lost as Graydon curled a finger inside her, her body exploding in climax.

Sparks danced across her vision as she went limp, her nerve endings still twitching from the sensations as Graydon covered her body. His large hands spanned her hips, lifting to fit her against him. He plunged forward, a low groan leaving him.

Kira tensed at the almost too full feeling that quickly changed to pleasure.

She hadn’t recovered before he started to move, sending waves of sensation flooding through her core.

It was just this side of pain. Almost too much in too short of time. Her clitoris and the walls of her sex still sensitive from her climax.

Still, Kira made no attempt to stop Graydon as he thrust forward, needing him as much as he did her.

It was madness, but one she had no intention of stopping.

Her hands clenched into fists on his back as she started up the precipice again, each time he slid inside her sending her higher.

They climbed, their moans intermingling.

Finally, Kira couldn’t take it anymore, falling off the edge as another climax took her.

Graydon thrust once and then again before following her. He pushed as deep as he could go, staying there as he came down from the climb.

Kira’s arms closed around him as he settled on top of her, careful not to put too much of his weight on her.

There was a quiet intimacy to the moment as Kira trailed her fingers along Graydon’s sides

Graydon turned onto his back, his arms pulling Kira more fully to him as he looked up at the ceiling.

She settled her head onto his chest, listening to his slowing heartbeat.

“If that was your reason for taking Wren’s spot, I approve,” Kira said.

His chest shook under her as it rumbled with a laugh. “As satisfying as this was, it was not my intent.”

Kira rested her chin on him as she shot him a grin. “I’ll take that as a compliment.”

Who wouldn’t want to be considered distracting by their lover?

Graydon arms squeezed her. “Come. There is something I want you to see.”

Kira lifted her head, giving him an incredulous look. He wanted to go somewhere? Now?

Graydon aimed a closed lip smile at her that was echoed in the warmth of his gaze. When he looked at her like that, it was impossible to argue with him.

Conceding defeat, Kira reached for her armor, finding the pieces strewn on the floor next to the bed.

They were quiet as they dressed.

Once finished, Graydon held out his hand to her. Kira stared at it for a second before taking it.

Graydon led her out of the room and into the hall beyond, walking in the opposite direction of the way she’d come.

Graydon’s hand was warm and reassuring in hers as they found a staircase and descended to the ground floor. They stepped out of the building onto a stone path cutting through an overgrown garden filled with many of the same plants she’d seen before.

Trees spread their arms, their branches covered in colored leaves no human world had ever seen.

The entire scene was almost surreal. A serene vista that was as soothing as it was fantastical.

Mini stone houses perched on intricate columns lined the path, a few sticking out of the vegetation.

Kira and Graydon’s feet whispered across the ground as they continued forward, their path lit by glowing lanterns as they passed under arches covered with vines and white flowers. Pavilions dotted the area, offering the initiates a soothing place to sit and enjoy the beauty of their surroundings.

Each one was different in design, interspersed throughout.

To Kira’s surprise most of them contained people. Far more than the number of initiates should have allowed.

Graydon tipped his chin as they passed a group of Tuann comprised of several who were much older than the rest of the initiates.

They wore synth armor, marking them as oshota from one of the Houses.

“I thought the Houses weren’t allowed in here,” Kira said, staring.

“I can see why you misunderstood,” Graydon said, looking back at her. “But no. The Houses can visit their initiates as long as they don’t enter the structure where your rooms are located or the interior garden.”

Kira frowned as she caught the gazes of several Tuann from the Houses looking in her direction.

“That seems like it could backfire.”

“Why do you think the emperor’s oshota have remained?” Graydon asked. “The Houses and their representatives are forbidden from interfering directly.”

Which didn’t mean they couldn’t intervene at all, Kira realized, catching what Graydon hadn’t said. They’d probably use the same tactics as the first trials with the initiates themselves doing the dirty work of their Houses.

“What a disgusting practice.”

The intention of the Houses was once to provide a safe place for their members to flourish and grow. They weren’t supposed to be the very thing that endangered them.

For such petty bullshit too.

Don’t get her started on that crap about it being for the greater good either. Maybe that was how it began but at this point their actions were little more than schoolyard bullies throwing their greater power around to suppress those who might one day stand up to them.

Otherwise, they wouldn’t be targeting Joule. Someone whose political power was practically nonexistent.

“The Tuann are not without their flaws,” Graydon admitted as he reached the end of the path and stepped to the side to allow Kira to see what lay beyond.

There was a sharp boundary that marked the end of the garden and plants. What lay beyond was a complicated maze of rock through which countless streams of glowing water cut. In several places, swirling pools had formed shooting shafts of lilac and azure light toward the rock ceiling above.

Beyond it all lay a cavernous maw that exuded an ominous atmosphere that contrasted with the sudden need Kira had to explore what lay within.

