Chapter 18

ChapterEighteen

The sun played across her closed eyelids. She’d never seen that pattern before, all spotted and moving across her face. She could feel the warmth, but it wasn’t overwhelming like it usually was in the desert.

Varya didn’t want to wake up. She’d been having the most lovely dream. A soft bed, a cool hand that touched her forehead and a quiet voice asking if she needed anything.

When was the last time someone had taken care of her? It had been ages. She was the person who took care of others, and that meant she had to stand on her own two feet. Probably more than anyone else she knew. But that was all right. It helped Varya to know that her family and friends were well. Still... Maybe it was okay for someone to take care of her for a little while longer.

Blinking her eyes open, she frowned up at the greenery above her. She’d only seen plants a few times in her life, and they were always either spiky cactus or the long, thick triangles of aloe vera. Otherwise, she’d only seen a few leaves here and there when someone spent their life savings for tea or healing herbs.

But these were actual plants. Green and bright and thriving above her head as they leaned closer to the sunlight. Pushing up onto her elbow, Varya glanced around the room with wide eyes.

The glass windows were so perfectly made that they almost didn’t look like they were there at all. Tall and over three stories, they stretched above her head and warped into a circle at the top. There were two empty beds on the same side of the wall where she was. Three empty on the other side. None of them had anyone in them. The clean, cream-colored sheets were pulled so tight they looked almost fake.

And all the plants. There were so many of them. She didn’t know what they were, but some of the leaves were larger than she was tall. They were massive, and the air smelled so good, like herbs and spices and dirt. When was the last time she’d smelled dirt?

Maybe when she was just a child. She’d stuck her nose into a small pot where someone had kept an aloe plant and she’d inhaled just to know what the earth smelled like without it being covered by sand.

Her ribs twinged, and she winced, pressing a hand to the bandages that covered her body. Her arms were wrapped in white, her chest, and she felt something sticky on her face. Wiggling the muscles there, she tried to dislodge it but couldn’t.

Whatever it was, she wanted it off.

Varya reached for her head, only to freeze when someone’s voice interrupted her.

“Leave it,” the deep tones said. “You need that to remain so you can heal.”

Stilted words, not quite comfortable speaking to other people, she’d guess. But she recognized the voice. She never forgot a single person she came across.

One of Greed’s guards sat in a chair beside her bed, so still she hadn’t noticed him. He was the bigger of the two, although she remembered them both being larger than life. He sat on a rickety chair with one ankle propped up on his knee, a book spread out across those massive thighs, and glasses perched on his nose. His light brown hair was streaked by the sun and he was rather handsome, although his muscles made him seem particularly bulky.

His gaze watched her, flicking over the bandages that were slightly red with her blood, before he grunted and stood. “I’ll get Greed.”

“Where am I?”

“The oasis,” he replied. “You’re in Greed’s castle.”

“I am?” She didn’t remember coming here. Varya pressed a hand to her forehead, feeling dizzy. “How did I get here?”

“You walked.” He tried to smile, but the expression was horrible. Just a baring of teeth rather than a genuine smile. “I’ll get Greed.”

“Wait,” she said, reaching out for him to stop. She didn’t know why she wanted him to freeze, she just... “Thank you for sitting with me. You’re very kind.”

“I am not kind.” His shoulders and spine stiffened. “I am loyal.”

“I think you are both.” Varya tried to smile, but the expression pulled on what she suspected were cuts on her cheek. “Not everyone would sit with a stranger for hours, even if they were ordered to do so.”

“Days,” he replied.

“Days?” That was horrible. She’d been out for that long? She reached for his hand and gave it a gentle squeeze, even though leaning forward hurt. “Thank you, all the same. What is your name?”

“Ivo.”

“Then thank you, Ivo, for your kindness.”

He seemed disturbed by her thanks, and she didn’t know if that was because of her looks or what she’d said. She was just being kind in return. What harm was there in that?

But he strode out of the room with his shoulders up against his ears. Leaving her alone in this glass dome of a room with so many plants that her lungs felt... lighter. As though just being near them made it easier for her to breathe.

She barely had time to wonder how long it would take for Greed to come see her. She’d expected at least half a day. He was a very busy man, after all, and he had a lot of things to see to in a castle like this. At least, she assumed.

