Amelia was sitting up, sipping from water I’d placed on the nightstand in anticipation of her waking up. Taking slow sips, her eyes widened when they moved from Cirrian to me. My pounding heart eased and my sharp uneven breaths slowed.
I had to be a sight to behold if the turbulent, wild, and vengeful emotions I couldn’t rein in were anything to go by. Sucking in a long breath, I lowered the sword.
He put a lot of effort into the smile he gave me. “When it comes to her, you seem unable to see the reality in front of you.”
“It’s called hope.”
“Even in the absence of empirical evidence?”
“There was no hard evidence.”
He shook his head. And started out of the room, leaving Amelia’s expression full of curiosity and confusion. I raised my finger to her, indicating a need for a minute, and placed the sword on the dresser. I didn’t need to remind him of the violence I was prepared to deliver.
I expected his disappearing act before I could reach him. He was quick but was waiting for me at the stair landing.
“Thank you so much.”
He shrugged with a heaviness in his expression.
“You weren’t supposed to do that, were you?”
He shook his head. “Where you are concerned, I tend to break the rules more than usual.” His tone suggested it was something he needed to evaluate alone.
I moved toward him, and he raised his hand to stop me. “Amelia is waiting, and she’ll want an explanation.”
“I’m prohibited from that,” I pointed out. Any explanation I offered would be riddled with lies, and I didn’t want to do that to her.
“More rules that you wish me to break?” he inquired softly, his expression grim.
I shook my head. “No. I’ll think of something. Hopefully she’ll understand.”
Him eliminating the distance between us with his preternatural speed no longer surprised me. He laced his fingers with mine in a manner that would have been intimate if it weren’t for his chilly attitude. His set jaw made the appealing angles of his face appear harsher.
“Agree,” he insisted.
“What am I agreeing to?”
“The changes I will make to the terms of our oath. I need you to agree to them.”
Used to the subtle tones of mockery and amusement in his demeanor, this cold, dispassionate version made me skeptical. Walls of mistrust were slowly erecting.
“I’d like to know what I’m agreeing to,” I said.
He closed his eyes and exhaled a slow breath. When he opened them, they were stone. “I’m amending your oath of secrecy to include Amelia. I do believe she will need an explanation. There is more to her that needs exploring. She could be vital to you unlocking your magic.”
Of course there’s more to her. She’s the spawn of Vina, the woman who managed to evade you all and beat you at your own game.A woman who was undoubtedly on their most wanted list.
I nodded. “Of course.” I could have hugged him. But even the light thrum of his thumb running along the side of my hand didn’t feel inviting. His lips moved slowly, not even giving me the courtesy of hearing the invocation. It was unsettling how easily he could modify the terms of the oath. But I had to trust him. It felt like warm honey was being poured over my arm as it suffused the forearm to my bicep. The marking made an appearance from the edge of my shirt. Pulling it up, I saw ithad changed some and was more stylized and intricate, as if the rewording was hidden in the design.
“Thank you,” I said to his back as he moved past me.
“No thanks needed. You are the tool I need and would not have been any use to me if she’d died. I didn’t do it for you; I did it for me.”
“Who are you trying to convince, me or you?”
“I’ve broken so many of our rules for you, I’m not the one who will need convincing.” And with that he was gone.
Remembering Larkin’s worry and his anger at Cirrian for the rules he’d broken and magic uncollected, I wondered how would he react to Cirrian undoing a curse that prevented a collection? They weren’t supposed to intervene in death, or kill, and he’d done both in a span of two days.
