“You have my gratitude.”
Liesel offered a bow and vanished.
Catori observed me, amusement dancing at the edges of her mouth.
“You roused her,” I said.
Her chin dipped fractionally in acknowledgement. “I did. Your blood loss is significant. You must eat.”
I arranged a napkin across my lap and claimed the silverware to spear a sausage link and pop it into my mouth. Expertly seasoned venison enraptured my taste buds and ignited my hunger, making me want to abandon all pretense of civility and attack the fare. Yet I forced myself to slowly chew and swallow my bite.
“Once you’ve finished, you must rest,” Catori announced.
“After I research.”
“Allow me to conduct the research and record anything of value. I believe your skills will prove more useful elsewhere.”
That piqued my curiosity. “What do you have in mind?”
Rather than answering, she deflected with a question of her own. “Why did you stay your hand? Why not kill the thief on sight?”
“I have questions, and the dead yield no answers.”
Catori regarded me closely. “And that is the sole reason you spared her life?”
“Not entirely.” I thought back to the captivating, freckle-faced female and struggled to articulate my hesitation. “She may have bewitched me.”
“I see.” Catori’s tone remained curious rather than critical. “Did you wound her?”
Remembering the slash I’d seen across Ziara’s arm, I summoned Silentium, examining the smudge of blood across the blade. “Yes.”
I summoned a cloth to clean the sword, but Catori drewcloser, her expression contemplative as she rested a hand over mine.
“We do not waste blood, hatchling; we use it.”
“You have an idea,” I noted.
“Finish eating. Then we shall visit the centaurs and use this to track down answers about your thief.”
Not an idea; a plan. And judging by the cunning glint in her eyes, a devious one at that. Intrigued, I hurriedly finished my meal.
RECOGNIZE ME NOW?
Ziara
Something was stalking me.
An endless black void stretched out as far as the eye could see in all directions. No visible threat lurked in its soundless, soulless depths, yet every instinct screamed that danger was nearby and ready to strike. The fine hairs on my nape stood on end as awareness skittered across my flesh like a multitude of spiders.
Wherever I was, I wasn’t safe.
The presence inside me… stretched.
Oh no.
I backed up a step before remembering that blindly running from a predator was likely the stupidest course of action I could take. In this darkness, with no scents to lead me, there was a good chance I’d only run into whatever stalked me. Instead, I pulled myself together, dropped into a ready stance, and reached for my daggers.
My thigh sheaths were empty.
