The Journal Keeper (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour) (28 page)

“That was dirty, Rianne,” Nikolas growled.

“You forced me to it,” Rianne accused, practically skipping over to Dorin and settling in his lap.

Nikolas followed, resuming his seat across from them. He continued to glare at her as she made herself comfortable, despite Dorin’s continued chuckling.

“Oh, I think you have finally met your match, my friend,” Dorin sighed, finally managing to stop laughing.

“We shall see.” Nikolas hummed, sounding incredibly foreboding.

Completely unaffected by his dark tone, Rianne curled up on Dorin’s lap, giggling outrageously at his indignant glare. It didn’t help matters that Dorin continued to grin widely at his friend, mocking Nikolas further. Her laughter slowly faded though, a faint tug at the back of her mind causing her to frown.

“What’s wrong,
danalya
?” Dorin asked, running his fingers through her hair.

“Where’s the journal?” Rianne asked, looking around for the book.

Although she noticed both of them tense, she ignored their concern, standing from Dorin’s lap to begin searching the room. She was rifling through the books on Nikolas’s bookshelf when the journal was shoved in front of her face. Instantly, the strange sensation stopped, and she gingerly took the book from Nikolas’s hand. A now-familiar feeling began to envelope her, and she opened the book to begin reading, walking blindly back toward the fire. She didn’t sit on Dorin’s lap again, instead sinking to the rug at his feet. She could hear Dorin and Nikolas talking above her, but their voices were warbled, as if she was underwater. She didn’t care enough to figure out why, though, already deeply enraptured within the bindings of the journal.

* * * *

“Damn it, we have to do something. She can’t keep going on like this,” Nikolas snarled, glaring down at where their mate lay.

“How exactly do you propose we stop her? You saw the way she reacted when she thought the journal had been taken. Do you honestly want to see her that way again?” Dorin argued.

He knew Nikolas was worried, but his concern for Rianne’s sanity far outweighed his desire to ensure the polar’s comfort. Nothing about their situation was easy, and it was time Nikolas realized it.

“I can’t keep watching her do this. It’s slowly killing her. If you hadn’t sent dinner to us, I doubt I would have remembered, and she likely would have gone on in the damned book for hours more,” Nikolas grumbled.

“Which is why I sent for it. This is a partnership, Nik. You and I, taking care of her together,” Dorin reminded him.

“I don’t feel like we’re doing a very good job,” Nikolas sighed wearily, sinking into one of the chairs near Rianne.

“Do you want out?” Dorin asked, casting an accusatory glare on his longtime friend.

“Gods, no. You know me better than that, Dorin. I just…I don’t know if we can beat this thing. It’s bad enough having to deal with the threat of some bastard trying to kill her, but now we have to fight this book’s hold over her. I don’t know how we can do both,” Nikolas said.

“We don’t have to do it alone, Nikolas. The entire Guard is willing to lay down their lives to keep her safe. We have people fighting each other over things as ridiculous as a sideways glance, all in the name of protecting our mate. I know you think no one can protect her as well as us, and you’re right, but a group of guards could come close,” Dorin told him.

“And if they fail? Tell me, Dorin, what then? What will we do if this bastard takes her from us? What will we do if we lose her to that book? How do you propose we continue on?” Nikolas asked, his voice raising with each question until he was practically shouting.

“I don’t know,” Dorin whispered, instantly bringing Nikolas’s terrified rage back down.

Dorin waited until the polar’s breathing had returned to normal before continuing.

“I don’t know how we would continue on without her, but I do know worrying about it won’t help. Right now, we need to focus on catching the bastard who’s after her. The journal isn’t as pressing, and she hasn’t come to any real harm from it yet. Once we catch the shooter, we can deal with these strange trances of hers. Until then, let’s work on catching this son of a bitch.” Dorin growled, reaching out to clap Nikolas’s shoulder.

Nikolas’s massive hand clasped Dorin’s shoulder in return, and the two of them looked down at their mate, both knowing there was nothing they wouldn’t do for her and realizing it was time to prove it.

