The Darkest Temptation is out now on Wattpad (:

Word Count: 1862

~Kiva

With gritted teeth, I stare at the raging river before me.

"You can't be serious," I growl.

"You need to learn this," Ark insists.

This is my first outdoor training exercise. Ark in all his imposing state stands next to me, ready to thrust me into this raging river with a low chance of survival.

I swear it's just for his amusement.

"It's freezing out here. Are you trying to kill me?" I motion to the ice underfoot. The water is all ice melt from the mountains, which means I'm more than reluctant to step into this river.

"I gave you a week to heal. You should be perfectly capable of crossing this river."

"I can do it. I just don't need to practice in the cold."

Not that the ground is ever not frozen. Of all places father has to rule, I wish it wasn't over a cold, mountainous area.

"If they come in to hurt you again, this is the path to get to the safe-house. It could be in the dead of night that you need to cross this, after heavy rains. You need to learn before that time comes," he explains.

"I know...But it's cold," I wine.

Ark shakes his head. "I will light you a fire if you make it across."

Sighing, I stare down at my feet sinking into the old snow that is practically sludge now. I know I need to be brave, that I won't win unless I can be...

It's just not that simple.

"Come on Kiva, you need to learn this. For your safety," he prompts softly.

His patience is frankly astonishing. He isn't going to physically push me in, and could stand here for the rest of the day gently prompting me to do this.

If I didn't hate him, I would think it's an admirable trait.

"Fine. Do I just walk across," I question. It's not exactly deep or anything.

"No, or you risk slipping and falling under the white wash. If that happens, you'll drown," Ark explains curtly.

"Comforting."

Father would have a heart attack if he knew what Ark is pushing me to do, but something about that makes me want to do it more.

"If you are with someone, always use them as an aid to cross. But chances are, you would be by yourself, so you will need something else to rely on in order to cross," Ark tells me, turning to scan the area.

I watch him, figuring his body is easily strong enough to keep me from falling under the water.

I clear my throat. "Like?"

"A stick. A sturdy one, like this." He snaps a branch of a tree, brushing the ice off it as he carries it over to me.

It's not as heavy as I expected from looking at, until I realise that I'm getting strong. Ark's incessant training seems to actually be benefiting me.

"Come on. No point waiting around for the sun to set, we should get in the water now," he says.

Without hesitation, he strides into the water. Of course he doesn't need anything to brace himself up with.

"Alright..." I mutter.

Tentatively, I step into the river, the water immediately bubbling up my legs until it is above my knees. The force is almost enough to send me falling back, but Ark's expectant gaze is enough for my will power to hold me up on its own.

"Face up the river, brace the stick in front of you, and press your weight against it. Then side shuffle the entire way to the end," he explains, making his way quickly across the river, leaving me fumbling.

He either has a lot of faith in me, or doesn't care that I would die.

Regardless, I oblige him, leaning my entire weight against the stick as I slowly shuffle my way across.

Soon enough, my feet and legs are completely numb from the cold, and once I reach the middle, it's up to my waist, pulling at me, daring me to slip on the rocks below and tumble down to my death.

I'm going to kill Ark.

"I don't think I can do it," I gasp out, the pressure of the water forcing against my stomach hindering my breathing.

Ark is at the edge now, only his boots still in the water.

"Yes you can, keep going." He's not encouraging me, but telling me. I have no other choice...

Gritting my teeth, I force my stick along the bottom of the river bed, cold skin grating against the wood's surface. Every movement hurts, my lungs burning, head spinning, the sound of the water roaring in my ears.

"The water is to much..." I yell out, knees wobbling with fatigue.

"You have to keep going. It's that, or go down the river to your demise," Ark responds, voice perfectly calm as he watches me struggle.

Another few steps, and I can feel the water level start to drop as I near the edge. And yet, my body begs me to give in, to let go of the stick and allow me to drift down to wherever the river would take me.

"Ark." His name sounds like a prayer on my lips.

"Come on Kiva. Don't give in," he insists.

I'm not sure what has overcome me, but I power through the last stretch, until I'm falling onto my knees, my legs still in the water while my body lays in the snow.

Ark crouches down in front of me, nudging me.

