The Eden Series: The Complete Collection (26 page)

“He is not a normal boy, I promise you that.”

Brutus shrugged. “All right, you point him out to us on the battlefield, and we’ll make sure to take him out first. Does that help matters?”

Aziz hesitated, looking from one to another with his quick, wandering eyes. “I will not be at the battle; it would be too dangerous. I must go back at once, to continue my work there.” They had expected that. “My beasts know his face—I have told them all. To make sure there are no mistakes, however, I have brought you something else to use against him. He might survive a bite, but he won’t survive this.”

Rose waited up for Callum to return, which was out of the norm for her. She didn’t know why she felt the need to wait, but her curiosity was overwhelming. Something was happening, and she wanted to know what. It was doubtful he’d even tell her, but she’d have to try.

Sitting on the edge of his bed, she looked around at the tent. It amazed her that she had lasted this long on the road. She couldn’t even remember the last time she had slept in an actual bed, she thought sadly, bouncing slightly on the cushion beneath her. The home back in their village felt like a distant memory. It had been only a couple of weeks, but her old life seemed foreign to her already. The only reason why she continued with the army, the only reason she hadn’t tried to run again, was Felix. She needed to get to him, to tell him about their parents, if he didn’t already know, and to show him that she was okay. They still had each other, and that would be enough.

Callum walked in while she found herself bouncing again on the bed. His face looked shocked to see her there. Normally, she would have been asleep already, so her presence still awake was surprise enough.

“What are you doing?” he asked.

“Waiting for you,” she answered, ignoring what he really meant. She stopped bouncing immediately. He eyed her bed on the floor knowingly, but didn’t press the matter.

“Waiting for what exactly?” He crossed the floor of the tent to his usual chair. Sitting down, he started to take off his boots, and pulled his shirt over his head, to reveal his defined chest. She hated it when he did that—it made her nervous. Ignoring his skin, she focused on the conversation.

“I wanted to know what was going on. Everyone seems to be nervous, or afraid of something. Who has come tonight?”

He smiled slightly, standing up to pull his pants off.

“Callum!” she cried out, shocked. Covering her eyes, she could hear him snickering, even though she couldn’t see him. “That is not appropriate. Please put your pants back on!”

“You’re the one who decided to stay awake this long. I’m just following my usual routine at the end of a long day. Now, if you don’t mind, I’m just going to squeeze in behind you and go to bed.”

She stood up instantly, keeping her hand in front of her face, her eyes cast down. Since she could not see, she ended up slamming right into his naked chest. Realizing quickly that it was not a good idea to keep her eyes down, as he wore no undergarments, she looked up quickly, her face hot. He was looking down at her, an amused smile on his face.

“This is not funny,” she protested.

“Maybe not for you,” he said lightly. “Are you just going to stand there?”

Their bodies were extremely close, she realized again, making her face go even hotter. Quickly moving to the side, he crawled into bed, pulling the covers over him.

“Better?” he asked, smiling. She stood wide-eyed, shocked by the events that had just so quickly taken place. Walking to the end of the bed, she lowered herself onto her bed, and lay down where he couldn’t see her anymore. It would take a while for the colour to leave her face again.

“Are you not going to answer my question?” she asked, after letting some silence pass.

“No,” he replied, saying nothing more.

She sat up, looking over at him. It was hard to see his face at the front of the bed, but in case he could see hers clearly, she kept a very offended expression on.

“Why not?”

“It does not concern you,” he said mildly. “You are a prisoner of this war, remember? Why would I discuss anything with you?”

She felt hurt, slightly wounded by his rejection. It hadn’t occurred to her that he would refuse so strongly—she had hoped that he would trust her by now. She stayed silent, lying back down on her pillow.

After more silence passed, he finally spoke again. “If you are tired of sleeping on the ground, you are welcome to share my bed with me.” Her cheeks grew hot again. “To sleep, of course, is what I meant,” he corrected himself.

“No, thank you,” she said firmly, like a stubborn child who hadn’t gotten her way before. She couldn’t see him, but she was almost certain he was smiling. He smiled a lot more now than he did when they first met.

