Page 117 of Taken By Shadows

I had to get out of here. To the cool night air.

Or a hot bath.

“Goodnight, Kaedian,” I said abruptly, and made for the door.

“Imogen.” My name whispered from him, and I turned. “Whatever Eryk wants, you don’t have to do it.”

I nodded in dismissive agreement.

But I did. A bargain was a bargain. I wouldn’t break my word.

I paused on the threshold. “What do you think he will ask for?” My fingers traced the grain of the door.

“I don’t know.” Every muscle in him was rung out like lines on a ship in a storm. “But I won’t let anything happen to you.”

“You can’t protect me.” Even from my perspective, I could see that’s why he had acted earlier tonight, even if there were other personal reasons at play. “Not always. And besides, I’ve also saved you twice now.” I allowed the corner of my lip to tug into a smile.

“Perhaps we’re even then,” he mused.

I don’t know what the soldiers would have done to me if Kaed hadn’t surrendered to them. I’d never felt anything like that. It had been crushing. It had been like lead on my chest, in my veins, through my bones.

“Thank you,” I whispered and shut the door behind me.

Chapter thirty-six

Kaed’s door was closed when I woke. I didn’t check if he was there or not. I was not going back in again. I wouldn’t be prepared for the sight of him topless, the silk bedspread wrapped around his hips.

Shaking my head, I forced the thought away.

Mercifully, Audrie decided today was the day she was going to give me a tour of the city markets. I needed the distraction, even if I couldn’t tell her exactly why the events of last night had happened.

I couldn’t exactly say I’d left so I didn’t combust from the urges that were kindling deep within me for Kaed.

Audrie wove us through merchants and fortune tellers, vendors selling everything from cured meats to spiced wines. There were stalls set up selling only ground spices, from cumin to star anise. There were honey and lavender stalls with bees buzzing around them. Richly coloured awnings hung over some that smelled divine and others that smelled so strongly of cheese and curds that my nose wrinkled.

Tottering behind us, was Audrie’s little round cat, Turnip. Sometimes, he’d hop onto the stalls to inspect them, only to be shooed away by merchants.

Audrie didn’t stop at any of the stalls though. She pulled me along through narrow streets, under archways and down steps covered in worn rugs. She knew exactly where she was going.

We passed the jesters and jugglers, dancers and fae wielding simple magics for amusement. I wanted to stop and admire the spectacle, but Audrie took my hand and tugged.

We didn’t stop until we had come to the sugar market.

Once she had her cakes in hand, she finally slowed her pace so we could take in some of the stalls.

After a few steps in silence, something very fragile passed over her as she stifled a sniffle. “Dee told me what happened. You don’t have to act like I can’t handle it.” Audrie traced her finger over the edge of an embroidered blanket, the stall overstuffed with throws. Her hazel eyes were molten as they looked at me. “I don’t want anything to happen to you.”

My chest constricted, and I suddenly felt like the older sister I never really was to Leesha.

“No more lies between us.” She intoned as though it were a decree.

I nodded, forcing the cold memory of last night from my mind, not willing to dredge it up again.

“So, you were with Denora?” I smirked.

A rosy hue stained her cheeks that dipped into matching dimple valleys on either side of her face.

She shoved a cake into my hand, ignoring my question. “What is going on between you and Kaedian?”