Aligning Stars (Fate's Intent Book 1) (9 page)

Ruby smiled and looked over at him then back at Jaylyn. “It was good. Well worth the agony.”

I had enough and fired my voice at both of them. “All right, enough! Can we just forget about this? I’m done hearing about them.”

“Well, that will be kind of hard considering the one walking toward us.” Ruby said with a whispering smile.

I looked up and saw that it was Zayden. He had the greatest proud walk you’d ever see but I rolled my eyes and turned from it, not interested in whatever it was he had to say.

“You three, over there.”

Ruby and Jaylyn stood up immediately like he was really in charge but I grabbed their wrists, pulling them back down. “No. We’re fine right here, thanks.”

Zayden’s eyes narrowed and lowered them down at me. “It wasn’t a suggestion. Move.”

Ruby and Jaylyn stood back up but I only pulled them right back down again. “No. We’re staying.”

Zayden knelt down to me and looked me right in the eye while I looked back unafraid. “It seems you’re forgetting your place here again. If you won’t get yourself up and go over there right now, I will be forced to make you and that’s really something you don’t want me to have to do.”

I glared at him and certainly had no intention of moving. “I think I’ll stay.”

“All right. Your choice.”

He quickly reached down and grabbed my arm, bringing me to my feet. I struggled to get away and almost made it until Zayden turned me around and pulled my arm up behind my back.

He pulled my body back into his and leaned into my ear. “The more you struggle the more it will hurt so I suggest you give up now.”

I stopped and stood silently and still but was breathing heavily to show my anger.

I had nothing to say to him but it only made Zayden smile in victory. “That’s my girl. See, I guess even wild beasts can be tamed.”

He started moving over to the fire with me and Ruby and Jaylyn went with us, Jaylyn helping Ruby along.

“Have a seat, Love.” Zayden forced me to sit close to him so he would keep a close eye on me or something. Like I was going to try anything. It never seemed to work out when I did.

I just sighed and folded my arms. I did notice the name he called me but I wasn’t going to openly express anything. Maybe that’s just what he was trying to get me to do but I wouldn’t give in.

Zayden reached into a bag on his other side and took out some brittle, stale-looking bread. “Catch.”

He threw some at Darius then tossed some to Troy and took some out for himself.

“First thing I do when I get back.” Darius muttered, taking a bite.

Troy tried to hold back his laugh. “Really? That surprises me.”

“Don’t speak to me.” Darius snatched, narrowing his eyes towards him.

“I don’t think it would matter much.” Zayden replied with a low chuckle. “He’ll do both, on the same table, at the same time.”

“Probably.” Darius agreed with a simple head nod, concentrating more on eating than looking around. “I can multitask.”

“Okay. I’m done talking about this.” Troy said.

Zayden just smiled to it and let the silence continue while we sat by and watched them eat. “What? You think we should feed you?”

“Well, that seems a little pointless.” I muttered.

“Sort of but we’re not total animals.”

“Could have fooled me.”

Zayden laughed and held it out in front of me. It looked worse up close. “Are you sure?”

I was disgusted and pushed his hand away with one finger to minimize touching between us. “No thanks. I think it’s growing something.”

“All the more nutrients for a more balanced meal.”

He took another bite and I had to shiver and look away. “I’d sooner die.”

“If you’d like, I’d let you do both.”

I just looked up at Jaylyn and Ruby with a look of annoyance on my face but they both smiled to it. They seemed to know exactly what it meant without having to hear it from me and I really didn’t want it to be mentioned.

“Wow, you should really try relaxation, Love.” Zayden said, taking another bite and calling me that name again. “Loosen up a bit.”

“I’m relaxed.” It may have been a small, tiny, little white lie. My back was completely straight with my shoulders pushed back so my head and neck remained even with my spine. It probably looked like I needed to relax.

“Then why are you sitting like that? It looks like you’re ready for an inspection or something.”

“You try sitting in a corset.”

“Oh, how could I have known? You’ve been in your coat all this time.”

“Easier to carry.” My voice was annoyed and I tried keeping my eyes off him so things wouldn’t get worse.

“Well, if it’s uncomfortable, you’re welcome to take it off if you’d like. We won’t mind.”

I crossed my arms in front of my chest and rolled my eyes. “I’m
not
here for your personal amusement.”

Zayden kept the smile on his face and leaned a little closer with a softer voice. “You’re here because you have way too much pride and will be whatever I want you to be. Don’t make me take them off their short leashes.”

Darius groaned with maximum displeasure, rumbling the space around us as he threw his head back. “You don’t know how badly I loathe you right now.”

“And continue doing it silently. I already know your opinion.”

Darius grumbled his voice and began to get up. “I’ll do it silently.”

I tightened.

“Finally.” Troy muttered.

Darius gritted his teeth and kicked dirt in his direction. “I’m not doing that! I’m going to find real food.”

“Then we hope for your success.”

“I don’t need anything from you.” He walked away into the dark but Troy was still watching. I was at least glad he didn’t try acting against Zayden.

“Let him be.” Zayden said. “You need time away from each other.”

“It’d take a little more than that.” It was clear Troy was frustrated while he took off pieces of his armor for some unknown reason and placed them beside him.

“Too bad you can’t walk, Ruby.” Zayden joked.

She frowned. As did I. “Taking amusement in my pain?”

“No.” Jaylyn said, leaning towards her while talking through her teeth. I hated even hearing it. “He means it’s too bad you can’t go after him and
help
.”

Her eyes widened and she tried not putting them on me. I saw her avoiding it. “Oh! Can I crawl after him then?”