Rianne knew something was wrong with her, but she couldn’t seem to break out of her funk. Ever since she, Nikolas, and Dorin had returned to the castle to find the study and their three rooms completely ransacked, she’d been different, feeling almost as if she were a stranger in her own body. She knew Nikolas and Dorin were both worried about the hold the journal had over her, but she could do nothing to assuage their fears. She constantly had the journal with her, taking it with her wherever she went, even the bathroom. It was as if the journal knew it’d almost been stolen and was not about to let the same thing happen again. So, she was stuck with the thing until the person responsible for all the chaos was caught.

Groaning in frustration, Rianne tried to slam the book shut, but her hands wouldn’t let her, and she ended up gently closing the journal. She wanted to scream, but knew that wasn’t the best idea with all the guards surrounding her. Since the break-ins, Nikolas had stationed guards in every hallway of the castle, outside every door, and beneath every window. They were protecting her around the clock, to the point where she couldn’t even go to the bathroom without one of them standing outside the door, listening in case she got kidnapped or killed.

Not even Carme’s company could help as the fiery fox was just as concerned as the rest of the castle.

“Should you be sitting so close to the window?” Carme asked, standing beside her and nervously twisting her fingers.

“If the shooter decides to try through the window again, there’s not much I can do to stop him. I refuse to hide in the corner, waiting for him to make his next move,” Rianne said, stroking the spine of the journal absentmindedly.

“You could at least make yourself a more difficult target to shoot at,” Carme snapped, becoming agitated.

With a heavy sigh, Rianne slid off the window seat and moved to the chair next to the fire. She had to bite her lip to keep from yelling at her friend, but her anger was boiling at being caged inside.

It was slowly driving her mad.

“I’m sorry, Rianne. I didn’t mean to snap,” Carme murmured, taking the seat opposite her.

“We’re all stressed out right now,” Rianne shrugged in an attempt to appear impassive.

“I know this must be hard for you, but you have to know Nikolas and Dorin are doing everything possible to catch the shooter,” Carme told her vehemently.

“I know,” Rianne sighed, sitting back in the chair.

She ignored the sad look Carme gave her, instead focusing on the flames in the fireplace. It was difficult knowing there was nothing she could do. Dorin and Nikolas had confined her to the castle, insisting she stay inside until the shooter was caught. She knew it was for her protection, but it seemed a little excessive to restrict her access to the grounds. It was all because the damn shooter was likely someone working in the castle. Both her men decided she was safer locked away in their rooms, where only select people had access.

She didn’t see either of them during the day as they were usually either training or discussing strategy with Silal and the higher-ranked guards. At night when they came to her, both were exhausted to the point of barely being able to keep their eyes open. Usually they fell into bed beside her, pressed her between them, and went straight to sleep. They didn’t offer up new information because there wasn’t any. She didn’t tell them how the journal reading was going because they were both so concerned over it. After barely two weeks of being mated, they might as well have been living on different planets.

“I never should have come here,” Rianne mumbled, feeling tears prickle her eyes.

“You can’t mean that,” Carme whispered, leaning toward her.

“Nothing good has come from this. Nikolas and Dorin are working themselves to death trying to keep me safe. Silal and Visess had their home violated and destroyed by a madman. The journal is turning me crazy. The entire castle is on lockdown, searching for the guy trying to kill me,” Rianne pointed out angrily.

“Okay, first of all, Dorin and Nikolas are working so hard to keep you safe because they love you. You are the most important thing in the world to them, whether you realize it or not. Second, Silal and Visess don’t care about the damage done to the castle. All they care about is that everyone is safe. They would rather lose the entire castle than see anyone they care about hurt. As for the journal turning you crazy, that will pass as soon as the shooter is caught, and you no longer feel as though it’s in danger,” Carme insisted violently.

Rianne watched as Carme stood from the chair and stormed out of the room, slamming the door behind her. Rianne winced at the sharp sound, but knew she had deserved the aggressive exit. She didn’t really think coming to Laurasia had been a mistake, but the strain of the past week was wearing down on her with each passing day. Not even Merlin’s journal brought her comfort as she had finished translating the book a few days prior. The knowledge she’d gained from the pages couldn’t help her current dilemma, but she missed the connection she’d felt with Merlin as she read. She’d almost come to think of him as a friend, and although she did enjoy returning to his pages, the initial joy she’d had when first discovering the content had abandoned her.

