Page 85 of Blade of the Nightking

Without another word, he turned and strode toward the terrace, the doors opening as he neared, the curtains lifting with the rush of wind spilling into the room once again. He paused on the threshold, his head turning just enough for me to catch the sharp blade of his profile.

“Pleasure doing business with you again, Eidra.”

The silver in his eyes faded, draining into shadow until nothing of it remained. Then he stepped through the doorway, the curtains snapping in the wind as they swallowed him from view.

CHAPTER 17

“You cannot do this,” Hamish murmured as he came to a stop on the checkered black-and-white tiles, Aedric’s arm slung heavily over his shoulder.

Aedric could walk when forced, but there was nothing of him left in the movement. He followed without resistance, without intent, as though trapped in a waking dream. I couldn’t bear to look at him, and yet I couldn’t look away.

Heat burned behind my eyes as the weight bore down on me—what I’d done, what I’d taken from him.

Veylan leaned against the wall, arms crossed as his shadows dragged a massive curved door aside. The hinges groaned, and a pitch-black tunnel yawned open.

“The tunnel will lead you to the bay. There’s a boat there waiting.” His smile was gruesome. “I hope Flamelords don’t mind water. I'd hate for the sea to put him out.”

Hamish didn't acknowledge Veylan's taunts. His attention remained fixed on me instead, the battle waging beneath his solemn exterior plain enough for me to see.

I swallowed and stepped closer. Rising onto my toes, I lifted the edge of my robe and gently wiped the blood from Hamish's face.

We should have left. We should have gone straight through the hearth and skelded back to Dheren. I tried to remember Levinica’s prophecy—the exact words of the vision she’d had, the one thing we’d risked everything for. Three gates sealed in ages old…

Nothing. The rest slipped through my grasp like water through my fingers.

“I’ll get you out,” Hamish promised gruffly. “I’ll find a way. When we return to Dheren⁠—”

“You can’t go back to Dheren.” My hand stilled against his skin. “Sairus can’t know about this.”

His face darkened at the mention of his father. He understood the truth of it as well as I did. If Sairus saw Aedric like this—if he knew what had been done to him—the temptation to challenge him in this state would be impossible to resist.

Hamish’s mouth set into a grim line. “There’s not much time.”

I understood. Soon the Court of Flame would come looking for him, and when they did, they'd discover what had happened. And what if Aedric never recovered?

No. I crushed the thought before it could fully form.

Aedric was not gone. He would walk back into his Court as though he’d never left—an arrogant smirk curving his mouth, that effortless, infuriating swagger still intact. His uncle would never know.

Fear cinched painfully around my ribs. “Where else can you take him?” I whispered.

Off to the side, Veylan lingered in studied disinterest, looking thoroughly bored and paying us no mind.

Hamish hesitated only a moment before inclining his head. “I have a place. Somewhere not even the Fae will dare go.”

“Good.” I stepped back, still gripping the bloodied hem of my robe.

“Elowen.” My name left him roughened, as though it had caught somewhere deep in his chest.

When I met his gaze, there was something desperate there, as though he might reach for me, close the distance between us and hold on. But he didn’t.

“Don’t worry about me.” I stepped back, offering him a weak smile. “Keep him safe.”

I lifted my hand and cupped his face, his beard rough against my palm. He leaned into my touch, almost imperceptibly, drawing in a slow, steady breath. His eyes closed for a fleeting moment. Then he pulled away.

I turned to Aedric, and the sight of him tore through me all over again. I moved closer and pressed my lips to his. His mouth didn’t respond, slack and still beneath mine, but he was warm. His breath remained steady, his body warm with the unmistakable heat that marked him as the Lord of Flame.

I wrapped my arms around him and held tight, memorizing the feel of him. I pressed my cheek to his chest, breathing in his familiar scent, his steady heartbeat thudding beneath my ear.