Damyan lay on his back, listening to the sorceress' gentle cries. He had severely misjudged her. Everyone assumed that Raven worked for Slaede willingly. It never once occurred to him that maybe coercion was involved.

He looked over at Raven's empty bedroll with a frown.

The sounds of whimpering had awoken him. He immediately recognized the sounds of someone having a nightmare. But he refused to wake her. Besides, what nightmares could Raven have? She lived a life of luxury.

He heard her gasp. She was awake…and trying to sneak away. She probably hadn't noticed the chain binding her ankle to him. He felt the chain shift around his own ankle with every step she took.

Damyan was glad his family had hidden their secret cave of iolite; he enjoyed seeing her weak. He saw it as payback for all the lives she had helped to take.

A loud "oof" followed by a thud had Damyan sitting up. He smiled as he slowly walked over to her.

She was furious, and the sight made him smile. Her violet eyes glared up at him, and all Damyan could think of was how adorable she looked.

Her attempt to fight him was a surprise. Her punches were weak, but her fighting stance spoke of training.

Raven placed her petite hands on his chest, and Damyan felt every part of his body come to life. It angered him.

He slammed her to the ground with rage, feeling no sympathy for the tears she was trying to hide.

Laying his entire body on top of Raven's to immobilize her, he had to fight his body's natural response to the feeling of her soft curves underneath him.

As they exchanged barbs, Damyan's anger slowly grew into an uncontrollable rage. Did Raven really see herself as innocent? She was a whor – "…keeping my family alive." Damyan felt like he'd been kicked in the stomach. Her words caused his anger and rage to evaporate. Curiosity took over.

Damyan hadn't planned on cutting her loose, but he no longer wanted to hold her hostage. He cursed to himself as he watched her face fall when she realized Damyan was her best option. He turned and walked back to the camp without a word. He would break if he saw those beautiful, violet eyes fill with tears.

A shuffle alerted Damyan to Raven's presence. She had returned and was lying down. He needed to make a plan. If what she said was true, she was also a victim. Who knows how old she had been when Slaede took her? Raven looked to be no older than 18.

Damyan rolled over, facing Raven. Her back was to him, and she was curled up in a ball.

Slaede was going to die. Damyan didn't know how or when, but his death was inevitable.

"So," Jhon nudged Damyan with his elbow as they continued their journey through the hot desert. "I saw you and our sorceress friend last night," he waggled his eyebrows.

"Of course, you were awake," Damyan scoffed. "You didn't think to help me?"

"I figured you had everything under control, being that you were on top of her," Jhon shrugged with a big smile, "You didn't need me."

"I was only on top of her because she was trying to escape," Damyan growled as heat filled his cheeks.

"I have seen you fight 10 men at a time, but a tiny girl without her powers gives you trouble? Right," Jhon scoffed.

"What does that mean?"

"It's time you acknowledged your emotions, Damyan."

"Jhon, speak plainly."

"You are attracted to Raven."

"Jhon, stop speaking," annoyance laced Damyan's tone. "You're being – great," Damyan huffed.

"What?" Jhon asked. He followed Damyan's gaze. "Great," he echoed.

A sandstorm was approaching from the left. Damyan commanded Aelfred to sit.

"What's wrong?" Raven, who'd been quietly riding Aelfred, asked.

"Sandstorm," Damyan motioned with his head before helping Raven dismount.

"Oh," she breathed.

"Worry not," Jhon smiled as he dug through the supplies hanging from Aelfred. "We are more than prepared."

Raven nodded while looking around. "Damyan," her voice shook.

"What's wrong?" Damyan asked, appearing in front of her within seconds.

She pointed. "Those are Slaede's men," Raven stated.

"They had to be riding all night," Jhon spoke in disbelief.

"There's still a lot of sand between us and them," Damyan tried to comfort Raven. "Set up the tent," he told Jhon. "I'll deal with the soldiers."

Raven looked at him questioningly.

"You'll be safe," Damyan softly touched her shoulder. He then began grabbing multiple weapons from his saddle. He gave Raven one last, lingering look before stalking off with a determined gait.

"Come on," Jhon gently pulled Raven by the hand.

"What about Damyan?" Raven asked, looking from the sandstorm to the soldiers to Damyan's back.

"Damyan comes from a Shadow clan where training and fighting in sandstorms is done for sheer enjoyment. He'll be fine."

Raven closed her eyes and whispered a prayer of protection to every deity she knew.

"Just keep your head down and stay calm," Jhon spoke as they entered the makeshift fort. "It will be over soon."