“It is much more comfortable up here than it is down there.”

“I said no.”

Silence. Then, “If you come here, I’ll tell you who came.”

She couldn’t believe it. What a horrible thing to do, to bribe a person. Did he think her so weak that she would actually fall for that? She didn’t even bother replying, lying still on her bed. Well, it wasn’t really a bed, she thought. It was a cover on the floor, and a blanket made of thick fur on top. The ground, and all the bumps and rocks in it, were easily felt through the lower blanket, digging into her back and sides as she slept. She had gotten used to it by now, finding it normal to wake up stiff and sore. An actual bed would be nice for one night, she thought again. Rose shook her head, pushing back those thoughts. It was a ridiculous idea, and he was using her curiosity about the camp’s events to his advantage. She had made it clear to him from the beginning that she would not have relations with him, and so far he had respected that.

The air that night was cold, unusual for so late in the spring. There was moisture in the ground, making everything feel damp, colder. There was also a small rock right under her lower back that was digging into her. Cursing, she threw off her blankets and got up. Even nature seemed to be against her. Walking over to the side of the bed, she looked down hesitantly. Callum lifted his head in surprise.

“I will not go under your blankets,” she said, holding her fur blanket in one hand. “I have never lain with a man, especially not a naked one, and I don’t plan on doing so now.”

He didn’t say a word, moving over, closer to the tent wall, to make room for her. Sighing, she lay down beside him, pulling her blanket up to her chin. The bed was like lying on a cloud. She was pretty certain there was better, since this mattress was used for camping, but compared to the floor, it was heaven. She sighed again, this time in delight. Again, she could tell he was smiling, even though she couldn’t see him in the dark.

“Don’t act so smug,” she said. “There was a rock under my back.”

“Of course,” he replied, keeping his voice as neutral as possible. She hated it when he did that. He was silent for a minute before he continued. “Aziz came into camp,” he said in a low voice. “That is why everyone is nervous.”

“Does he not come here often?”

“No, almost never. He is … greatly changed.”

She turned her head to look at him. “In what manner?”

“His physical appearance,” he said. She almost thought she felt him shudder slightly. “The magic he is doing is taking a large toll on him. It is unnerving.”

Rose stayed silent, wondering what kind of magic could have such an effect on a person. She had never seen the sorcerer before, only heard stories about his talents. It was well known that he was their greatest asset in this war. Whatever had changed about him, certainly seemed to disturb Callum. Rose found that unsettling herself. It was odd that even he would be nervous around the man he was allies with.

Eventually, his breathing became slower, and she knew he was asleep. It made her uneasy to be so close to him, but the comfort of having a cushion under her was worth it. Closing her eyes, she had her first good sleep in weeks.

“Callum!” she heard Brutus call. He stormed through the flaps, stopping in shock. Both of them sat up, looking at him confusedly. The light outside told her it was already late in the morning. Neither of them had slept that late before, she realized. A slow smile grew on Brutus’s face as he regarded them. Only then did Rose realize they were still in bed together. Her face grew hot. “Well, good morning,” he said slyly.

“It’s not what you think,” Callum said defensively, to Rose’s gratitude. She did not turn to look at him, trying to avoid making the situation any more awkward than it was already.

“I’m sure,” he said, chuckling. “Why are you two still asleep? We have a war to attend to, man! Godfrey just returned from his scouting mission, and he’s informed me that the High King’s army is on the move. Our time is coming!” Rose thought he was enjoying himself way too much at that moment. Not just with their—hers and Callum’s—situation, but with the whole war in its entirety. The man seemed to love the notion of fighting, which scared her a little. It still surprised Rose, almost on a daily basis, how laid-back and friendly Brutus the Red was. All the stories she had heard of him when she was younger said what a monster he was, a man who fed on the blood of others. Rose couldn’t help but wonder if he hadn’t spread those rumours himself. He would enjoy the thought of people saying such horrible things about him. In reality, he wasn’t nearly so scary to be around, and seemed to find humour in most situations. Even now, he stood with the same smile across his face. She was too nervous to get out of the bed, so she lay still, waiting for Callum to make the first move.

