No limitations. The text pulsed with implications.Thiswas the beast. The one drunken men longed for when their ales and fortunes ran dry. An answer to my curse. I had resigned to living a life full of distance and detachment. But there was always the chance I could slip up. All it took was a glimmer of longing. A display of too-honest affection. If anyone reciprocated in any way, they would die. Painfully. I’d continue to build a barricade around me if it meant keeping those I cared about safe. That was fine. But if there was a possibility of changing that, of preventing myself from accidentally killing another loved one again… “Tell me about this beast.”
Leena turned, dragging her gaze away from Calem’s grin to examine the floating text. Her right eye twitched. “You don’t want a Gyss. The payments for wishes aren’t worth the cost of receiving them. Plus, it’s a C-Class beast. Doesn’t meet the terms of our agreement.”
“Could Iwishfor more success with women?” Calem’s flirtatious grin eased the sudden stiffness in Leena’s posture. “Or perhaps just success with you?”
Leena rolled her eyes. “For payment, the Gyss would probably ask for your cock on a silver platter. You ready to part with that?”
Calem’s face blanched. “No.”
“Sounds like you know the pros and cons of each beast best.” Kost spoke to Leena without ever meeting her gaze. Instead, he studied me with measured levels of concern and frustration, turning blades of grass to green pulp between his forefinger and thumb.
“Agreed.” Ozias stretched toward the sky. “I’ll leave it to you, Leena. I’m not much of a reader. I’d rather see a beast in person and judge from there.”
“Oh, I like that idea. How about it, Leena?” Calem bounced on the balls of his feet.
She touched her middle finger to her pendant again, and the book disappeared. The afterimage of the Gyss seared the night air. I could still picture the creature’s grin, the way her eyes burned with a magic I’d yet to test.
Leena tilted her head to the side. “What do you mean? There aren’t any beasts in the area right now.” She gestured to the chirping woods and wide-open meadow.
Calem’s grin widened. “I have an idea.”
Brow furrowing, she stood before him. “I’m listening.”
“Let’s have a little sparring match. But you can’t use any beasts we’ve already seen.”
“A sparring match? It’s been ages since…” She trailed off, and then placed both hands on her hips. “Any other rules?”
A growl caught in my throat. This hadbad ideawritten all over it. If Calem lost control and hurt Leena, we’d be down a Charmer—and this Gyss I needed to know more about. Or worse, she’d hand Calem his ass like she did with Kost. My gaze darted to the first of us she’d encountered, and Kost’s carefully placid expression failed to mask his clenched jaw.
But Leena stood tall, a subtle grin tugging at the corners of her lips, and a light sparked in her eyes. This was a chance to see what she had in her arsenal. A glimmer into who she was. And that was knowledge I could always keep in my back pocket. Kost had been alone before, but if she tried anything drastic here, I’d kill her and convince another Charmer to find me a Gyss.
But Leena’s fire… Where did it come from? I wanted to know.Neededto know.
Kost flexed his hands. “I strongly advise against this.”
“What? Why?” Calem tossed him an annoyed glance. “I’ll go easy, I swear.”
“You can’t control yourself. You’ll end up hurting her.”
Leena jutted her chin. “I can take care of myself.”
“This isn’t about your abilities,” Kost snapped. “This is about Calem and hisinabilityto exhibit self-control.”
“I promise it’ll be fine. This is just for practice.”
Kost and Calem looked to me. I stood slowly, and Calem’s expression faded to one of remorse as if he expected me to banish the idea altogether.
“No life-threatening injuries.” Turning to Leena, I caught sight of her hazel eyes. Mischief touched her smile, but she turned back to Calem without saying a word. “No other rules.”
“This should be good.” Without standing, Ozias scooted in place to face the empty meadow on the other side of our camp. “That big enough?”
“Works for me. But you know I’m good in confined spaces.” Calem bent his forehead to Leena’s.
She smirked. “So am I.”
For the first time in my life, I witnessed Calem blush. Ozias exploded in a fit of laughter as Leena stalked toward the clearing, a slight sway to her hips. Kost mumbled to himself as he moved to join Ozias, his spine tense. Adrenaline hummed through my body, and an anxious desire to protect her stirred. She had no idea what she was getting herself into. Catching Kost off guard was one thing. But taking Calem head-on? His deadliness was bar none—he had no moral qualms with his work. There were even times he reveled in it.
Shadows fled from the forest to cling to him as he chuckled. “You’re in for it.”
