She sighs, clearly growing impatient with my games. “I did. But as I’m sure you know, it was an impossible task.”
“And yet you wear it now?”
“Zane brought it back with him. He found it in my drawer back at the Sector and thought I was missing it.”
“And were you? Missing it?”
Her brows furrow like she’s disgusted with the idea that she would miss anything associated with me.
“No!” she says forcefully as if she’s trying to convince herself of that fact. “But it is beautiful and now that I know it won’t strangle me, I don’t see why I wouldn’t wear it.”
“And what does your boyfriend think of you wearing my birthday present around your neck?” I let the silver chain slide off the dagger’s tip and watch the pendant fall back into that sweet spot I shouldn’t even be eyeing.
“We’re not officially back together yet and he doesn’t know.” She looks down and then back up. Something similar to guilt paints her face. “I just mean it hasn’t come up. It’s not like I’m hiding it from him.”
“Mhm. Of course, you’re not,” I say into her ear before releasing my shadow’s hold on her. I expect her to push me away or at least slip off to the side, but instead she stands there, unmoving. “You dropped this.” I flip the dagger in my hand, offering her the hilt. She takes it and I step back, returning to the window before I do or say something I can’t take back.
“So?”
“So, what?” I repeat over my shoulder.
“Do you want tohear my plan or not?”
I turn around and take a seat, propping my feet up on the desk.
This is going to be good.
“Alright, so you know how your father made a deal with the Dread Wood creatures?” She begins, taking a seat across from me. “Well, I want to offer them another deal.”
I nearly fall out of my chair laughing and she’s not the slightest bit humored by it. “I’m sorry. Carry on.” I’m still grinning at her ridiculousness, expecting the dagger to come for my head again at any given moment.
“I’m being serious!” She bites back.
“Oh, I know. That’s why it’s so funny.” She shoots up out of the chair, stabbing the dagger into the desk. I stop her at the door, suddenly realizing I took it too far. “Wait.”
“No!” She tries to push me to the side but ends up moving herself more than me. “You don’t take me seriously!”
Okay, now I feel like an asshole.
I pull her away from the door and a second later, I’m towering over her with both of my arms on the chair, keeping her seated.
“You’re wrong.” It comes out as more of a growl than I intend. “I do take you seriously. In fact, your opinion is the one that means the most to me. Above Jace or even Artemus. So, you’re going to sit here and tell me this plan of yours.” I spin the chair around and push it towards the desk before slipping back into my own seat.
“You’re going to think I’m crazy, but I know deep in my soul that the creature made of intertwined branches didn’t want to hurt me that day in the Dread Woods. Call it woman’s intuition or whatever, but I know it.” I know better than to discourage her now, so I remain quiet and motion for her to continue. “Now, I’m not stupid. I don’t think we should bemaking any kind of deals with beasts like the Lybrates who were far too eager to rip us to shreds. However, I do think it’s worth going back and seeing about making some kind of deal with that tree monster and any others who seem to not look at us like we’re the enemy.”
Long silence fills the air between us as I think it over, playing out all of the different scenarios in my head. It’s a risky and dangerous move. But we’re also not exactly in a position to be playing it safe after losing forty-two of our soldiers and already being outnumbered 3-1.
“Okay,” I finally say. Her head snaps up and her eyes are wide.
“When do we leave?”
“There is no ‘we.’ I’ll be going alone.”
She shoots up from the table again, her fiery wings flaring behind her this time.
“No! You don’t get to leave me behind.”
I stay seated but allow my shadows to crawl onto the desk and floor around her.
