His eyes narrow slightly, but he doesn’t say anything.
I let loose an epic belch, and Ryn’s eyes widen in surprise. I smirk at him.
“What? That would have gotten me applause at the tavern,” I tell him, proud of the man burp.
Where’s Sice when you need him?
Ryn pinches his temples like this information exasperates him. “You’re supposed to be laying low until I can get us out of here, Falon. Not drinking in taverns with…” he trails off. “Who in the rut took you drinking?” he demands to know on a tired sigh.
“I am laying low,” I snap. “And I was with the guards Treno assigned, so I was fine,”
“Treno didn’t assign anything, I did, and where are those guards now, Falon?” he asks, looking around like he expects them to step out of the woods.
I do the same thing. They were here earlier.
I shrug, confused by where they could have gone and by Ryn assigning them to me and not Treno.
“We should go. All of Kestrel is practically looking for you, at this point,” he tells me casually as he places a hand at the small of my back in an effort to herd me.
I realize in that moment, with his warm hand against my bare skin, that I’m butt ass naked. To his credit, Ryn’s eyes haven’t dipped below mine this whole time. Then again, maybe he got an eyeful when he found me ass over face on the ground. I turn to the tree whose roots are protecting my clothes.
“Why are they looking for me?” I ask, perplexed. “I’ve been coming out here for days with no one being bothered by it. Sice and Dri are always close by; they’re sneaky fuckers, by the way,” I point out, impressed and equally jealous of their mad sneaking skills. “Anyway, why would anyone care where I am now?” I query, hastily moving in the direction of my clothes.
“Because Treno wants to see you, and what the little Altern wants, the Altern gets,” Ryn mocks.
“So he’s okay then?” I ask, unable to stop the relief in my voice from shining through.
Ryn’s eyes grow hard, and he studies me, not bothering to answer.
I bend over to pick up my newly gifted makeshift bra, and Ryn grunts.
“Well, at least your sneaky guards managed to deliver the things they were told to,” Ryn states irritably.
I stare at him for a second, the soft leather of the garment I assumed Treno gave me clutched in my hand, and it clicks.
“It was you?” I state on a shocked whisper.
I give a hollow laugh and stare at the bra in my palms. Ryn is the only one to ever see me wearing this. How could I have not made that connection earlier?
Ryn’s eyebrows dip with confusion. “Of course it was me. Who else could it have been?” he asks incredulously.
I shake my head and study his face, trying to understand why Ryn would have given me all of these things.
“Treno,” I state simply, and I watch as Ryn’s gray gaze fills with fire.
He steps toward me until our bodies are flush with one another.
“And why would Treno give you any of those gifts?” he asks, his voice angry but even, like it’s the calm before the storm.
“Why would you?” I challenge instead of answering.
A slight flush works its way up Ryn’s neck, and its appearance makes me infinitely more curious for an answer to my question. Ryn’s lips press together like he’s battling to keep the answer inside.
“Why?” I ask again, my gaze bouncing back and forth between his storm cloud stare.
“Because it’s what females of your stature expect in life. I was helping you to grow accustomed to that.”
I growl at him, unable to stop the sound of pure displeasure from crawling up my throat. I can practically taste the lie, and it pisses me off. I step back, dropping the bra from my hands and walk away from him.
“Where are you going?” he demands.
“Pigeon and I have work to do still,” I state flatly. “We’ll come back when we’re done, just like we have the entire time you and Treno have been gone,” I add flippantly.
I internally tap Pigeon and circle my finger to indicate it’s time to mount up.
“Did you not hear me when I said that the whole island is looking for you?”
“Let them!” I shout out, interrupting him. “Feel free to fly your annoying ass back there and tell them I’ll be along when Pigeon and I are good and fucking ready to return.”
Pigeon wing fives me, and I shake out my muscles, ready to eat dirt however many times it takes for us to get this right. I sprint toward the trees, initiating a move Pigeon and I mastered earlier where I run, jump up in the air as high as I can, and we shift and fly away. My feet pound hard against the grass covered ground as I pick up speed.
“Falon!” Ryn shouts at me, a warning in his tone, but I ignore it and leap up into the sun kissed sky. Pigeon pushes forward, ready to take the reins and set up the next challenge again, but arms circle around my hips, and I’m side tackled like I’m a quarterback being sacked.
Motherfucker.
Pigeon seems more amused by this than I’d expect her to be, but I’m fucking pissed. Who the fuck does Ryn think he is? I’m slammed to the ground, but I rotate onto my back and slash across Ryn’s chest with the sharp talons now tipping the fingers of my hand. Ryn hisses and rolls off of me, pushing to his feet.
He looks down at his chest and touches the blood welling up from the scratches I just carved there. He looks from his blood tinged fingertips to me, surprise and something else akin to excitement in his eyes. A hum of eagerness floats through me too, and I work to not roll my eyes at its presence.
Someone save me from these weird ass birds and the strange shit that turns them on.
“So you haven’t just been out here rolling around naked in the dirt,” Ryn snidely observes, his hand dropping to his side.
Pigeon sends a warning to me to watch how his muscles are tensing despite the smooth tone of his voice. I wave her away with a thank you and eye exactly that. Ryn charges me precisely like Pigeon warned me he would. I move to the side, avoiding the tackle, and call on my wings. I dive back, forcing my wings to support me, and partially shift my lower body into the powerful big cat legs that Pigeon has. I kick out mercilessly at Ryn, and he goes flying.
I shift all parts back to me and put my wings away as Ryn flies through the air away from me. I fully expect him to go crashing into the ground, and I prepare my snide remark about look who’s playing in the dirt now, but Ryn calls on his own wings and rights himself. He plants his feet lightly on the ground and smiles at me.
“Good to see you’re taking things seriously now,” he declares, and I glare at the dig barely hidden in the compliment.
“Good to see you’re the same ol’ asshole you’ve always been. Here I was thinking you might just turn out to be a nice guy. Guess I’ll rescind the pity fuck I might have thrown your way.”
Ryn chuckles, but his eyes flash with anger. His wings give a flap, and my wings pop out of my back like eager puppies who were just promised a treat.
Fucking hell.
Ryn’s smile turns devilish like he just proved some point, and that irritates the shit out of me. I pull my wings into my back and scold them for being overeager.
“Ohh, you got my wings to open,” I mock with faux surprise. “Too bad for you my thighs don’t work like that,” I add with a glare.