Zayden and I both lifted our eyes and spoke with a deep dominant voice. “No!”

“And it was also a joke.” Jaylyn whispered.

“Then you shouldn’t make it sound so fun. I’m dying a little myself.”

Zayden’s eyebrows rose with curiosity. “It’s been over six months for you?”

“More like over six days.” I muttered in irritation. “And she’s fine.”

Ruby sighed and buried her face down on her knees so she wouldn’t say anything else. She completely disagreed with me of course, over six days without a man was torture but she knew when not to say anything. My mood was vexed enough. I remained stiff at Zayden’s side to show it while the fire crackled in front of us.

The mask I wore on the outside resembled anger like they all would expect but on the inside I was mesmerized to be less than a foot away from him. All I had to do was reach out my hand and make him mine but I wouldn’t. He was lead in taking us to our deaths and I just wished it was over. Death would be a great release to this inner pain. Every second I spent at his side hurt. I couldn’t bear the thought of a future with him, the enemy but couldn’t see my life without him either. I was torn.

My eyes were staring straight into the fire so they wouldn’t shift to my right towards him and I was locked inside my own mind, waiting for it all to end. The others sat around in what seemed like an endless silence and I thanked them for it without saying it. I liked the silence.

My eyes were focused on the fire in front of me and I was solely concentrated on it. My breathing was slow but steady and the fire became the same.

“Ah—Adele—” Ruby whispered softly. She probably saw what was happening with the fire and was hoping no one else did. “Adele—” She picked up a small pebble at her feet and tossed it at me. “Adele!”

Before it hit me, I blinked and quickly brought up my hand, catching the pebble from the air but spoke calmly unlike my reaction. “What?”

“You’re doing weird things and you said—”

“Relax. I’m fine.”

“You sure?” Jaylyn asked. “You’re seeming a bit distant.”

“Genius diagnosis, Jaylyn. If I wanted your wisdom I would have asked for it, like what am I seeming now?”

“Ah—self-heated with your own rage? Maybe you should take your coat off and let out some of that steam before you combust and kill all of us.”

“How about no? I’m not about to play that card here.”

Zayden tossed the last bit of food into his mouth with a question. “Play what card?”

I sat still and didn’t say a thing to him, not even looking over.

“The usual simple fix card.” Ruby smiled.

“Shut up.” I muttered.

“And what is that?” Zayden asked, glancing at me for a mere second but knowing I wouldn’t answer and looked back to Ruby.

She still had the smile on her face and neglected to listen to my quiet demand. “The ‘give me what I want because I have what you want’ card.”

Zayden got it right away and laughed. “Neither of those two things are going to happen.”

“So, you say now but she does have a way of changing things.”

I sighed from the annoying talk about me right in front of me like I wasn’t sitting right here and had to end it. “Can we stop talking about this? It wasn’t even close to a suggestion.”

“Awe, you don’t really mean that.” Jaylyn smiled. “You can’t think we haven’t noticed.”

“Don’t talk like they’re not sitting here! This conversation is over. Ended. No more discussion. We clear?”

“But—”

“We clear?”

Ruby and Jaylyn looked at each other when they saw my eyes flicker in Zayden’s direction and just smiled.

“For now.” Ruby said.

My eyes rolled and I put my head down to end all conversation completely but it was quickly lifted again in reaction to a loud sound.

Darius had come back, dropping a small deer where he was sitting. “Sorry. Didn’t mean to scare you.”

“You didn’t scare me.”

“Do we get to eat that?” Jaylyn asked.

“It’s why I got it.” Darius kneeled down and began to cut it open.

“Awe. Isn’t he just the sweetest?” Troy joked.

Darius looked up with narrowing eyes. “It’s more like simple logic. If they’re going to survive long enough for us to get home, they need to eat. I can’t carry all of them.”

“As you are completely right.” Zayden said. “At least one of you are thinking properly.”

Troy’s eyes rolled. “Read a little deeper into his intentions and you might disagree.”

“What is with his attitude today?” Darius asked Zayden.

“Same as what’s with yours.”

Darius laughed and glanced up at Ruby. “I suppose so.”

“Just cook that and bury the rest.” Zayden tossed a bag to him that landed with a
clang
from something inside. “We don’t want any unexpected visitors tonight.”

Darius picked it up and set up a stand over the fire, putting a pan on top so it would get hot while he cut thin pieces of meat from the deer. “Be lucky I can get enough out of this thing for us.”

“Then you should have gotten a bigger one.” Troy said.

Darius didn’t look up. He continued with his work. “That would have required me going farther. It was the straggler of the herd.”

“Well—”

“It’s fine.” Zayden thankfully cut in. I was getting a bit tired of the male version of Ruby and Jaylyn arguing. “We’re still days away. We’ll come across something else. In the meantime, this will be enough.”

Troy left it alone and so did Darius. He continued with the quick meal and began putting the pieces on the pan to sizzle.

Not another word was spoken while we waited. I kept my eyes straight forward, not to put them on Zayden for even the slightest chance that he’d notice and say something else. I didn’t want to see him, knowing it may start to weaken my thoughts of revenge and that was something I never planned to give up on. My father at least deserved that loyalty in me and I wouldn’t let him down even if that meant I would have to wait a little longer and suffer a little harder every second I spent at his side.

“How do you ladies like it?”

I still didn’t move or even have to blink to stop Ruby from letting out any kind of zany comment. “Don’t even.”

“What?! I wasn’t going to!”

“I bet. He was asking about the food.”

“Oh. Um. I’m not really sure.” Ruby said to Darius. “The way Adele always makes it?”