Page 84 of Keldori By Daybreak

My fingers itched at the back of my neck, but I resisted the urge to pull out the hair there.

“If you let me hear him, and I replied to him—”

“I won’t. You won’t.”

“If I did,” I asserted, “would he be able to see what I see? Like when you were in my head?”

“Maybe. The bond between a nocturmancer and their Nightmare is unpredictable.”

“What’s the worst case scenario?”

Ciarán sighed and rubbed at his temple. “He could summon you.”

“Even if I don’t yield like I have to with you?”

“Our tether goes against the nature of our roles. Grimguards are not supposed to command Saergrims. Ferrin doesn’t have that limitation.”

“Okay.” I nodded. “But you’re strong, right? You could keep me here if he tried to summon me.”

“No, because we aren’t giving him that chance at all—”

“But you could.”

“I don’t know,” he admitted evenly. “I’d rather not find out.”

“Except it would be the perfect way to lead him here.”

Ciarán exhaled heavily through his nose, and his jaw clenched. “No.”

“You used my mind to track us this summer. Why wouldn’t Ferrin do the same?”

“He probably would, but there’s got to be another way to draw him here.”

“Not a way we know would work,” I asserted. “We are on a time limit to save my grandma. We can’t wait for him to find us on his own.”

“I don’t want him in your head.”

“You’re the stronger Magician,” I said.

“You don’t know that.”

“I do.” I closed the distance between us.

He wasn’t much taller than me, and the collapsing bun on top of his head made him feel shorter than usual. I stuck my chin out, silently daring him to try defying me.

“He was able to project his own Nightmare into Keldori for a decade,” Ciarán reminded me. “Only your grandmother has ever achieved that. He is a much more powerful nocturmancer than I am.”

“I thought magick was about willpower,” I said. “You just have to want to keep me safe more than he wants to hurt me.”

“Wren,” Ciarán shook his head. “Wren, he’s so strong.”

“And I trust your conviction as my protector more than I fear Ferrin’s need for power.”

His throat bobbed as he swallowed hard. I wouldn’t force him to do this the same way I’d forced him to bring me on this quest. He would decide for himself, and his tight frown said I might have to find a back-up plan.

But then—

“Alright.” He nodded.