As he’d intended, Rastari now had everyone’s attention.

“Let me tell you another story, two stories actually,” he continued, “The first is the story of a boy, raised by his mother in an eastern human village. One day, the boy’s father sent some bad men to take the boy away, and the bad men killed his mother. The boy was forced to witness what the bad men did before they brought him to his father, who just happened to be the Duke of Ramport. The boy’s name was changed, his past erased, and he was locked up in the Duke’s home, for some nefarious reasons, I’m sure. The boy suffered under his father’s tyranny for ten long years. Then, one day, the boy’s sister was ordered by Royal decree to participate in a political marriage with someone she refused to marry. You’ve figured out the rest of the story by now, haven't you?”

It felt incredibly odd to hear my past recounted by Rastari in such a way. I felt like I was listening to a bard spinning a tale. I was somewhat amazed at the fact I could listen to my own story like this without faltering. It was a small step forward, but it felt significant somehow. It was only two days ago that I almost completely broke down just from thinking about it, but now I could listen to him with a feeling of detachment, like it really was a bard’s tale.

“So, if I’m to understand correctly,” Garwal suddenly said, “You’re telling me that the Duke of Ramport had the mother of his child murdered, in front of said child no less, framed us for it, but then sent the sole witness to his crimes into our custody?”

“If I recall correctly, Harlow was just mentioning the fact that my little human friend here hasn’t said anything to us yet. Think about it. Falyn’s father willingly sent him to us, despite him being the one person who could tell us the truth. Why do you think that might be?” Rastaro gave them all pointed looks before answering his own question. “Because he can’t tell us. He can’t tell anyone anything. We discovered as much as we did thanks to an empath in Elantro’s employ. He’s done a good job of keeping her abilities under wraps so no one factored for her interference. But think about it. His mother was the first victim, but not the only victim. It was multiple years and over a dozen bodies later that the humans invaded us in the name of vengeance. That means that a group of humans went and systematically tortured and murdered all those women living along the border. But all the bodies show signs of animal damage, didn't they? Maybe that was just their sick idea of fun, and their method of disposal was leaving the bodies for animals. It’s possible, I admit, but what if they were deliberately trying to make it look like the work of a beastman? In that case, did they do it to cover their tracks or were they deliberately trying to start a war with us?”

“I take it all back,” Harlow interjected, “Boy, if you’re gonna help us dig up the truth, then I think you might be my new favorite human.”

“Hold on,” Thoma said, turning to Andrian behind us, “I know this is a little off topic, but… Andrian, the name of that human child you were looking for again? I only just thought of this. The name was Falyn, wasn’t it?”

“It was.” Andrian stepped forward as he answered and pulled me close from behind. I hadn’t realized that I was still on edge until I felt myself relaxing against him. I knew that no one here intended to harm me, but I’d been terrified they’d insist on sending me back. I was defective, so I wouldn’t have blamed them if they’d said I wasn’t good enough. Even though they raised no real objections, I’d been holding that tension in me the whole time. “I think Ras was about to tell you this anyway, but Falyn is the one I’ve been searching for and… well, since Falyn was sent in his sister’s place, everyone kind of agreed that it would be fine if I took Ras’ place. You know, um, noble for noble, general for general.” Andrian looked somewhat flustered as he explained to them, a hint of embarrassment in his voice.

“Oh, is that so?” Luxania studied the two of us for a moment. I stood timidly before her, wondering what she was thinking, while Andrian supported me from behind. Eventually, she offered me a soft smile and asked, “I suppose congratulations are in order then?”

I was the one who answered her, with a sheepish smile and a nod. I squeezed the arms that were wrapped tightly around me, savoring the secure feeling they gave me.

“Is no one concerned about my broken heart over here?” Rastari interrupted. I wasn’t sure, but I thought he might just like being the center of attention, since no one would believe he was heartbroken over me.

“Broken heart, my ass,” Harlow answered him, “You’ve spent the whole trip bitching about having to join with some delicate human female. You’re probably overjoyed to be free to continue fucking your way through every tribal village you can find.”

Rastari’s white teeth shone bright against his dark skin as he smiled wide and held out his hands in a gesture of defeat. “You caught me. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t pleased with the results. But I have to admit it hurts my feelings a little to be told my betrothed prefers the company of another.” He struck a dramatic pose to demonstrate his sincere sorrow and no one felt the least bit sorry for him. Accepting his time in the sun was over, Rastari sat down by the fire and put his feet up on a crate near his chair. “But I think we can safely say that we’ve somehow ended up with a best case scenario in this. We got what we came for and more, plus our darling little Andrian found the human that we were all beginning to think he imagined.”