"Stand up."

"I can't feel my legs," I growl back.

"Stand up, Kiva." His voice is firmer, more demanding, and despite myself, I heave my wary body up, balancing my legs beneath me before I'm fully standing.

Bad idea.

My brain has seemingly relinquished all control of my limbs to the cold, as I feel myself falling back.

Ark grabs me, his strong grip lifting me back up, allowing me to brace my body against his for support.

"Alright, that's enough for today," he mutters, leading me away from where I may accidentally fall back into the angry river.

"Please light that fire." My teeth are chattering, my numb fingers gripping his jacket.

He's wonderfully warm, despite his trek through the same river. It's as if his body exudes enough heat to power a village, and all I want to do is have him wrap my arms around me and lay with me until I feel better.

"Sit here. It will only take a moment."

He steadies me, helping me sit down on a fallen tree trunk before he busies himself collecting materials to light a fire.

He works adeptly. Watching him move, ridiculously tall and well-built and yet gentle in everything he does. He's fascinating, even if he's unbearable most of the time.

"Am I meant to know how to do this?" I ask, watching him work away at fighting for a spark.

"Not today."

Eventually, the spark catches, and a fire starts eating away at all the undergrowth he has collected to burn.

"How am I meant to get back across that river?" I ask, leaning down to hold my fingers over the flame.

"There is a bridge up the river some more."

My attention shoots to him. "What?"

"If you ever do have to do this, it's because people want you dead. They will expect you to go over that bridge, and they will follow you until you are found. This way, you can't be tracked," he tells me, rubbing his hands together.

"Where did you learn all this stuff?"

A frown dips between his brows. "I was trained since I was a teenager. Where I come from, prospects for people like me were little. I knew becoming a mercenary would be my best shot at getting away from that life."

I watch the firelight mix with the shadows on his face, dipping under his sharp cheekbones and other refined features.

What was that life? I want to ask but I don't know him intimately.

And why would he tell me? What would a Princess know?

"So why did you come to train me?"

"Your father has offered me enough to give me a chance to truly get away...far away, where no one will know me, and I can be truly free," he murmurs, using a stick to adjusting the burning material.

The numbness is slowly melting from my hands, but the cold is no longer the focal point of my attention.

Suddenly staring at Ark, into those beautifully dark eyes, wondering what he has seen before, becomes far more interesting.

"I envy that," I admit, swallowing tightly.

Ark finally looks at me, going quiet.

When he assesses me like he does now, I desperately wonder what he thinks of me. Does he see a spoilt princess like everyone else?

How do I tell him I would do horrible things to be anyone else.

"No one can tell you how your life should be lived. That's up to you." His gaze is colder than the river, and yet hearing an honest opinion feels good.

Ark doesn't care about being nice to me. I quite like that.

"Maybe so. But there are people who rely on me, and I don't want to disappoint my father," I admit with a sigh, flicking something off my hand.

"But?"

"But, I'm just so sick of living in fear, wondering when these people will finally get their way, and kill me," I mutter.

Were that man not my mate, he would have. I know it. But they will be back, and soon.

I wonder what my mate is thinking right this instance. Is he with his group of demented fools with the drive to kill me? Or does he have a private life he enjoys, with a lover and so much more?

That hurts too much to think about.

"Do you know what they want?" Ark asks.

"No idea. They have always been a distant threat until that night. One even came into my room, but he didn't kill me," I admit, checking to see how my pants are drying against my skin.

Ark frowns. "Why not?"

"No idea..."

It's not as if I could tell him. He would tell my father, who would be thoroughly disgusted.

It's the mate bond, that is driving me to protect my mate. That's it. It's not because I'm weak or pathetic or whatever father may say. At least I hope that's not the case.

Ark holds my gaze. "Soon enough, they will be fearing you."

I shiver. "I truly hope so."

I stare at into the flames. All I want for myself is to feel powerful, and not in the sense of my societal rank. I want what Ark has...people admire him, they envy him.

"I still hate you, by the way," I remind him, in case he figured this intimate conversation meant anything.

He smiles. "I know."

💜••💜

I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! and as always it is available 10 chapters ahead on Radish!

~Midika 💜🐼