“It’s okay, darling,” I say with a casual smile I hope will put her at ease. “I know there’s no way out of it for me, alive. I’ve made my peace.”
In a blink of an eye, Nix’s eyes turn molten lava. “Have I told you yet what a fucking ass you are?”
I lift my palms in front of her and shrug. Before I can even open my mouth to answer, she yells at me, “You should have fucking thought about what will happen before you assassinated the General! At least for five fucking minutes! Did you really think you’d be free when it’s the only unforgivable crime in this damn country?! How could you believe that the Talbots wouldn’t turn you in when it’s convenient for them?!”
I’m stunned into silence for a minute.
Damn. She’s seriously angry.
She growls and turns her back to me. Her shoulders rise and fall as she takes deep breaths. When she whirls around to face me again, she’s a bit more collected.
I scratch the back of my neck. “No point in turning back the pages now. Besides, if I hadn’t assassinated the late Ezkai General, our paths would have never crossed.”
Nix looks ready to murder me again, but then she places her hand over her stomach and winces.
In a heartbeat, I’m at her side. I wrap one hand around her waist, pulling her to lean against me. “What’s the matter? You look sick. You’re a Decarios. You’re not supposed to be sick.”
“I’m fine,” she says, but leans against me a little more. “I participated in a ritual just moments ago.”
“What sort of ritual?”
Cold sweat covers her skin, and now that her body is against mine, I can feel her trembling slightly.
“The Ashen Oath. It’s a ritualized sterilization, essentially. To ensure I don’t continue my lineage as the Ezkai General.” She slaps her hand over her mouth and mumbles against it. “I’m gonna puke.”
Without a second thought, I swoop her off her feet and turn to go. “Your Ezkai. They need to take you to the healer or something.”
Nix grabs my arm, eyes wide. “No! It’s fine, I won’t die or anything. It’s just temporary discomfort.” I look down at her in my arms, unconvinced. She shakes her head. “Please, Jax. Don’t. I don’t want them to see me like this. Weak.”
“You’re not weak, darling. Far from it.”
She sighs and rests her head on my shoulder. A wave of fuzzy warmth rushes through me.
I could spend the rest of my life like this, with her in my arms, and I wouldn’t complain.
Before my mind can spiral any further, I snap out of it.
This line of thinking isdangerous.
“Okay, then,” I say, lightly. “Let’s sit you down on my humble cot and you can tell me what’s so important that it couldn’t wait until you feel better.”
Gently, I lower her onto my bare cot and kneel next to it. Nix lies still for a moment, breathing deeply.
I watch her like a hawk, tracing the lines of her face with my eyes.
I wish I could do it with my fingers instead.
Pushing my thumbs into my eyes, I shake my head.
Snap out of it.
She’s the Ezkai General.
I’m the GeneralSlayer.
Without opening her eyes, Nix says, “Vera’s alive.”
Relief hits me like a ton of bricks. “You’ve found her?”
