She’d been well aware of the fact that he’d had no solid plan for them when they’d fled those caves. He had a plan now, or at least he had some idea of what he intended to do. The only problem was that his plan was going to terrify her, and it was going to leave her out, of that much she was certain.
“Aria?”
She turned slowly toward her family, trying hard to keep her tears, and fear, at bay. Her father was watching them intently, his head turned slightly to the side as he inspected her. He was normally clean shaven, but he had a couple days worth of growth shadowing his strong jaw. His hair was dark auburn like hers, and William’s, but recently it had started to become streaked with strands of white that also shadowed his beard. His eyes were a bright, piercing green that had never failed to pin her to the spot and make her squirm. Time had etched lines around his eyes and mouth, but he was still a handsome man. Especially when he smiled, which wasn’t very often, and certainly wasn’t now.
She wanted to go to him, to all of them, but Braith’s tension was too high. “I’m ok dad, really.”
She offered him a tremulous smile that did nothing to soothe the tension humming through him. His gaze traveled slowly to Braith. Hatred simmered in his gaze, but there was also confusion and disbelief. “This is the prince?” he inquired.
Aria rested her hand on Braith’s chest, trying to soothe the anger she felt rapidly building in him. She knew it was not going to be easy, but her family would have to learn to trust him as they had learned to trust Jack. And Braith was going to have to learn to trust someone besides her.
“One of them,” Braith replied in a low growl. “The youngest one is standing in front of you.”
Her father’s eyes darted briefly to Jack, but he didn’t acknowledge Braith’s words. “You’re the one that claimed my daughter as a blood slave; you’re the one that took her this time also.”
“Yes.”
Fury flashed across her father’s face. William and Daniel’s eyes widened, but they did not radiate the hatred her father did. “You held her, you tortured her…”
“I have told you many times that I was not tortured in there!” Aria interrupted sharply.
“I saw the bite marks!” her father snapped.
Aria blinked in surprise. Her hands tightened on Braith’s arms, not to comfort him this time, but because she needed his strength. “Everything I gave, I gave willingly,” she said softly, truthfully.
“Like hell!”
It was not her father that exploded with those two words, but Max. Aria hadn’t realized he was just outside the doorway behind her father, Daniel, and William. He shoved his way forward now, pushing roughly past them as he shouldered his way into the room. Aria’s eyes widened in surprise, she had never seen him look so wild, so crazed, and so completely out of control. His blue eyes were wild in his head, his hair in disarray. Braith stiffened, pushing her back as Max charged at them.
Jack leapt forward, snagging hold of Max’s arm as Braith released a snarl that caused even her heart to leap in terror. Max swung on Jack, catching him hard beneath his chin and knocking him back a small step. Jack was far stronger than Max, but he had not expected the punch as he was knocked off balance by it. Not only had he not expected the first punch, but he sure as hell hadn’t expected the one two combination that Max laid on him next.
Daniel and William were lunging at Max, but he had already shaken off Jack and was charging back at them. “You’re lying!” he accused, his shoulders stiff as he barreled toward them. “He’s twisted you! You’re lying!”
Daniel, William, and Jack continued after him, but they were never going to stop him in time. Neither was Ashby as he pulled Melinda swiftly out of the way before lunging forward to make a failed grab at Max. Braith released her, pushing her behind him as he used his body to block her from Max’s attack. Terror hammered through Aria, this could not happen, she could not allow this to happen. Max was out of his mind; he had been tortured and used as a blood slave, he had been twisted and wounded in ways that she could never begin to imagine. Max did not understand her love for Braith because he was convinced that Braith had done the same things to her.
“Wait! Stop!” she gasped in horror.
Braith tried to push her farther back but she ducked, dodging his arm as he tried to snag hold of her. She thrust herself forward, throwing herself in between Max and Braith. Unfortunately she hadn’t seen what it was that Max wielded in his hand until it was too late. His arm was already flung forward, the metal blade whipped through the air even as she rose to her full height.
Braith’s hand shot out in front of her. The blade slammed into his palm, driving through flesh and bone before bursting out the other side. Aria stared at it in horror. It was only a mere inch from the center of her forehead, exactly where Braith’s heart was behind her. Though the metal blade would not have killed Braith, it would have wounded him and knocked him back enough for Max to get to him, for Max to try and use the wooden stake he now wielded.
Aria’s heart lumbered painfully in her chest. She stared at the awful weapon, the one that would have killed her; the one that was still embedded in Braith’s hand. It had to hurt, but he showed no sign of that as he reached around her, grabbed hold of the blade and ripped it swiftly out. It sliced through; the scrape of metal on bone was loud in the room that had become deathly silent.
Blood trailed down Braith’s hand, plopping loudly onto the wooden floor. Aria swallowed heavily, terrified at what was to come, terrified of what Braith’s reaction would be. She could feel the fury radiating from him; feel the deadly tension that vibrated from him. He was so wound up that she didn’t think she’d be able to stop him from killing Max. No one moved, no one even breathed.
Even Max, horrified by the fact that he had nearly killed her, seemed to have regained some control over himself. Braith, not surprisingly, was the first to react. He fisted his hand, twisting it before him. Aria was horrified by the blood that spilled freely from the large wound. She reached for him, but he seized hold of her hand, his touch surprisingly gentle for the pain he had to be suffering.
“Braith.”
Aria could hear the nervous tension and worry in Jack’s voice. She understood it completely, though she could not see Braith’s face, she could feel the murderous intent thrumming through him. Max took a small step back; Aria knew that what he was seeing had to be terrifying. Though he was large, temperamental, and fierce, Braith had always been relatively gentle and kind with her. She knew that was not who he was though. It was who he was with her, but with others, and to others, he could be cruel, brutal, and lethal.