More than anything, she missed Nikolas and Dorin. They had been unable to spend any real time together since they’d returned from the little hut in the forest. Although her body ached to feel their touch, she really just wanted them to talk to her. She missed discussing her day with them over a meal. She missed snuggling with one while the other rubbed her feet. She missed Dorin’s easy laugh, Nikolas’s low chuckle, and the tender way they would brush back her hair to nibble her neck.

She knew catching the shooter was important, but she also knew they could not go on living this way. Determination stole over her and she stood from the chair, gently placing the journal in her vacated chair. Despite the urge to pick it up again, Rianne gritted her teeth and turned from the room, marching out the door.

Two guards stood on either side, and both instantly moved to block her path as soon as she opened the door.

“Excuse me,” Rianne muttered, attempting to move around them.

“Apologies, my lady, but we’ve been given express orders to keep you in your chambers,” one of the guards said.

“By who?” Rianne huffed, hands fisting on her hips.

“King Silal,” the other answered.

“Well, that’s great and all, but I really need to see my mates, so if you’ll just move out of my way,” Rianne insisted, again trying to get around them.

“I’m sorry, my lady, but we cannot allow that,” the first said, not looking sorry at all.

“Move. Now,” Rianne growled, her anger boiling.

The two guards shook their heads in unison, obviously determined to keep her on lockdown.

It was too much.

With an enraged scream, Rianne pulled back a fist before letting it fly into the first man’s face, triumph shooting through her at the resounding crack and the man’s yell as blood spurted from his nose. The other made to grab her, but Rianne moved in the opposite direction, pushing past the hurt guard and running as fast as she could down the hallway.

“Stop! Wait!” the guard cried, chasing after her.

Another pair of guards stood at the end of the hallway, blocking the servants’ stairs. Knowing it was hopeless, but unwilling to give up, Rianne attempted to slip past them. Four hands grabbed her easily, lifting her off her feet and tossing her back.

“Get out of my way,” Rianne snapped, trembling in frustration.

“We cannot do that, my lady. You need to return to your chambers,” the one on the left insisted.

About ready to pull out her hair, Rianne screamed every word she knew at the men before attacking in the best way she knew how.

* * * *

“Sire! You’re needed upstairs.”

Dorin looked up at the frantic guard and instantly knew something had happened to Rianne. Without a word to the others in the room, he took off after the guard, passing him on the stairs, and practically flew to the rooms he shared with Rianne and Nikolas. One guard stood by the door, holding his nose as blood poured from between his fingers. Growling in anger and fear, Dorin grabbed the man by the shoulders and shook him.

“Where is she?” Dorin snarled.

Before the guard could answer him, the sound of a struggle echoed from down the hall. Dropping the man, Dorin took off in the direction of the commotion, doubling his efforts when he heard Rianne’s screams.

“You bastard! Let me go, damn it!”

Dorin skidded to a halt and found Rianne being restrained by two of Nikolas’s best guards. One of them was sporting a bruised eye while the other had a busted lip. Rianne was struggling between them, attempting to get her arms and legs free to hit them again. The relief at seeing her safe was quickly overshadowed by the fact that two men were touching his mate.

“Let her go.” Dorin growled, stalking toward them.

Instantly, the two dropped Rianne and backed away quickly, their hands in the air. Rianne turned on him with fire in her eyes and her fists clenched.

“What are you doing out of our rooms?” Dorin asked, reaching for her.

“I was trying to come find you, but these Neanderthals wouldn’t let me through,” Rianne hissed, glaring at him as if it were his fault.

“They were just doing their job, Rianne. They’re supposed to keep you safe,” Dorin soothed, pulling her into his arms.

“Well, damn it, maybe I don’t want to be safe anymore,” Rianne grumbled into his chest.

“Rianne,” Dorin exhaled tiredly, tilting her face up to his.