“Things will be hectic when the men arrive,” I inform her.
Though, I’m not sure why I’m telling her this, but I feel as if she needs to know that I will be busy and unable to spend much time with her, not that I have been able to spend a lot as it is, but when they arrive, there will be less.
The house comes into view and she lets out a sigh. “I understand, Colt.” Her voice is soft, her tone sad and I’m unsure of why she is still upset. I have fixed everything she was angry with me about.
“You’re not okay,” I say.
She doesn’t speak immediately, then she clears her throat. “I just don’t know what I’m doing here. This whole thing, it’s weird and at first I thought it was fake, then a dream, then an adventure, but now...”
“Now?” I urge when she doesn’t continue with her words.
“I’m not sure how I fit into any of this. I have some supposed magic that I can’t feel or control and there’s some prophecy that nobody seems to know much about, including what happens when it comes true. Everything feels really pointless.”
I shouldn’t feel anything from her words. She’s processing her sudden life change, much like the way I processed when Adelaide and Temperance were taken from me, and then again, when I started feeling the extreme guilt the other day about being with Birdie and the feelings that I’ve had for her.
Internal processing is what I do, but Birdie is a talker, she processes verbally and I find that I actually enjoy that trait about her, it makes it easier to understand her inner workings.
“The gods do things sometimes that don’t make sense, Birdie,” I say.
She’s quiet for a moment, then lets out an exhale. “My god does too.”
“Your god?”
She nods her head. “I don’t have multiple gods, just one singular one. He is all-knowing, and usually things happen that are unexplained at the time and later they might make sense, then again, they might not.”
“Sounds like ours,” I grunt.
Guiding Lonesable toward the barn, I stop short and dismount from him. Reaching up, I wrap my hands around Birdie’s small waist and pull her off of him too. I expect her to look up at me or walk toward the house, but she doesn’t. Instead, she turns toward Lonesable.
“Thank you for the safe journey, beautiful beast,” she whispers to him as she runs her hand along his neck.
He neighs, but speaks to me. You will make her happy, Colt. She deserves it. She is giving up her whole world to fulfill this prophecy against her will. She welcomes you openly. You must always make her happy.
I don’t respond to him, instead, I wrap my hand around Birdie’s waist and guide her toward the house. She needs to get out of the sun and I need to get away from Lonesable. I’m not ready to hear what he has to say about my relationship with Birdie, not yet, probably not ever.
This situation, her coming to me from her world. She isn’t here out of a sense of duty, she’s here because of the gods and for no other reason. She isn’t necessarily willing to stay, she has no choice and neither do I. Therefore, I don’t feel the need to make her happy.
It’s true I don’t want her angry or upset, but blissfully happy? I’ve already tried to make one woman happy and she was murdered, taken from me along with our sweet and innocent child. I have no desire to try again.
I’ll keep Birdie comfortable because she has no choice in being here, away from her world and family, but happiness is not at the top of my priority list. Not hers or mine.
“I must meet with Ernest, you’ll find Florence and work on your abilities and training the rest of the evening,” I announce.
She jerks, turning her head and tilting it back to look up at me. “Okay, Colt.”
Dipping my chin in a nod, I leave her in the foyer as I make my way into my office, not looking back. I can’t look back when it comes to her. Because one look back will be my demise, I’ll want to keep her right next to me, to kiss her, to be inside of her. Instead, I walk away knowing that she is safe here in this house and with Florence.
Chapter Twenty
BIRDIE
Colt must have known that the men were coming, and soon, because the next day an army appears. They don’t come from town, but rather from the opposite direction. I don’t know anything about the geography of this place, and being out here on Colt’s land, we’re very isolated, so I have no idea where they are coming from, but they are coming in droves.
Standing at the window in the formal living room, I watch them come one by one, they’re in military uniforms with rows of them in perfect formation on horseback.
“The special forces have arrived,” Florence announces.
I don’t look away from them, I can’t. They move in perfect unison as if they are one man on one horse.
“Special forces?” I ask.
She hums. “Logan sent them, they are the elite soldiers of the country, sent here to protect Colt from harm.”
Licking my lips, I want to ask about the lions, I want to ask about the seriousness of this entire thing, I want to ask a million questions, but I decide against it. This is Colt’s world and I’m just a visitor, plus, none of this is really my business at all.
“Are you ready for today’s lessons?” Florence asks.
Nodding, I push the thoughts of the men out of my head and turn to her. She’s smiling at me, something almost twinkling in her eye. Without a word, she turns around and I follow behind her, trying not to think about these men arriving and a million
