Ashford smiled, cold and elegant. “Not to me.”
His robes stirred like smoke as he stepped closer. “You think you can provoke me. But you forget what I do to those who cross me.”
“Oh, I’m very aware,” Ashford said smoothly. “But you know the rules. You use my tunnels and my contacts for your raids. And in return, I get favours.”
“She is not a favour. She is to be my wife. The gods themselves have decreed it!”
The word hit like a blade.
That will never happen.
Ashford only smiled. “You forget where you are. My pit. My rules. And yourgodsdon’t live here.”
Vael’s aura darkened. I felt it even from here—like gravity shifting. “You think walls will stop me?”
“That’s not what will stop you,” she said coolly. “You need me more than you want to admit.”
He didn’t respond. But he turned—just slightly—and scanned the crowd. I could see the men snaking the way through the crowds.
Then I saw it—the pattern. His men weren’t scattered, they were weaving. Mapping the exits. Coordinated. He wasn’t just visiting. He was infiltrating her from the inside out.
Whatever was about to happen was about to be bigger than any of us anticipated.
Blood would spill. And I got the feeling Elira was going to be right in the middle of it.
I dropped from the ledge before anyone could see me. Landed silently. Slade was already beside me, tension radiating from his frame.
I met his eyes.
“We have to get to Elira,” I said. “Now.”
Chapter 39
Thorne
I waited.
Waited until the corridor emptied, until the halls of Shade Tower settled into that brittle, uneasy silence that came only when something was wrong.
Then I moved.
Maddie’s room was tucked near the second-year quarters. Quiet. Unassuming. Like her.
I didn’t knock. Didn’t announce myself.
I opened the door.
She jolted upright in bed, the blanket clutched tight to her chest. Panic flashed in her eyes—then recognition. And with it, fury.
“You shouldn’t be here.”
“I know,” I said, closing the door behind me. Locking it. “But we need to talk.”
“If you’re here to accuse me—”
“I’m not.” I cut her off before she could work herself into a defensive spiral. “I’m here because I saw what you did.”
Her hands tightened on the blanket. She looked away. “I don’t know what you’re talking about…”
