The tether between myself and Kassam stretches, pulls tight. I let out a whimper as pain washes over me. "Stop," I call out. "I can't leave. Stop!"
The wolves ignore me. One growls, a low warning, but to the rest, my pain is insignificant.
The tether grows painful, and I cry out, twisting wildly. "Stop! Stop!"
They never stop, though, and it wracks my body, worse than anything I've ever experienced before. It feels as if I'm being pulled apart from inside, and I scream, and scream, and scream. The wolves never let me go, and no matter how much I twist and struggle to break free, they don't release me, either.
The pain just keeps coming, and I drown inside it, utterly lost.
32
The throb of my injured arm wakes me from my sleep. Carefully, I keep my eyes closed and pretend to be sleeping, remembering the pack of unearthly wolves that dragged me away. My skin feels scratched up all over my back and stomach, and my bra is pushed up past my breasts and around my neck. Terrified of what that means, I mentally assess my body. My jeans are still on, so I don't think anyone has molested me. I tug my bra back down to cover my tits, and as I do, grass, leaves and dirt fall out of it. Okay, it must have crawled up my body when the wolves dragged me. It occurs to me that other than being banged up and my arm throbbing, I'm not in pain. The horrible, excruciating pain that comes with the tether between myself and Kassam being stretched past its limits.
That means he must be nearby. He's come for me. Exhaling in relief, I look around.
I'm in some ancient stone building. Or maybe it was a building once, but there's no roof. There's only broken pillars framing a thick stone floor, and I'm reminded of the Greek ruins of the Parthenon. Grass pushes its way between the enormous flagstones that make up the floor, and between the crumbled pillars, there are enormous, heavy pots with withered plants inside them. Everything's covered in dust and detritus from neglect. The wolves are nowhere to be seen. They must have brought me here and dumped me.
As I sit up, I notice that I'm at the top of a set of five heavy stone steps that lead up to a dais. Getting to my feet, I dust off my filthy jeans (a useless action) and look behind me. I've been left at the base of an altar.
Not just any altar. A pair of carved antlers that loom over the slab of weathered stone make it very clear whose altar it is. My mouth goes dry at the realization, and I stare at the dead flowers, animal skulls, and pelts that cover every inch of the surface. They're all ancient and faded, as if the people who left the offerings gave up long ago. All of this has been abandoned for a very, very long time. I turn, gazing out past the pillars. I can see the thick forest in the distance, but around the broken temple is nothing but knee-high, waving grasses. There are no roads, no homes, no nothing. Just an abandoned temple in the middle of nowhere.
I'm positive I was brought here to send a message, and my skin prickles with the realization.
"CARLY!"
It's Kassam. He's somewhere in the distance, shouting my name. I race down the steps—
—only to have one of the gargantuan shadow wolves appear, blocking my path. It looks at me as I skid to a halt and growls.
Okay, then. I get the picture. I cup my hands to my mouth. "I'm here!"
"Carly!" I watch as a tall form emerges from the trees and races toward the temple, toward me. I remain where I am, bouncing on my toes, because I can't wait for him to come and get me. I feel safe at his side. Protected. And right now, I need to feel safe desperately.
More wolves slink out of the shadows, until the temple has at least a dozen of them lurking in wait. "Be careful," I shout. "There are wolves everywhere!"
I watch as he approaches, moving with speed, and then his steps slow the closer he gets to the temple. He regards my surroundings with a grim expression, and that grim expression turns to dismay as he sees the wolves. I could swear that he pales underneath his sun-kissed tan, and that worries me.
"Are you okay?" I call out. "Will they hurt you?"
"They will not," he says, voice oddly stilted as he takes a step into the temple, toward me. "They are sending me a message." He gazes at the nearest one for so long that I worry he's been put under a spell of some kind. I try to move toward him, but one of the wolves blocks me, moving subtly into my path. It's clear that they want him to come to me and not the other way around. He tears his gaze away from the wolves and focuses on me. His expression darkens at the sight of my bloody arm. "They hurt you?"
Something about this feels off. Odd. They could have torn me to shreds a dozen times over but all they did was force me to put down the belt I was using as a weapon. "I'm a little banged up, but I'm all right. Are you okay?"
He looks awfully pale, his expression tight as he moves to my side and runs his hands over my bare arms, frowning at my scratches and especially at the bite on my arm. "I don't like this."
"It'll heal. I don't think they were trying to hurt me. Just scare me."
Kassam continues to touch me all over, as if he has to determine for himself that I truly am all right. His mouth remains a flat, unhappy line, and when he's satisfied that I'm not in danger, he pulls me against him and wraps his arms around me, tucking me against his chest.
"Wh-what are you doing?" I manage.
"I am hugging you. You like hugs. Now hush."
I'm not sure if I'm the one that needs comforting right now or if it's him. Kassam continues to hold me tight, his chin resting atop my head as he strokes my head and then my back. Leaves and debris rain out of my shoulder-length hair, and I can only imagine how rough I look right now. He's right, though—the hug does feel good. It's soothing some deep, worried kernel deep inside me. "Thank you for coming after me."
"I will always come after you," he vows, surprisingly fervent.
"Right, because of the bond."
"Because you belong to me," Kassam corrects. "You are my wife."
I'd forgotten.
He is quiet for a long moment and then says, in a ragged voice, "This is one of my temples."
"I noticed."
"The offerings…" He turns his head slightly, his chin rubbing against the top of my head, and I know he's gazing at the altar. "They came here. They prayed to me even when I was gone, and it did them no good. They still hoped I would be here to answer them, and I could not." His grip tightens on me as he squeezes me against him. "I am feeling grief again, Carly, and I do not like it. How do I make it stop?"
"You can't," I say softly. "The only thing you can do is learn how to live with it. To find enough pleasure in other things that it takes the edge off the grief."
"I do not like it," he says again, his voice rough as he holds me even tighter. "A god cursed with hedonism should not have to feel grief."
It's my turn to comfort. We're still hugging, so I rub his back gently and snuggle against his chest. He smells like the woods, earthy and full of fresh air and grass, and I find it instantly soothing. "I think part of the reason you're here is so you do feel those things," I point out. "So you learn what it's like to care."