Imara Diversifies The Beastmen World

Chapter Sixty Eight: Chess Not Checkers

Curtis POV

It had taken me a while to return to my Snow. The longing for her had grown since I last entrusted her to that conniving eagle, Muir.

I harbored a grudge against my natural enemy— him for the ways he had worked to separate us.

He should have succumbed to my venom, but somehow, which I suspect, my mate must have used my scale to cure him. Her kindness, when directed at others and not solely at me, was something I could hardly stand. She belonged to me, and me alone.

To ensure her safety, I made a detour, leading the giant beast in the opposite direction until I was certain she was out of harm's way.

I felt her tamper with my mate mark. There was nothing she could do to remove my mark, and it helped me pinpoint exactly what direction she was in.

As I finally reached the City of Beastmen, a wave of excitement surged through me at the prospect of seeing my mate again — her pretty pale skin, her large brown eyes. I yearned to hold her.

I swam directly into the city, using the network of well-connected rivers. There was some kind of gathering happening — the air was filled with the scents of food and spices, loud noises, beastmen singing, and performing strange moves.

But none of that mattered to me. I was there to find my Snow. And there she was, participating in those strange moves, and smiling, with the same female I had seen back in Camel Hump Village by her side.

My gaze fixed on Bai, a sight truly mesmerizing, and I felt a surge of possessive rage as I noticed all the males ogling her and Imara.

Bai had spoken endlessly about Imara, about their shared efforts in preparing food for the village and their deepening friendship. She had expressed missing her and regretting not heeding her advice.

Yet, my focus was elsewhere. My interest in Imara as a mate had waned; my heart was set on my Snow.

However, I must admit, when Imara turned her head to glance at a passing beastman, it caught me off guard. She was even more beautiful than I remembered, with the mark of a no-stripe beast on her chest. Both she and Bai seemed to possess a similar kind allure, drawing the attention of all males.

What kind of beastmen tribe did they originally belong to? Where did they come from? I was certain they weren't from the Mermaid tribe, known for their rarity of females. But for a moment, if I didn't know any better, I could have sworn they bore the ethereal beauty characteristic of Mermaid lineage.

Watching Bai and Imara approach that inexperienced leopard cub, Parker, a surge of jealousy ignited within me. He was only alive because Bai had pleaded for his life.

As Bai approached him with a smile, a fury engulfed my heart, inadvertently transferring a burst of strength to her. She snapped a willow branch in half and then collapsed into Imara's arms.

Emerging from the river, my focus was solely on my mate, my Bai. Parker's warning about the impossibility of escaping with her if I tried to snatch her irked me, especially since he was right.

I was encircled by beastmen, including some formidable ones: a four-stripe leopard, a three-stripe eagle, another leopard, and a few more.

But my thoughts were consumed by Bai. As her mate, Nothing could challenge my claim.

When she regained consciousness, her confusion was evident. And when her eyes met mine, my heart both leaped and shattered. She looked so scared, shrinking back into Imara's arms for safety. The flashes of fear in her eyes pained me.

Why couldn't she see how much I cared for her?

Why didn't she understand the effort it took for me to hand her over instead of consuming her allowing her to rot within me and to become one in flesh?