Page 7 of The Hidden
“Whatever magic you were using to change your appearance must have worn off,” she accuses, her nose scrunched up like she’s smelled something foul.
I open my mouth to argue that it wasn’t magic, but I pause.Shit, was it magic?Did the ring keep me from knowing what I was and also mask what I really looked like?Have I been this purple-eyed, milky-haired, gryphon girl inside this whole time? I’ve been so irritated that my gran kept all of this from me that I haven’t spent much time focusing on the why of it all. I turn away from Loa and take in my reflection again. My coloring is incredibly unusual, and I would have stuck out like a sore thumb back home.
Loa indicates that the bath is ready, and I untie the sheet corners from around my neck and step out of the fabric. Lost in my efforts to try and piece things together, I sift through my thoughts as I step down into the bath. My skin stings when it comes into contact with the hot water, but I ignore it and step all the way in until it laps just below my breasts. There’s a shelf built into the side where I can sit, and I plop down absently as I run through everything I thought I knew about my mother, father, and grandmother.
A hand grips the wet hair hanging on my back, and I flinch away from the touch. Loa narrows her eyes at me, and I mirror her irritated expression.
“I was ordered to cleanse you,” she tells me, like that solves any issues I might have with her touching me.
“I cancleansemyself,” I counter, taking another step further out of her reach.
“That’s not how this works. We need to ensure you’re free of any illusions or magic.”
“By what, scrubbing my ass crack and armpits?” I interject. “Not a chance in hell that’s happening.”
Loa’s face mottles with anger. “Listen, you highborn little chit, you may be used to getting your way where you come from, but youarea prisoner here. Youwilldo as you’re told, or your time here will become significantly more uncomfortable. We will not risk the safety of the entire pride because you have delicate sensibilities.”
Tysa strolls through the entrance to the bathroom, carrying everything she was instructed to get. She cringes as she walks into the thick tension in the room. Loa snaps her fingers at me and points to the space in the water directly in front of her. She doesn’t say anything, but the command is clear. Since I’m not a puppy, I stay exactly where I am in the water. If she wants to cleanse me, she can bring her thick-ass in here and try it. This tub is plenty big enough to drown her in. I mentally snort at that thought. She’s massive and cut like a fucking boulder; I’m pretty sure if a drowning takes place in this bathtub, it will be mine not hers.
We shoot eye daggers at each other for a beat, neither of us giving an inch.
“Tysa, go collect some guards. It seems our guest prefers things done the hard way.”
Tysa sets everything down on a counter housing a wash basin and hurries back out of the room. I have to visibly work to not cringe at Loa’shard waystatement. Having this bitch rub all over me is bad enough, but now I need to have some fucking guards thrown into the mix, too? I bite down on thewaitthat sits on my tongue.I can’t back down, I tell myself. She’s just another shifter. Yes, she happens to be a big scary half bird, half lion or something else, but a shifter is a shifter. And if you want to get anywhere and earn any modicum of respect from a shifter, you have to back up the dumbass things that come out of your mouth.
Stupid mouth and stupid fucking pride. And fuck these stupid assholes and their cleansing bullshit.
I shake out the unease that crashes through me and try to look as tough and kickass as I can. Screw this bossy bitch. Zeph attackedme. He smashedmeinto the ground and then brought me here. I woke up without any clothes and put up with their unwarranted hostility. I answered all of their questions honestly—even the white-eyed kid told them as much—and now they want to humiliate me even more with this shit. Thehard way, it is.
Adrenaline pumps through me, and a tremor starts in my hands from it. I feel light and shaky, and try to mentally prepare for whatever is about to go down. Loa has a glint of amusement in her eyes, and I debate if I can make it disappear by splashing hot water at her. The sound of heavy footfall reaches me in the tub and echoes in the bathroom. The thunderous stomping is almost perfectly synchronized with the hammering beat of my heart. The acoustics in the bathroom make it impossible to discern how many guards are about to march through the doorway, and I sink lower into the steaming water and ball my fists with anticipation.
Tysa has a sheepish look on her face when she rounds the corner and steps lightly into the room. I get mydon’t fuck with meglare set in place, but it cracks when Ryn rounds the corner behind Tysa, no other guards on his heels.
“Can I help you, Altern?” Loa asks, flustered by his sudden appearance.
“I was told you needed assistance,” he retorts, his deep voice bouncing around the stone bathroom and his eyes finding mine.
“My apologies, Altern,” Loa tells him, and the scathing look she shoots Tysa could melt steel. “Tysa was supposed to fetch guards. This is nothing you need to worry about.”
“I’m here now, so what seems to be the problem?” he barks, and Loa shoots Tysa another withering glare.
“She refuses to be cleansed,” Loa finally tells him after a hesitant beat.
“No, I refuse to let you touch me,” I clarify. “I’ll rub whatever you want on my own body; I don’t need some bitch I don’t know doing it.”
Ryn watches me for a moment and then starts to undo the ties of his armor.
“Altern?” Loa inquires, and my heart rate kicks up even more.
Ryn shoots an irritated look at Loa. “You said you needed help, so I’ll hold her.”
“Altern, this is a job for the guards, not you. I’m sure you have far more important things to—”
Ryn silences her with a look, pulls his armored vest off and starts on the ties of his undershirt. Something akin to excitement lights up inside of me, and I study the unexpected feeling for a second. He’s going to get into this bath with me and hold me down while they scrub me clean with moss and pour potions on me, from the look of things. Why the fuck does his presence in this fucked up situation now excite me? I shake off the sudden onslaught of giddiness which must be a clear indication of the mental breakdown I’m suffering from, probably due to all of the shock that’s recently sucker punched me, and look around the room with panic. I don’t know what the hell is going on, but I need to get the fuck out of here.
I scramble to the back of the tub and push myself up and over the rim. Water splashes around me as I rush to get on my feet, and when I spin around, Loa is on one side of the in-ground tub and Ryn is on the other. They’re blocking my escape routes, and I back up to get as far away from them as I can. Loa’s eyes narrow at me, but Ryn seems to be tracking the water that’s dripping down my naked body. His pupils dilate as he runs his gaze down and slowly back up. His Adam’s apple bobs as he swallows, and when his gray eyes find mine again, there’s surprising heat in his gaze.
My back hits the sill of the window behind me, and a breeze rushes in from outside. White strands of hair snake in and out of my line of sight, but I don’t take my eyes off of my captors. I place my hand on the edge of the open window, and a deep rumbling sound fills the bathroom. Ryn’s eyes morph from molten to warning, and embarrassingly my body responds to his growl. My nipples harden, and a fluttering sensation works its way down my abdomen and settles between my thighs. Need pools inside of me, and the idea of Ryn having his hands all over me suddenly feels like a really fucking good idea.