I looked back at Andrian after Rastari’s last remark, and he explained, “You’d been gone for ten years and you disappeared right before everything started going wrong. I’ve spent a lot of time being told that you were probably dead and that I needed to give up, and a lot of people actually thought I made you up. When I was given a position amongst the attending generals, it was expected that I would fail and finally be forced to give up. To be honest, I had already resigned myself to never seeing you again. I couldn’t believe it when you appeared before me at the Palace, which was the last place I thought I’d ever find you.”

“He had us asking around the slums for you while we distributed the food,” Garwal explained, “No one would’ve believed you’d be inside the Palace since we weren’t looking for a noble. I’ll admit, whether you were real or not, I thought Andrian was crazy to keep searching for you all these years. I can’t believe he actually found you.”

“But are you really okay with all this?” Luxania asked me with genuine concern in her voice. “I know you were forced into this position and choosing someone you know over a complete stranger makes sense, but how do you feel about the bo–”

“Luxania, there are still some things I haven’t had a chance to explain to him and I’d appreciate it if you left that alone,” Andrian interrupted her with a hint of anxiousness in his voice.

Luxania’s eyes narrowed. “You haven’t told him?”

“I will, I just don’t want to put undue pressure on him right now. All in good time,” Andrian answered her, obviously wanting to avoid the subject she was bringing up. I, on the other hand, was very interested in what Luxania was asking. Was this about Andrian’s mate? He hadn’t told me about them yet, but wasn’t he trying to spare me by waiting until my situation was more secure? If that was the case, I wished he wouldn’t. It would only be harder on me if I got used to having him around. If I was going to be abandoned, I wanted to know in advance. I looked fixedly at him, trying to decipher what he was thinking. He looked uncomfortable under my gaze, as if he was caught doing something wrong, which only fueled my worries more.

“From the looks of it, you should tell him sooner, rather than later,” Luxania told Andrian, her disapproval evident, “I don’t think it will change anything, but he has a right to know, don’t you think?”

Stolen novel; please report.

“I agree with what you’re saying Luxie, but I don’t think now is the time for that conversation,” Thoma cut in, looking unconcerned, “It’s something between the two of them, not the lot of us.”

“I don’t even know why I bother, really. You males are always taking each other’s sides. I’m just trying to look out for someone who apparently has no one else to look out for him.” Luxania looked pointedly as Andrian as she said that.

It was at that moment that Coraggio and Shidah caught up to us, and walked into the large command tent. The subject was dropped, much to my dismay, and the eight beast generals moved on to discussing plans for returning back to their homeland.

It didn’t take long for everything to be decided. The army would start breaking down their camp and get ready to depart immediately after having lunch, at the final movement of ascent. While the plans were being made, Andrian mentioned our invitation from the Lady Carlotta, which was met with what I could only describe as delight from the other generals. It seemed that she was the one who originally approached the Beastlands about creating a peace treaty between the two nations. Officially, it was the Beastlands that approached Vrayna to begin the peace talks, but unofficially, Lady Carlotta was the one who started the conversation by sending a letter to an old acquaintance on the council of elders for one of the villages. Despite the assumption that humans and beasts had no contact for hundreds of years, the reality appeared to be quite different. The eastern ducal family of Vrayna had kept contact with the beasts over the years, dating back to the times before the borderland was created. It appeared I wasn’t the only human who had ventured past the borderland over the years.

The conversation from earlier still nagged at me and my anxiety festered in me throughout the course of the morning. While they discussed travel, locations for camp, and the visit to the eastern ducal house, I thought about what Andrian wasn’t telling me over and over and over again. The only conclusion I could come to was that he was avoiding telling me that he already had a mate and that he was only marrying me out of pity and duty. Andrian acted like his normal self, randomly caressing me and holding my hand, but I couldn’t bring myself to respond to his affection. I didn’t push him away, but I didn’t lean into his touches as I usually did. I was pretty sure he could tell something was off but he didn’t pressure me about it. He just idly touched me and gave me worried looks as I tried to keep my emotions hidden behind the calm mask I was so used to wearing. I wished he’d trust me enough to tell me about whatever it was.

After a brief lunch of cured meats, cheeses, pickled vegetables, and flatbread, which I was told was standard fare for traveling beasts, we got back on our horses and left Luz Dorada behind. From there we had to pass through the farmlands and the massive forest, before we would enter the eastern duchy in about three days' time.

I rode with Andrian, sitting in front of him on his horse again, but this time, we traveled with an entire army at our backs. Passing through the farmlands, I saw the cows again, but the magic of seeing a creature I’d only heard about in books was gone. They were still fascinating, but after everything that happened in the past few days, they didn’t seem like that big of a deal anymore. I still enjoyed listening to their low mooing noises though. Andrian kept a tight hold on me as we rode, but he seemed to sense my mood and didn’t make any attempts at talking to me as we rode on through the endless fields.