Callum remained where he was, however. “We will meet you outside then,” he replied calmly. “Thank you for letting us know.” Brutus took that as his dismissal, which was exactly what it was. Giving a wink in Rose’s direction, he turned and left slowly.

“That man seems to find an immense amount of joy in my discomfort,” she said resentfully. Callum laughed, lying his head back down for a minute.

“He is a good man, Brutus,” he commented. “I am glad to have met him.” She remained sitting up, keeping her blankets around her, even though the tent was now warm from the morning sun. “You’ll have to get up first, you know,” he said eventually. She looked over her shoulder at him. “I’m naked, remember?”

The picture of him came flooding back into her head, unfortunately. She could only imagine Brutus’s face if Callum had gotten out of bed in front of him. Neither of them would have lived it down, no matter what they said to him. Throwing her legs off the side, she stood up quickly, keeping her back to him. She didn’t need another show like the one last night. Going over to the small basin of water in the corner, she splashed some water on her face to help refresh her. She could hear him buckling his pants up, and knew it was safe to turn around. He still wore no shirt, but he was more or less covered.

“Thank you,” she said nervously. He looked over curiously. “For letting me sleep in the bed,” she explained. “It was nice not to have to sleep on the floor for once.”

He smiled, pulling his shirt over his head. “You’re welcome, Rose,” was all he said. Sometimes she found him to be so courteous with her, it would catch her off guard. It almost made her forget that she was a prisoner. Even when they spoke at night sometimes, when Brutus was there too, he would include her in the conversation like she was one of them. Neither of them treated her like a young girl who had been taken forcibly from her home. Pushing the thoughts of home away, she sat down on the ground to pull on the riding boots Callum had given her recently. They were much easier to travel in than her slippers. She guessed he had stolen them too, but she didn’t dwell on it.

“Ready?” he asked. She nodded her head, following him out of the tent. It was custom for him now to wait for her, before they left together to retrieve his horse. Everyone in the camp was probably used to seeing her by his side during their travels. Some of the looks she got made her uneasy—men smiled at her in a way she did not like. They were few and far between, however, since no one would dare look at her that way if Callum caught them. He had once threatened to kill one of them, simply because they had almost knocked her down while passing by. His reaction had startled the poor guy, and Rose, but it was the last time it happened. From that point on, everyone made sure to keep their distance from Callum’s red-headed prisoner.

Callum got up on the horse first, holding his hand out to pull her up. He did so as easily as he always did, as if she weighed only a pound. She wondered then how much he had changed, physically, since being there. Aziz was not the only person who had changed during this war. As far as Rose was informed, Callum had been the scholar out of the two brothers, never having been trained in the King’s army. Now, he was as hard and lean as any soldier. Surely, he had changed greatly since his time in the Capital.

“Do you think your brother will recognize you?” she asked, facing his back. He grew momentarily rigid, and then seemed to force himself to relax. “I’m sorry,” she apologized quickly. “Did I say something wrong?”

He shrugged his shoulders indifferently, but she could tell he was making a great effort. She had watched him enough over the past couple of weeks, to be able to read his body language quite proficiently.

“It just surprised me,” he said. “What do you mean by that question?”

They were riding now, alongside the men on foot, heading for the front where Brutus rode. “Well, I just assumed you have changed greatly since coming here. All the training you’ve had must have made you different than before.”

“Are you checking out my body, Rose?” he said, peeking over his shoulder at her. Rose’s face heated instantly.

“No!”

He started to laugh. “I’m only bugging you. Perhaps he will not,” he answered honestly. “You are correct to say that I have changed since coming here. My old self is half the man I am now. I’m sure when he sees my face he’ll know me, if not by my figure.”

She didn’t ask any more questions, too embarrassed by the implications of her first. Of course, he would assume she had noticed his physique by asking such a question. She felt humiliated.