The Last Unforgiven: Cursed by Marina Simcoe

Author:Marina Simcoe [Simcoe, Marina]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Rocky River Publishing
Published: 2020-02-27T06:00:00+00:00

Chapter 12

TOGETHER, THEY MOVED the chickens to the newly-constructed coup, then cleaned the rabbit that Olyena had trapped. Afterwards, she swept the floors in the cabin and made dinner.

She had left the wooden shutters open on the glassless window, and the fresh spring air mingled with the pleasant warm smell of the stew on the stove. Raim saw her contentment again, skimming it constantly.

After she finished eating her dinner and did the dishes, she sat at the table across from him, with a spoonful of honey for dessert.

“Where exactly did you come from, Raim?” Olyena asked unexpectedly. “Where will you go once you leave here?”

Leave.

It took him a moment to focus on the word enough to fully grasp its meaning. Being here with her, he didn’t want to think about any other place out there at all.

“Um, I’ll be going South. To join the rest of my kind at our Base in the Empire. That’s where we live.”

“You’re not really a forest spirit then, right?” She took some honey from the spoon, and he watched her pink tongue dart to lick it off her lips. “What are you?”

“I am an Incubus.”

“Incubus? What is that?”

“A demon.”

She nodded thoughtfully, not demanding a more detailed explanation.

“There are all possible kinds of beings in this world,” she said. “My mother is a water nymph now—a rusalka. I talk to her whenever I go to the river.”

Raim had never met anyone other than humans and demons in this world. To his knowledge, there wasn’t anyone else. But who was to say that for sure? In any case, Olyena’s beliefs helped her accept him for what he was—someone other than herself—and he felt grateful for that.

“Your injuries are healing well,” she observed, her emotions dimmed inside her somewhat. “When are you planning on leaving?”

Her question brought his thoughts back to leaving again. And again, he didn’t feel like thinking or talking about it.

“I haven’t decided yet.”

Truthfully, there was nothing that held him here at this point. He could see perfectly fine now, although still only from one eye. Thanks to Olyena, he had enough energy to make it to the next village on his way to the Empire and his Base. He didn’t even need to feel any guilt about leaving her—she had enough food for now, and he would leave her all his remaining gold that she could trade in at the summer market for years to come.

Yet, the thought of parting with Olyena brought up only unpleasant emotions in him. Even the prospect of the Grand Master position no longer seemed that appealing. Why go through the trouble of taking over the humans and filling the Base with them if he could be this easily satisfied simply by being with one of them?

“You are welcome to stay for as long as you want,” she offered. “I like having you here. It feels safe with you.” She put the spoon down, keeping her eyes on it. “Would you . . . um, like to feed

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