After the farms, we entered into the forest and only stopped when the sun began to disappear below the horizon. While the army set up its camp, I waited on the side, watching them building the tents and starting the fires. I wished I could be of help, but I would have had no idea where to start. I’d never used a tent and the only fire I’d ever started was in the hearth of my childhood home. So I simply watched them as they worked, feeling more and more useless as time passed.

Andrian came to fetch me once he’d finished setting up our tent and I followed him over without complaint. I was hoping that he had been waiting for us to have some time alone to talk. I wished more than ever that I could ask him what was on his mind, but all I could do was follow him obediently and hope that he would tell me of his own accord. He told me we’d be joining the other generals for dinner and I had time to wash in the nearby stream and change my travel clothes before we ate. I accepted his offer and allowed him to guide me to the stream.

Lightly washed and freshly clothed, I felt refreshed. I hadn’t realized how tiring it was to ride a horse for a whole day, having been too poor for one when I was younger. The cold water on my face woke me up from the trance I’d fallen into. I realized I’d spent the whole day practically ignoring Andrian and felt a little guilty. Even if there was something he wasn’t telling me… To me, he was still my savior and he didn’t deserve having me treating him that way.

While I was washing myself with water from the stream, he’d sat on a stump next to a patch of trees, quietly watching over me. I made my way over to where he sat and stood in front of him, gazing down at his face in the twilight. He looked up at me hesitantly, not reaching out to me, but not shying away from me either. I lifted my hand and stroked his cheek. Closing his eyes he leaned into my caress, savoring the gentle touch. Tentatively, I reached out with my other hand and pulled him forward so his head was leaning against my chest. I gently pet his head, offering him what little comfort I could.

“Please don’t be angry with me,” I heard him say in a muffled voice. “I promise I’ve never lied to you or anything like that. There’s just something I’m a little nervous about telling you. Please… I just need a little more time to build up my courage. But it won’t hurt you to not know it, I swear.” He raised his head and looked at me through watery eyes that begged for my understanding.

His desperate looking face was too much for me to bear. I’d made him feel so badly when he’d done nothing wrong. If it was about his mate, I could wait until he was ready to explain. It was fine. In fact, I didn’t mind waiting some more. I wanted to pretend that he was mine for just a little while longer.

Holding his face in both hands, I gave him a faint smile before placing a gentle kiss on his lips. His eyes were open as I pulled away, gazing into mine intently, as if he was searching for something. He stood up, forcing me to look up at him to maintain our eye contact, and wrapped an arm around my waist, pulling me close to him, our eyes still searching each other. It was an incredible intimate pose and I suddenly felt shy in front of him.

He brought the hand that wasn't wrapped around my waist to my reddening cheek and guided my head those extra couple inches forward to seal my lips with his. I opened my mouth to him and quickly found my tongue tangled up with his. The hand on my cheek slid around to hold the back of my head and I gave myself over to his embrace.

The kiss deepened and I wrapped my arms around him, stroking his back at first before gripping onto his clothes as he turned us around and leaned me against a nearby tree. In the still forest, the only sounds that could be heard were the rustling of our clothes and the sounds of our gasping breaths as we clung to each other.

As the sun finished setting, we continued to kiss and he tentatively slid his hand under my shirt caressing my skin directly. When I first felt his warm, rough palm on my back, my breath caught in my throat, and my instincts told me to push him away, but I tried to bury those feelings and held onto him tightly. It was scary, but his hands on my bare skin felt so good that I didn't want to stop him.

When I didn't reject his touch, he began caressing my back all over, deepening our kiss even more. It almost felt like he was trying to eat me, as teeth and tongues collided in a fevered frenzy. Completely letting go of my inhibitions for a moment, I let him press our lower bodies together, before noticing something hard was nudging my stomach through his pants.

The feeling of him excited and ready against me sobered me up instantly and I began struggling to escape his embrace. He released me as soon as he felt me trying to get away, and for a moment, we both stood there, inches apart, panting as we tried to catch our breaths. My mind and body felt at odds with each other as I struggled to calm myself down. The aching feeling I felt in my lower regions told me that I’d been enjoying it as much as he had, but I couldn’t get over the mental block that told me I needed to escape the situation, that part of myself that told me these feelings would lead to fear and pain.

He drew in a ragged breath and, in a voice barely above a whisper, he said, “Don’t worry, I won’t do anything else. I forgot myself for a moment because it felt so good to have you in my arms.” He placed a final kiss on my swollen lips. “We should head back. I didn’t mean to keep you out here for so long.”

After a deep, calming breath, I nodded and shakily followed him back to the camp.