It was a matter of minutes before the doors to the room slammed open so hard she feared they might crack the glass walls. Greed raced into the room, eyes wild and a little too wide. He wore a white billowing shirt that was opened to the center of his chest, revealing all that tanned and freckled skin. Glittering rings dusted across almost every knuckle, a broad necklace clanged against his chest, and there were earrings in his ears. His pants were a little too tight, and she was thankful for it. His tree trunk legs were rather nice to look at.

His panicked expression, on the other hand, was not very nice. She didn’t know what had gotten him so riled up, but she had the wayward thought that it might be her. Maybe he didn’t like seeing her so injured. Maybe he had been worried about her health.

That was a silly thought, though. He was a demon looking for a plaything. She had no question about that. Varya was his newest obsession, and even though she fully intended to enjoy being so, she knew this wasn’t forever.

Neither of them were the forever sort. Now, why did that hurt so badly to think?

He didn’t say a word. He just approached her bed and then scooped his arms underneath her. One thick forearm underneath her knees, and a broad bicep against her back. Lifting her blanket and all, he turned away from the healing beds and strode out of the room.

“Shouldn’t we ask a healer?” she tried, before stopping when he growled in response.

She hadn’t seen his eyes like this since he was in a cage. Golden and gleaming like chips of gold, molten and so hot with rage that it made her shiver in fear.

Was he angry at her? Was she not supposed to come here after all?

She hadn’t thought it would mean that much. He could put her in the gardens for all she cared. Varya needed little more than a sleeping pad and a blanket at night. She’d be out of his hair in just a few days once she could stand up on her own without her lungs heaving.

He didn’t seem interested in talking. So she turned her attention to the wild jungle that surrounded them. Tall trees stretched up toward the sky, their leaves swaying in the breeze. So many plants. All that she couldn’t name or had even dreamed of. A giant pink flower the size of her head hovered above them as he ducked underneath a wall of ivy and then drew her deeper into the jungle.

She caught a few glimpses of more glass domes. Some on the same level as them, some much higher up. And all of them were connected by walkways of stone that were carved out of the desert itself. Naturally made, and Greed’s people had built around them so they didn’t harm the natural environment.

This place was so beautiful it made her eyes hurt. Until Greed strode toward one of those glass domes, although more of this one was paneling. She couldn’t even see inside it, she’d have to be even taller than Greed to get a glimpse. At least the roof was still glass.

He kicked the door open, and she flinched back against him in the wake of his anger. “Are you mad at me?” she asked, her words a little testy and angry as well.

“I am not.”

“You could have fooled me.”

He looked down at her then and she saw it wasn’t anger. It was fear. He was practically shaking with it, and why? They didn’t know each other. They had a very explosive and steamy reaction whenever they were alone, but that didn’t mean he cared about her. He cared about his newest toy, perhaps, but why would he have such an emotional reaction to her being hurt?

Stunned, Varya remained silent as they strode inside the room covered with streaks of emerald silk that hung from the ceiling in billowing waves as the sun filtered through them. A massive bed in the corner caught her attention, but she didn’t have time to see much more before he strode into another room filled with water. So much water.

She’d never seen so much all pooled in the center of the room. Tiny crystals decorated the bottom, chips of rainbow colors that reflected the sunlight and cast rays of waves on the walls. There were a few mirrors and so many more plants. Even a few water lilies dancing on the surface of the still waters, and she’d only heard about them in stories that the elders told.

Greed walked them right up to the edge of the pool and then looked down at her. “Can you stand?”

“I haven’t gotten the chance to try.”

“Ah.” Did he just... blush?

Varya watched him with perhaps far too avid attention as he let her legs slip down his body and then continued to hold on to her waist. He touched her as though she was some frail, fragile creature that he had to take care of. And she didn’t like it.

But she was a little wobbly, so maybe it wasn’t that awful of a thing for him to help.

He cleared his throat and then swallowed hard. “Take off your clothes.”

“I’m not wearing much.” She looked down at herself as the blanket slithered off her body. She still had her pants on, although they had been cut up the side of each leg to reveal her skin underneath. Her shirt was gone though, and it was just the band of white fabric around her chest. “And I don’t want to remove more.”

“I will beg,” he rasped. “If I must.”

