Atop Rochnan Mountain, Bianca saw that the waterfall that was cascading down was being fed by a small current of water, which fell into a pool lined with gray rocks and small pebbles. This water spilled over and cascaded down the mountain. She looked down. Water collected in a large pool near the ground where it was once again surrounded by bushes of wild flowers and small trees. Mist rose around them. She inhaled deep, crispy air and smelled the lush blossoms and her mate's scent. This is why he had such a strong scent of lush blossoms and spice. These things were engraved in his soul. She felt so tethered to him and to the land of Aztec.

As for Brantley—he never felt this drawn to his mate and to his land. Mostly, because he never had the opportunity.

​​

"Those peaks will be covered with snow in winters," he said as he pointed to the crest of the mountain. "The waterfall freezes, most of it… and the river freezes in Azelia."

She could feel the love, the adoration and dedication that he had in his heart for his land. She brought her arms over his hand and smiled.

"Right over there," he pointed to the east. "There was a beautiful village that prospered. I was given its reins. I was supposed to look after it." He choked.

"Look after it? You mean you were supposed to supply them with food and all or collect taxes?"

"I was supposed to guard it and make sure that the people flourished. They had good crops and were taken care of well. It was my first duty when I came of age." He choked. Licking his lips, he continued, "My father asked me to keep this village safe from the creatures of dark that lurked in the forests, which bordered its southern perimeter." With his chin he pointed to the south of the forest.

She felt his body tensing at the mere memory of it.

"What dark creatures?"

"They were abominations of the Lore. Things, which belonged to darkness, who had poison instead of blood in their veins and who only knew destruction." And who continued to create havoc in his life. "I was supposed to keep my people protected."

"What do you mean 'supposed to'? Have you passed on the management to anyone else?"

He shuddered. "Those abominations only knew how to eat and eat anything. Often they would steal our cattle, which was still fine, but one day we noticed a half eaten body of a woman."

"Oh my god!" Bianca's body trembled at the mere thought. "That is awful."

"My father gave me the permission to hunt them and kill them."

It was a life-changing experience for the twenty-year-old Brantley.

"I hunted a few of them, but the rest were like plague. One day when I was hunting for them, they sneaked into the village and burnt it down. And me—I was chasing their leader Kar'den. The bastard got away." His voice was disembodied. "Every villager was burnt—children, men and women. It was— it was—the worst I had seen in my life. I think a piece of my soul died that day…"

There was so much intensity in his emotions that Bianca could only turn in his arms and offer him a hug. "I am so sorry about it."

He buried his face in her hair and whispered, "I will never let anything harm you Bia, never." He inhaled her scent to calm his nerves and to forget the memory that played in front of him. It was painful.

"Let's sit down here for a while," she said.

Brantley nodded and after sitting down, he pulled her in his lap. There was no way she was going to sit anywhere else. He just wanted to touch her.

The place where they were was surrounded with wild red blossoms. While plucking them and collecting them in her lap, she asked, "So what did you do after it?" She started to weave them in a wreath.

"I was given charge of other villages. My father was very angry with me and we didn't see each other's face for a year. I used that time and a year more to hunt and chase Kar'den. Finally I managed to push him to the edges of our land and then he disappeared with his people—to a deserted place."

"Deserted place or a desert?"

"He went to Derize to seek asylum. And that's where I tracked him. I was this close to getting him, but the bastard escaped from there too and ran away into oblivion. There were no leads, no clues, and I was left in the lurch. My father had called me back and when I reached back two years later, I came to know that the Temple of Chimala was looted and the Stone of Solaris was gone. And that was the beginning of the downfall of Aztec." Understatement. That was the beginning of the ruination of Aztec and of him. "Out of frustration I left Aztec. I wanted to forget what I had done. So I roamed around the world."

"You've seen the whole world?" she asked, turning to him with wide eyes.

He leaned back as he found himself getting entranced by her teal eyes. How could one be so incredibly beautiful?

"Hmm. I have seen it all. But nothing is as beautiful as Aztec." He said while looking at her. No place could compare to Aztec after what it had become with Bianca's presence. Also it hadn't been only travel. He had searched and searched for Kar'den. When he came to know that Adrianna was attacked by him, he joined her in the battle only to kill him. Adrianna had managed to take his dagger—Dagger of Zor'gan. But the king had slipped… yet again. Along with her Mozias, he had futilely combed the deserts of Africa to find him.

Bianca took the wreath she had woven and placed it on his head. She adjusted it on his blonde hair and was mesmerized. He looked like a God, a surreal being. The man was inhumanly beautiful. Not able to control herself, she placed a light kiss on his lips and immediately turned red.

At first Brantley gazed at her incredulously and then held her nape and pulled her closer. "That won't do sweetheart," he said in a husky voice. He drew her closer and kissed her mouth deeply. He grazed her bottom lip with his fang and sucked it. When it was swollen, he delved inside her mouth and plundered it with his tongue.

She didn't realize when he was on his back on the wild flowers, which jutted out from all the sides. The mist from the waterfall was all around them and it wetted their clothes.

He shoved his hand inside her shorts and grabbed her hips with both his hands and squeezed them tight. His fingers immediately sought the folds, but the thing was protecting it from her. He held it from inside and sliced it. "Fuck!" she was so wet already and his shaft had swollen. It was impossible to stay in his shorts now.

Finding her core, he inserted his finger inside and she yelped.

"Ah! I can smell your arousal Bia!" It was heady.

She moaned against his mouth and he unbuckled his shorts. He pulled away from her briefly to take his shirt out and then groped her neck and resumed the kiss.