“Give me my knife, Phantom.”
“What’s your problem this morning, Redgrave?” she asked calmly.
I narrowed my eyes. “Don’t call me that.”
Sable Quinn just smiled. “Why not? It’s your name, isn’t it?”
I stepped in close and snatched the blade from her hand.
“What do you want?” I demanded, already throwing my daggers again.
“I heard you had an altercation this morning,” she said. “With the new girl. And my sister.”
“How is that any of your business?”
“Seph is always my business.”
I shook my head at her.
“Please,” I said coldly. “You abandoned her to the institute—”
“I did not abandon her. I tried to save her!”
“Right. Whatever you need to tell yourself,” I snapped back.
She walked through the room, running her hands over the weapons lining the walls.
Sable pursed her lips. “You’ve gotten a little sweet on her, huh?”
“What? Fuck you, Phantom.”
“Tell me the truth, Dev,” she drifted toward the sword rack, fingers brushing the hilts. “Seph is pretty. I know she draws people in. She always has. Ask K.”
Her smile sharpened, just for a second — like she’d bitten down on something sour.
“Do you have a point here?” I said.
“I’m just saying,” she replied lightly, “she’s soft-hearted. Sweet, even. People want to protect her.”
I stared at her.
“So, what,” I said flatly. “You’re saying she’s a liability?”
Sable’s smile faded.
“No. I want you to understand that as sweet as my sister seems, she is still incredibly dangerous. To you, to me. To everyone. You have to tread carefully, that’s all.”
I let out a short laugh and grabbed my knives.
“Oh, so now you’re warning me, Phantom,” I drawled. “How kind of you.”
She didn’t rise to it.
“You and I have never gotten along. We both know that. And that’s fine — we don’t have to be friends, Dev. But Seph is my sister,” she said. “And I will always watch out for her. If it’s the last thing I do.”
I shook my head. “Thanks for the input, Phantom. But considering I didn’t even know your real name, let alone that she was your sister until a few weeks ago, I’m not sure you’re the model of upfront honesty and sibling care. Are you?”
“Dev—” she warned.
