“When it comes to Seph, I will make my own decisions. And so will she.”
Sable laughed, her voice sharp with malice.
“So, you won’t even deny it? You think you have a chance with her?”
She tilted her head.
“She can’t even touch you,” she said softly.
My grip tightened on the blades.
“For someone who claims to love her sister,” I said quietly, “you don’t give her much credit.”
For a second, she looked almost… uncertain. I stepped closer.
“Even if nothing ever comes of it,” I went on, my voice steady, “even if all I ever get is five minutes of her time — I would still choose that over a lifetime of listening to your bullshit.”
“So run along,Sable.”
Sable glared at me.
“Regardless of what you think of me, Dev, Elliot has asked that we spend time training with the new recruits while he’s out today. Including the pyro.”
I spun on my heel, furious. “You are joking.”
Sable’s smirk grew wider. “So enjoy it. We start in ten.”
Then she turned and stalked out.
Chapter 4
Seph
It just kept going.
The helicopter climbed higher and higher, until Moorshire compound fell away beneath us — carved deep into the mountain’s spine. All down the sheer face of Mount Vellen, people moved across narrow platforms. Some tended hidden gardens carved into the rock. Others reinforced walls, hauling stone and steel into place.
“We’re a self-sufficient community,” Elliot said into my headset. “Roughly ten thousand people.”
My stomach tightened.
“Are they all Dark magic users?”
“Not everyone,” he replied smoothly. “But most people who come here are running from the Council of Light in some shape or form. Like Sable, for instance.”
I turned slightly. “How did you even meet her?”
Elliot gestured toward Kieran.
He sighed — like this conversation had been waiting for me.
“I was asked to make the introduction,” Kieran said. “That’s one of the reasons I lived next door to your family all those years.”
The world tilted.
“To befriend us?”
“To protect you,” Kieran said. “Before you even knew you needed it.”
