Page 32 of For the Ghastly and Beautiful

I snort, and she lets her grin slip.

“I don’t have any intentions,” I tell her before frowning. “But I feel attached, and it’s freaking me the fuck out.”

“Before or after sex?”

My hair floats around my face as I blow out an exasperated breath. “Before…”

“Oh. Easy. Talodus.”

“How did—what?”

She nods like I’m simple. “I was thinking Connak would have worked his magic quicker than Tal, but I can’t say I’m surprised.”

My mouth opens and closes several times before she continues. “I’m happy these walls are made of stone. If I’m going to be living here for the next couple of weeks, the last thing I want is to hear—”

“Whoa. Whoa. Stop making plans for me.” I lower my voice, knowing Talodus and Imryll are in the room on the other side of us. “That was a one-time thing.”

“I don’t believe that, and neither do you.”

I narrow my eyes at her, then shake my head. The motion is one part annoyance and one part agreement, which pisses me off a little bit. I don’t want to depend on them any more than I already do, but I also enjoy spending time with them.

And I would like to have sex with Talodus again.

However, I am not going to tell Rinya that.

Today…

“Rin?” I whisper, my tone serious as I stare at the door. “Can I ask you something unrelated to our current conversation?”

She furrows her brow, but nods.

“What is Spiran’s sister’s name?”

“We don’t speak it,” she cautiously responds.

I watch her fidget uncomfortably before I push farther. “Why?”

“My dad calls it a superstition. Native Mongrels believe that saying her name aloud summons her, either in the flesh or in your dreams.”

“Oh,” I chirp, murmuring to myself. “Like Beetlejuice or Voldemort…”

“What is that?”

“No. Who is that,” I correct her before vaguely explaining, “They’re characters from books or movies. Beetlejuice pops up if you say his name three times. Voldemort, though? They portrayed his name as a curse. If you spoke it, his minions could track your location and capture you. Or… Well, that’s one theory I read on this fanfic website—”

Rin holds her hand up to stop me. “I don’t understand half of what you said, but I suppose it’s similar to that situation. Most Mongrels are afraid of speaking her name. They view her as a curse.”

“You won’t tell me her name?”

“See that book on the bottom of your stack?” she counters, pointing at the table under the window. “It’s in there. That’s the history of Spiran and her sister, and how the island came to be.”

I heave out a sigh as I glare at the thick tome. “Okay. I’ll start reading it tonight.”

“I have a question that’s more pressing,” she begins just as cautiously as I had. “What did you actually see when you looked at the maps?”

“What makes you think I saw anything?”

“The guys wouldn’t be moving me into the palace if you didn’t see some strange connection between the attacks, Ada. I know them well enough to notice behavioral changes, even if they are slight.”