Page 188 of Harbinger

Taliesin snorts. “Well, now you are definitely training with her.” He picks up his mug and downs its contents in a single swig. “You have to be prepared to face a friend.”

“Why?” I counter. I still haven’t eaten a bite. “It’s not like Shea is going to hurt me.”

“Trusting people like that is dangerous,” he warns me.

“I suddenly understand why you’re single.”

He laughs, shoving his blond hair out of his eyes, but doesn’t correct me. Instead, he nods toward my plate. “Better eat that. Shea won’t go easy on you.”

I cram a scone into my mouth, staring at the seat Bishop usually occupies. I don’t bother reaching for a second. Shea might knock me flat on my back, but that still sounds better than haunting Miradores and wondering where Bishop has gone off to this time. Pushing back my chair, I stand up. “Let’s get this over with.”

Taliesin sighs as he rises, unable to contain his disappointment.

We head out through the kitchen door. The sky is a wash of gray, a familiar dampness hanging in the air. The oscen peeks from its nest but doesn’t come out to greet us. Something tells me my absence is being punished. But with the ground half frozen, I haven’t spent as much time in the garden, only coming to take my frustration out on the stump I’m still trying to dig up.

“Want to talk about it?” Taliesin asks as we reach the bridge.

“About what?”

Taliesin says, “About the reason you’re not eating.”

“I haven’t been sleeping well.”

“Neither has he,” Taliesin says, calling my bluff.

“Good,” I say, and that’s the end of it. We walk the rest of the way in silence.

A few lanterns burn dimly along the paths, but this early on seventh day, the Bellatorum is still quiet. Most of the conscripts must have opted to spend their day off from classes and drills in bed. We’re nearly to the proving grounds when Taliesin curses.

Looking up, I find we’re on a collision course with Bishop. His coat is unbuttoned despite the cold, and the shadows under his eyes are darker than usual.

“I’ll go round up Shea,” Taliesin mutters and veers ahead. He doesn’t wait for me to answer, just slips into the side entrance, leaving me alone with Bishop in the empty courtyard.

We stand there, neither one wanting to make the first move. Finally, Bishop breaks the stalemate. “You’re up early.”

“So are you.” I take a deep breath. “Where have you been?”

“Business.” He shifts his attention over my shoulder like his mind is already somewhere else.

My jaw tightens at the dismissal, but I refuse to give up. “Doing what? Or are you too busy to talk to me, too?”

Something splinters in his wintery blue eyes, but it’s gone before I can name it.

“I have responsibilities, Arden.”

That’s bullshit. “Is this about Twelvetide?”

He hesitates. “It’s my duty to find the person who poisoned two of my subjects.”

“Subjects?” I repeat.

“I am responsible for you,” he reminds me. “You are under my protection.”

“Is that why you’re ignoring me?”

He exhales slowly. “You don’t understand, Arden.”

“Then explain it to me.”