“Anything,” he said at once, and my heart gave a funny littleflip.
“I need you to get Sorcha out of Stormsby.”
He stiffened.
“Rosie, the borders –”
“You said anything.”
“And Iwoulddo anything for you – anything within my power. Going against the King’s direct orders to keep Stormsby under lockdown is decidedlynotwithin my power.”
“You did it for Madame Bracken.”
“With the Crown’s blessing. After the Serpent wore her skin, we had little choice. She was making an absolute nuisance of herself.”
“I could be a nuisance.”
He snorted. “Don’t I know it.”
But I wasn’t laughing.
“Caelan.” My voice cracked, and I felt his breath catch beneath my hand on his chest. I could tell the sound pained him and I didn’t want that; but I couldn’t let up. “Stormsby isn’t safe. Not with the shifter still out there.”
He said nothing for a long moment, and when he did speak in a near-whisper, I didn’t understand the slight flattening of his tone.
“I thought you weren’t afraid of Serpents.”
I stiffened.
A throwaway remark from over a month ago – was he really throwingthatback in my face? I was not afraid of Serpents. Not anymore than I was afraid of Earthwitches, Bear Shifters, or even Necromancers. I was not afraid ofmagicat all. Magic was not inherently evil;peoplecould be.
I pulled back a little to fix him with an incredulous stare, and watched regret flicker over his creased brow. His hold on me tightened so swiftly I wondered if he sensed my sudden impulse to pull away.
“I’m afraid ofthisSerpent. People are dying,” I said, not bothering to hide my astonishment.
He grimaced.
“I know.I’m sorry. That was a stupid thing to say.” He hesitated, weighing his words more carefully. “I suppose I just meant; what about you?”
“Whataboutme?”
He stroked at my back and shoulders, trying to coax me back into the easy warmth of our tangled limbs, but my muscles were stiff and reluctant, and they tensed even further when he said; “Do you want to run, Rosie?”
“I can’t.”
My answer came before I could give it any real thought, but I knew it was the right one. I wasn’t going anywhere. I wasn’t leaving Stormsby. I was not leavingTheMage and Rose. I was certainly not leaving –
I cut the thought off, but that strange new voice echoed the sentiment, that fierce, possessive thing inside me that was somehow both myself and not.
Not leaving Caelan.
The truth of it resonated in the fiery depths of my chest.
It was terrifying.
Caelan tugged me to him again, and this time I went, reluctance giving way to that same resonant feeling that seemed poised to consume me.
“Good,” Caelan said, before I could examine the odd feeling any closer. He was suddenly fierce, entirely distracting. “Because I want you here. I want you where I can keep you safe.”
