My Second Chance Mate is a Barbarian (Sera and Fenris) novel Chapter 505

505 /526

Elara

I didn't move after I said "Sure". I listened to Kane's footsteps fading down the hall, my whole body frozen. It wasn't until I couldn't hear him anymore that the shaking started.

I felt it first in my hands, a terrible trembling that wouldn't quit no matter how tightly I squeezed my fists. I sat down hard on the edge of the bed, shoving my quaking hands between my knees. But that didn't make them stop.

I'd been counting the days until he left, desperate for that window of freedom. Him gone was my way out, south, to find my real family, to find Aldric. But now I was going with him. North, the wrong damn direction. Nothing was going as planned.

The image of his face burned into my brain, the way he looked at me when he said it. So goddamn calm, like I was nothing. Like I meant nothing. I'd been handling that man for months now, wearing the right smile, saying the right words. That was not the face of the man I'd been handling. My stomach heaved violently.

I pulled my phone from my pocket with a trembling hand and hit the button to call Marcas. It rang and rang, my heart pounding in my ears. Finally, his voice came through, sharp and cold.

"What is it?" he snapped. No greeting, just a demand.

"He's taking me North," I blurted out. "Tomorrow at first light."

Silence on the other end. My grip tightened on the phone. "What's going on?" Marcas finally growled. "What did you do? What the hell did you say to him?"

Anger flared up in me at his accusation. "I didn't do anything!" I fired back. "He made the damn decision on his own!"

Another brief silence. Then, "Stay where you are."

The line went dead in my hand. I stared at the black screen, breathing hard. My stomach churned with a mix of anger and dread.

I didn't know how long I waited, staring at the wall, my nerves stretched tighter with each passing minute. I couldn't sit still, unable to quiet the frantic buzzing in my head.