Her lips parted, and she stared at him with confusion. Why was he like this? Why was he insisting that she allow him to take care of her?

“I can clean myself,” she said, although the words were hesitant and slow.

Greed leaned closer and pressed their foreheads together. He breathed in before she heard the click of another dry swallow. “Let me take care of you, treasure. I need to know you are all right.”

“I’m alive, aren’t I?”

“You almost weren’t. You showed up on my doorstep bloody and broken and it tore me apart.”

Her heart fractured with those words. He wanted to help her. He wanted to piece her back together. When was the last time someone had wanted that?

Taking a deep breath, she stepped away from him and started to unwind the binding around her chest. Then she slid the remnants of her pants down her legs. She had to grab his arm to even do that, but he didn’t seem to mind. A small scrap of fabric served as her underwear, and even that was covered in blood.

He was a thousand years old. He’d seen countless female bodies and she shouldn’t be embarrassed, but she still felt her chest flush bright red as she pushed down her underwear as well.

Glancing up, she saw his eyes turn that molten gold again. But all he did was gently lift her by the waist and carry her into the water. He strode into the pool, clothes and all, uncaring that the wet, white fabric clung to the muscles of his chest as he set her on a small bench underneath the slight waves.

The water licked at her sides, and she winced as the wounds dotting all over her body ached. But her muscles relaxed for the first time in years and it felt so good to be so cool.

Greed said nothing. He leaned over her and then he had a washcloth in his hands that looked like more silk and a small bottle of clear liquid.

He moved her without asking. His hands tugging and pulling until her back was pressed against his chest. She floated in the water as he unraveled the remaining bandages that covered her wounds. Each one that was revealed made him tense more and more behind her, but his hands were gentle as he passed the cloth over each and every one.

The clear liquid turned out to be lovely smelling soap that reminded her of mint and lemon. He poured it onto his hands after cleaning out her wounds and then started washing her body. The blood and sand sank into the pool of water, running into a small drain or filter on the other side. The pool remained clear, other than the streaks of her blood disappearing from her body.

He took his time washing her. Saying nothing other than small growls of anger every time he found a new wound or bruise. And it made her eyes sting with unshed tears because no one had ever taken care of her like this.

Greed even put his attention underneath her nails. Somehow producing a small brush that he vigorously scrubbed underneath her fingernails as though he wanted to remove the Horde’s skin and blood from every inch of her body.

Varya must have made some noise. He looked up at her and that angry expression on his face softened into something that hurt to look at.

He paused in his task and cupped her cheek with his palm. “What is it, treasure?”

“Why are you being so kind to me?”

She knew he probably didn’t understand it, either. His expression was one of complete and utter shock, as though he had never expected this reaction from himself either.

Greed’s thumb skated over her right eye, and she remembered getting punched in the face and the pain of that bone aching. How could she see out of it? How had she forgotten that so quickly?

His eyes darkened for a moment before he drew her attention back to the present. “You’re safe now.”

And those words. Oh, how they ran right through her as though he’d stuck a blade into her chest.

A single tear spilled out of that eye that had nearly been broken for good. Greed caught it on his thumb and brought the tear to his mouth. She watched with rapt attention as he licked that thick thumb clean and then scooped her back into his arms. Leaving puddles of water in their wake, he strode into the bedroom and set her down on her feet.

With careful attention, always so careful, he wrapped a silk blanket around her as though that was the best way to dry her. And then he pushed her down onto the bed, so soft and cushioned it felt like a cloud, before he sat down on the edge with her.

Greed took his time arranging her hair on the pillow. His attention was so heady and so focused on her that Varya felt herself squirm.

“We’ll wash your hair tomorrow when you’re feeling better,” he murmured. “For now, you need more rest.”

“Here?”

“There is no safer place in this kingdom than in my bed.” Greed pressed a kiss to her forehead, his lips lingering on her skin. “Rest now, treasure. I will tend to your wounds and watch over you while you sleep.”

She shouldn’t need more rest after days of resting, but she was tired. The bath had taken every ounce of her energy, even though she’d done nothing, and...

Sighing, she turned her head into the smooth, cool, soft pillow and felt herself drift as Greed lifted her arm and started to cover each scrape and cut with a sweet smelling salve.