“The reckoning,” Graydon said as Kira took a step closer. “This is where you and the rest will go tomorrow.”

Kira’s gaze fixed on the shafts of light, a strange desire compelling her toward them.

“Come,” they seemed to say. “What you need is here.”

Graydon’s hand touched hers, breaking the spell she’d fallen under.

“The reckoning will promise you everything you desire,” he told her when she looked up at him.

“But it would be a lie.”

“It won’t feel like one.” Graydon’s gaze turned inward, almost wistful as he stared unseeing at the pools. “It will seem so real.”

Kira was quiet, sensing Graydon was telling her this for a reason.

After a long second, Graydon came back to himself, his hand squeezing hers as if to assure himself she was still here. He gave her a small smile before tilting his chin at the closest shaft of light. “Look closely. What do you see?”

Kira squinted, surprise widening her eyes seconds later. “There are people in the pools.”

They weren’t simply standing in the water but rather submerged within.

“Those who’ve abandoned themselves to the dreaming,” Graydon said. “They will spend their lives lost in the fantasy the Mea’Ave has created to fulfill their desires.”

Kira couldn’t help but be a little repulsed at the thought of being trapped in a constant illusion. Neither alive nor dead. Simply existing in a world you refused to wake up from.

“This is what happens to those unable to let go,” Graydon continued.

Ah. Kira thought she understood more of why he’d interrupted their evening for this visit.

“You’re warning me.”

It made sense. Kira’s past was riddled with pain and things she would give anything to put right.

She started to tell him his concern wasn’t necessary when his expression caught her attention. His face showed surprise as he stared at her with a look that made her second guess herself.

“It’s not?” Kira asked uncertainly.

Graydon’s features softened as he reached out to catch one of her hands. He lifted it to his lips, placing a kiss as light as the brush of a butterfly’s wing against her palm. “My apologies if I gave you that impression. I can say I’ve never once questioned your mental strength. If there is one thing I don’t have to fear, it is you wandering lost in your dreams.”

Despite the confident way he said that Kira couldn’t shake her doubt. He’d said one thing. That meant there were other things he worried about in relation to her and the adva ka.

Seeing her uncertainty, Graydon gave her a crooked smile. “Since I’ve taken the role of guide, I felt I should act like one.”

Graydon didn’t let her put distance between them, using his grip on her hand to draw her in front of him. He turned Kira to face the pools before embracing her from behind.

Kira let him, finding comfort in the warmth of his arms around her. The feel of his body behind hers.

“Beyond that point lays something that may be in need of your help,” Graydon said into her ear.

Desire tried to rise at the sensation of his breath whispering across her skin. A passion she’d thought they already sated.

“My hope is that you will answer its call if the need arises.”

Kira stilled.

She leaned forward, moving her head so she could glance up at him. “This is why you came.”

He dipped his chin in acknowledgement.

“What is it?” Kira asked, curiosity getting the better of her.

“I can’t tell you that.” His arms tightened at her glare. “It is one of the most closely guarded secrets of our race. If you are called, you will know then.”

Kira didn’t know if she liked that answer.

“It has something to do with the Mea’Ave,“ she said, watching his expression for clues.

To her disappointment, there were none.

Very well then. He could keep his secrets.

“If there is something I need to do, I will do it,” Kira promised him.

If it was this important to him, there was nothing she could do but listen and wait.

Graydon’s arms squeezed her in silent gratitude as they went back to watching the eerily beautiful sight.

They hadn’t been standing there long when the scrape of a shoe on the path behind them announced the fact they were no longer alone.

“Speak,” Graydon ordered.

“There is an issue,” Amila said.

Kira peeked around Graydon’s shoulder to nod a greeting at the oshota.

Amila sent her a gentle smile before focusing on Graydon. “There has been a break in at the prison.”

Tension invaded Graydon’s body.

“A prisoner escaped,” Amila continued, answering the question they could all feel hovering in the air.

“Don’t tell me,” Kira started.

“It was the general Roake captured during the uhva na,“ Amila confirmed.

Damn it. Kira had been afraid of that.

Graydon’s arms fell from Kira, the peaceful moment ruined at the unexpected intrusion of reality.

“I will go with you,” Kira told Graydon.

Aeron and everything to do with him was of concern to Kira. Particularly now that his allies had managed to break him out of a prison so secret that only a very few knew the location of it. A prison that until today had likely never seen an escape.

Graydon denied her with a shake of his head. “You cannot. Should you leave the adva ka, you will be considered to have withdrawn.”

It was on the tip of Kira’s tongue to tell him she didn’t care. Her main goal had been accomplished anyway.

The biggest thing stopping her was the certainty that Aeron’s escape wouldn’t be the end of things.

It could very well be that this was a feint designed to draw Kira’s attention away from the real plan.

