“It’s the key,” Kazia says. “Whoever holds it controls the collar.”
Lucien’s brow lifts. He holds the key up in the firelight. “In the great hall, that first night, you said the collar was attuned only to you.”
“I lied.” Kazia shrugs. “Keep it safe. As long as you have it, the collar won’t affect you.”
Lucien stares at the key, his face in shadows. He slips it into his pocket and sets the collar on the mantel instead of putting it on. “Thank you for trusting me with this.”
“What’s wrong?” Kazia demands.
“If we’re going to cooperate, there’s something I should tell you.” Lucien takes a step back, like he’s giving Kazia space. Not a good sign. “Can you promise to listen without freaking out?”
Reallynot a good sign. “Maybe.”
“Good enough.” Lucien takes a deep breath. “I know you’re a grail.”
The words plummet through Kazia like a stone through an empty, endless well. Then the panic kicks in, and he lunges for the table.
The zalvin bottle is the nearest weapon to hand. If he breaks it, maybe he can slit Lucien’s throat before Lucien rips the earring off and takes his magic. Shock-deafened, Kazia barely hears Lucien swearing—
A heavy arm wraps around him. A broad hand seals his lips as if to stop him from screaming. But Kazia can’t breathe well enough to scream. He’s too terrified of the man murmuring into his ear.
“Shh, Kazia, it’s okay.” Lucien adjusts his grip to pin Kazia’s arms to his side. “I’m sorry I’m holding you like this. I just need you to be quiet, all right?”
Kazia wrenches at Lucien’s arm, to no avail. The tight grasp prevents Kazia from getting leverage with his elbow. Lucien doesn’t react when Kazia stomps on his foot, either. Fuck, Kazia shouldn’t have given Lucien proper boots.
Lucien’s breath is hot in his ear. “I don’t understand why you’re so scared, but I’m sorry for that, too. I want to let go of you now, so we can talk more comfortably. Or so you slap me. But I need to put the collar back on before we make any noise and draw the guards in.”
All very reasonable, if Lucien was on Kazia’s side. But Lucien is lying. He’s a mage, he’s found Kazia’s secret, and that means he’s an enemy.
But Kazia can’t let his guards know about his grailhood, either. Nobody can know. Kazia has to at least cooperate with Lucien enough to—to silence him, somehow. To get the key-token back.
Lucien’s body is a furnace. His hand covers half of Kazia’s face. “If I uncover your mouth, will you stay quiet?”
Kazia gives a tiny nod.
“That’s a good boy. Okay.” Lucien’s hand falls away, then his arm. He steadies Kazia by the shoulders, then lets go.
Kazia holds still until he’s sure he won’t fall over. Then he sprints to his bedroom. There’s no chase this time, just Kazia’s own ragged breath hounding him. He grabs a dagger from a vanity drawer, then curls over, clutching his mouth. His hand is so much smaller than Lucien’s. It doesn’t muffle the choking whimper as well.
Focus. Think. Kazia is the stupidest man in Alantha for freeing an enemy mage. But Lucien must want something besides grail magic from Kazia. Otherwise, he could have just taken it. He didn’t have to reveal anything.
Kazia straightens and steadies his breathing. Clutching the sheathed dagger, he returns to the parlor. “Okay, talk. How did you find out? Did someone tell you?”
No point pretending it isn’t true.
Lucien is exactly where Kazia left him, in the middle of the room. He glances at the dagger, and some trick of the light gives him that horribly tender look of concern again. “Nobody told me. The earring stopped working a week ago. I was drawn to your magic as I treated your injuries.”
“Fuck.” Kazia’s palm hurts around the dagger’s hilt, but the weapon is useless against Lucien’s magic.
“I’m not sorry for that, but I’m sorry for how this went tonight,” Lucien says, still with that horrible tenderness. “Did I hurt you?”
That startles a laugh from Kazia. “You would know if you hurt me.”
Lucien’s eyes narrow—and Kazia’s hand tightens on the knife. Fuck. Lucien is too perceptive, and Kazia has said too much.
?
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
