A deep blush crawled across her cheeks. “I’m sorry. I should have told you, but you’re right.”
“Why not wait till after we’re done?” The thought wrenched my gut, and I pressed my lips into a fine line.Done. Done was the only option. Unless the Gyss was right—but I’d held out hope before only to be proven wrong. I’d tried countless remedies, met with priests and mages and healers, all who claimed they could lift the curse. None could. Hope wasn’t something I allowed to fester, because if I was wrong, the price was too high.
“Because I kind of need something from you.”
My brows arched as curiosity took over. “And what’s that?”
She chewed on her bottom lip and winced, touching her fingers to the corner of her mouth for a moment. My eyes narrowed, but when she dropped her hand everything seemed normal. I was about to pry when her words stole all my attention. “Your blood.”
I went stock-still. “What? Why?”
“The blood of a murderer to entice the beast. It’s a necessary part of the taming process.”
All I could do was stare. “Why not make this part of the bargain from the beginning? What if I were to say no?”
Cupping her chin in her hands, she hummed. “The blood has to be given freely. Without coercion. I can’t steal it. I can’t hurt you to get it. I can’t buy it off you. Obviously I can’t charm you and make you give it to me. As you can imagine, it’s a rather difficult object to obtain when most murderers aren’t looking for charity cases.” The last log on the fire cracked, and embers simmered a burnt red. With her face angled toward the waves, the dying light washed over her. “I was hoping we’d get to know each other well enough that it wouldn’t be an issue.”
There were so many different ways I wanted to get to know her, and none of them boded well for her if I couldn’t eradicate my curse.
And yet, I couldn’t say no. “All right, then.”
She tilted her head in my direction and blinked before a wondrous smile claimed her face. “Thank you.” Another breeze flirted with her hair.
“Let’s see what we can find.” Rooting through the closest duffel bag, I maneuvered around clothing until the soft tinkle of glass met my ears. Calem always came prepared. Extracting a small vial of clear liquid, I removed the stopper and poured out its contents. A potent mixture of citrus, pine, and charcoal stung the air.
Leena wrinkled her nose and let out a soft snort. “Imperit? Is he really so concerned about getting someone pregnant that he had to carry a tonic?”
“Most of us carry it, actually.” Elongating one of my nails, I slit my palm open. Leena watched with curiosity as blood welled to the surface. “Assassins of Cruor are made, not born. The pain of bringing a child into the world, knowing they’ll die and you’ll never age… Most don’t want to face that.” I willed the blood to form perfect spheres and sent it into the now-empty vial.
“Oh.” She rotated her ring as she searched for words.
“It’s all right. We’ve come to terms with it. How much do you need?” The vial was halfway full, and the wound on my hand was already resewing.
“That’s enough.” Her gaze left my hand to linger on my face. “Thank you. Really. This beast…” I handed her the capped tube, and she rolled it between her fingers. “This is really important to me.”
My heart stilled. The line I’d drawn in the sand was damn near gone. I knew what not to say. I couldn’t tell her what I was thinking, how I was feeling. I only knew that sometimes saying nothing was better than the truth. Even if it hurt her.
She stood, long legs coated in fine grains of sand, and turned her back to me. “I better get some sleep. Tomorrow will be a test for me.” She brushed loose hair over her shoulder, exposing her neck. She was so beautiful. So strong and cunning. She knew when to lead and when to defer to others. More than that, she was genuine.Human.Despite the circumstances that brought her to my door, she never once tried to harm us once we’d agreed to our terms.
I couldn’t help myself. I launched to my feet and closed the distance between us as I came up behind her. Trailing my fingers along her neck, I brought my nose inches from her skin. With her feet rooted to the ground, a visible shiver worked its way through her.
Don’t leave me. Not yet.She leaned in to me, and my lips barely grazed the curve between her neck and shoulder. She turned, trying to catch my mouth with hers.
And I swear there were swelling bruises beneath her eyes that hadn’t been there a moment ago. I blinked and they were gone, but it was reminder enough. I couldn’t let that happen to her. Tucking my hands into the pockets of my trousers, I stepped away. “Good night, Leena.”
Her face crumbled, and so did my heart. We were playing with fire. I couldn’t risk her life for my selfish wants. She deserved more.Better.Slowly, I walked toward my tent.
Voice soft and hoarse, she let me go. “Good night.”
Twenty
Leena
Taming a Myad was a three-step process. Two were feasible, given my present company. The third, on the other hand, would be tricky. Casting a quick glance behind me, I watched as Noc tipped his head back and laughed with Calem. The two of them walked stride for stride in front of Kost and Oz. Kost’s gaze was carving something vile into Noc’s shoulders while Oz hummed to himself, hands plastered to the back of his head.
They wouldn’t like step three.
Turning back to the dense jungle before me, I stepped around hollowed-out logs and roots thicker than arms. Rubberlike tree leaves blocked most of the morning sun’s rays, and the density of the jungle kept the ocean breeze from piercing the grove. Birds cawed wildly above our heads, beady eyes tracking our progression. Insects competed for airtime, their drawn-out, grinding chirps thick in the air.
