Ground that was heated and beginning to heave anew.
I carefully licked parched lips and somehow said, “What does this ceremony involve aside from sex?”
“We have to raise the power of the earth and immerse ourselves completely in her.” He paused. “You have to trust me, Neve. What follows will first undo you and then heal you. But you won’t be alone. I’ll be your anchor, both physically and metaphysically.”
“That doesn’t explain anything.”
“No. But we’re out of time.” He slid his hands up to my wrists and held them tight. It felt like I was being branded.
I swallowed heavily, and then nodded. I had no true understanding of what was going on or what might happen in the next few minutes, but I trusted him.
He took a deep breath and released it slowly. His body was trembling with expectation and there was a fierce light in his eyes, one that spoke of desire and something more. Something that was as deep, as powerful, and as old as the earth itself.
“I will tell you what to say,” he said softly. “Do not worry about the forces that rise. I’ll not let you get lost in them.”
I nodded. And so it began.
What he said, I repeated, and with every sentence, the earth grew warmer, the night became sharper, and that intangible, heady rawness that had been surging between us grew ever stronger, ever deeper, until contact was not just hands and knees and the sheer force of the energy we were creating threatened to tear the world apart.
And then it did tear apart—the earth rose, wrapped warm earthen fingers around us, and drew us deep into the heat of her ample bosom. The sky and the stars disappeared and there was nothing but the heartbeat of the earth around us. It was a force that swept through every particle that made up the entirety of my being, inspecting, judging, and testing. The strands of my DNA were stretched beyond the possibility of breath and life, and all that the earth mother was, and all that I could be, became one and the same. And oh, it felt so beautiful, so enriching, to be a part of such power, that I didn’t want to let it go. Even as the earth began to reassemble my being, I fought to remain, to languish in the heat and the wisdom of all those who’d come before me, and whose spirits now resided alongside mine. But there was iron at my waist and thick heat in my body and the urgency of such could not be ignored. As the earth opened her fingers and gently deposited us back into the world, the power of our joining reached a crescendo more powerful than anything I’d ever felt before—one that tore a scream of pleasure from my throat even as it left me weak with satiety.
Awareness returned slowly, and with it the true realization of what had just happened. I was sitting on Trey’s knees, my arms wrapped around his neck and my chest pressed hard against his. His shaft was becoming flaccid within me and his hands were pressed firmly against my buttocks to hold me in place.
“You really didn’t have to go to such lengths to seduce me,” I murmured, not wanting to move. It felt warm and safe in his arms, and the pain and heightened sensitivity seemed to have fled, leaving my body tired but at peace. “I would have said yes had you but asked.”
He laughed softly, a sound that rumbled rather delightfully through my breasts. “I’m afraid Mother Earth demands more than just an oath. She demands complete immersion of body, soul, and passion before she accepts an initiate into her being.”
I frowned and pushed away from him. “What?”
He brushed the sweaty strands of hair away from my eyes, his touch gentle. “She has accepted you as one of us.”
I stared at him for a long, rather stunned, silence. “But I’ve never heard the whispers of the earth, only the wind—”
I stopped abruptly, but far too late.
“And so the secret we’ve long suspected is finally revealed.” Amusement touched his voice, but there was concern in his expression, and it sent a shiver of trepidation through me. “It was you who directed the wind to cut that trench into the ground.”
“Yes, but you said that was impossible—”
“Impossible for an air witch,” he cut in. “But not for a witch who can hear the whispers of both.”
“But I’m unlit!” It was all but torn from me. I didn’t want to be a witch. Didn’t want to be forced from the Nightwatch and all that I knew and loved. “Besides, I didn’t think it was possible for a witch to hold more than one power.”
“Generally, it’s not. Witches are born into one of three categories—earth, air, or personal. It’s been so since time began, and it’s only in the last few hundred years that we’ve seen the beginning of a change.”
I frowned. “Since the war, you mean?”
He nodded, and then slapped my rump lightly. “Shall we continue this discussion in warmer surrounds? The air is getting cold.”
The air stirred around me in irritation, and a smile touched my lips. “The air thinks you’ve grown soft within the warm walls of your outpost.”
He laughed again and pushed me upright. Once he’d also stood, he twined his fingers in mine and led me inside. My gaze went to the utter destruction of the bedchamber and came to rest rather unerringly on the remnants of flesh and the slowly drying stain that was all that remained of Pyra.
Why had she been directed to kill herself? What did the queen fear she might reveal?
“Don’t feel sorry for her,” Trey said, his voice holding a cold edge. “Because she certainly would not have felt anything resembling compassion or sorrow for you.”
I glanced at him. “I thought you didn’t know her?”
“I’ve discreetly asked around about her. She wasn’t well-liked in this place.” He hesitated. “Why don’t you go shower while I take care of the mess?”
“But—”
He pulled his hand free and lightly pushed me forward. “Go. Blood stains your face, and I cannot tend to your wounds until they are washed.”
Frustration born of the need for answers stirred through me, but I nodded and headed for the curtained-off bathing area. The earth rumbled and rolled as I showered, but it was nowhere near as violent or as noisy as the quake I’d called into being. Which was no surprise given Trey was behind whatever the earth was currently endeavoring.
The wound on my face turned out to be long but not deep; it skimmed the edge of my left eye and the stain on my cheek before disappearing just under my ear. There were a few bruises and a couple of minor scratches over the rest of my body, but all in all, I’d been rather lucky. It could have been a whole lot worse if the wind had not fought Pyra’s commands.
By the time I’d finished, Trey was just coming out of the bedchamber. All the broken furniture, torn wall hangings, and twisted bedding remained scattered everywhere, but there was no evidence the floor had ever buckled and moved, and absolutely no sign that someone had committed suicide within the room.
“What happened to Pyra’s remains?”
His smile held little in the way of warmth or amusement. “I shoved her deep within the earth. She deserves neither an official burial nor a marker, not when she was involved in a betrayal of Winterborne.”
“You can’t be sure whatever she’s involved in is as deep as that.” I paused. “Does such a burial mean her spirit won’t rise to join the greater consciousness?”
“It does indeed.”
“A harsh fate if her scheming isn’t part of a plot to bring down Winterborne.”
“If I turn out to be wrong, then I’ll exhume her remains and pass them on so that she can be buried in a fitting manner. But I’m not.”
Part of me still hoped he was, but only because I didn’t want to think anyone would want to bring Winterborne down. “And her bracelets?”
“They’re safely hidden within the walls. I’ll retrieve them if and when we need them.” His gaze scanned me critically—a look that spoke more of a commander checking one of his people than anything more intimate. “Would you like a healing cream for that wound on your face?”