The Tsavitee had employed such tactics many times before.

As Kira wavered, Graydon leaned forward to press a soft kiss on her forehead. “I need you here.”

It was a reminder of the conversation they’d just had regarding the mysterious something that might require her help.

Kira’s shoulders slumped in defeat. How could she argue when Graydon so rarely asked for anything?

She couldn’t.

Seeing her answer, Graydon withdrew, stepping away from Kira. “Let’s go.”

He swept away, Amila sending Kira a respectful nod before following Graydon.

It left Kira standing alone on the edge of the maze of pools. A solitary silhouette as she turned back to the view, hoping she hadn’t made the wrong choice in staying behind.

Aeron’s former cell was little more than a smoking hole by the time Graydon reached the prison. The person in question having long since disappeared.

Despite what he knew Kira assumed, the prison wasn’t located on a far-flung outpost halfway across the galaxy. Rather it was based much closer than that.

On Ta Sa’Riel, in fact.

Not everything he’d told her had been the entire truth. He could have made an exception for her to leave the inner sanctum of the adva ka. Such allowances, though rare, had been made in the past.

He’d decided against it for a couple of reasons.

Kira wasn’t the most logical when it came to a certain person. Emotion clogged her normally good judgment.

Before he brought her into this, Graydon wanted confirmation.

It was selfish of him, but he couldn’t help his desire to protect her. Kira would resent his interference when she learned of it, but he could live with that.

Seeing the pain and sadness that came with disappointment was far worse of a price to pay.

“What did the witnesses have to say?” Graydon asked, not taking his eyes off the ruin of the cell.

Five guards had been injured in the escape. Five of their most elite warriors. Men and women Graydon trusted to do their duty at all costs. Two of whom now clung to life while their healers did their best.

“There was a woman and two others,” Amila answered from behind Graydon.

“Is it her?”

Amila’s reluctance to answer was palpable. “She appears to fit the description I was given.”

Graydon exhaled a long sigh. “So, it’s Elise.”

This was a disaster.

If any of the guards died, it would be a bigger one.

Whoever did this would answer for their crimes. Whether that was Elise or someone else.

This was an attack on the emperor’s authority. There would be consequences.

It was a big part of why Graydon had asked Kira to remain behind. He couldn’t be sure she’d be able to accept what needed to be done.

He’d need to break the news to her carefully if it really was Elise responsible.

“How did they find this place?” Solal asked. “No one but the emperor’s people know where it is.”

Graydon felt the inquisitor’s presence before the man spoke.

“This is why I advised the emperor’s Justice not to allow you and Roake’s heir to interrogate the prisoner.” Jarek swept a cold gaze over the wreckage of the cell, his lips twisting at the sight of the damage. “She should never have been given access to this site.”

Graydon faced him. “Jarek. You made good time. I wasn’t expecting to see such a high-ranking representative of the emperor’s Justice in a place like this.”

Jarek’s look of embarrassment almost made the irritation of his presence worth it.

As an inquisitor, Jarek would have been within his rights to send a subordinate. The fact he’d come in person showed his fall in status.

Graydon quirked his lips in an expression Kira would have called insufferably arrogant. “As to your statement, I can say with confidence that Kira never stepped foot into this prison and has no knowledge of its location. All contact was conducted via a melding. She never saw the outside nor did she know it was on Ta Sa’Riel. I made sure of that myself.”

For exactly the reason he was standing here now.

He wanted no doubt cast on the question of her innocence if Aeron ever escaped.

His foresight was one of the reasons he’d managed to survive so long as the emperor’s Face. A position that made him a target.

“Her toy has proven quite resourceful in the past,” Jarek pointed out. “It is possible he found a way to follow your signal.”

Graydon’s eyes narrowed the faintest bit as he wiped away any trace of annoyance. “The J1N is composed of human technology. Do you actually think they are capable of such a feat?”

“Humans have surprised us in the past. Recently at that. It is possible they are working with an outside party.”

Jarek’s perceptiveness and creative thinking would be impressive if not for how rigid he was in his beliefs.

Jin was exactly what he’d claimed. A soul bound.

Moreover, he really was working with a third party. The mysterious figure Kira had carefully not introduced Graydon to.

There was also the fact that Graydon suspected Kira and Jin had modified the original drone his soul had been attached to.

None of which Graydon could allow Jarek to discover. Not if he wanted to protect Kira and her soul bound.

“Inquisitor,” Graydon said sharply. Once he had Jarek’s full attention, Graydon gave him an insincere smile. “I believe the emperor’s Justice already had this discussion with you. I will personally report your actions if you continue to pursue this topic.”

The way the skin around Jarek’s eyes tightened said the other man heard and understood Graydon’s warning.

Good.

Graydon hoped he would listen.

It would be a pity if he had to kill the other man because he threatened that which Graydon held dear.