Page 230 of Commanding Scythe and Sky

“Even Ally misses from time to time.”

“He could jump to your bed buddy’s damn front porch. She more than missed.”

I didn’t rise to the bait. Lana had been looking for a fight for months. No amount of demon ichor, combat, or retribution would burn that bitterness out of her. Not for years, in my experience. But I didn’t miss the way Magnolia’s shoulders stiffened beside me.

“A millimeter in any direction, and the story would’ve ended very differently.”

“And how would you feel about that?” she purred, lifting her eyes to Mags with the kind of lethality that made our enemies cower.

“Lana,” I warned, but Mags held her stare.

“At the time? I would’ve been heartbroken to hear the news.”

“And now?”

“Lana,” I said again, firmer this time. Her sharp blues stayed glued to Magnolia. The collision felt inevitable, but that didn’t stop me from shifting my weight, fighting the urge to pull Mags onto my lap and keep her safe in my arms.

“Well, seeing as I stabbed him in the back the day the portals opened, I’ll let you draw your own conclusions. Clearly, you’re going to anyway.”

Lana scoffed. “Are you waiting for a gold fucking star?”

“So how much of his blood have you spilled, then?” A sinister smile curled Magnolia’s lips as she stared Lana down. “By my count, the only people to land a hit on our enemy were Ally, Aren, and—oh, that’s right—me.”

“Bold words for a coward.”

“Lana!” I snapped, my patience gone. Ansel never tolerated these moods. What I’d give for him to be here with us. Then again, she probably never would’ve descended this deep into bitterness if he were. “Enough.”

“It’s fine,” Mags said, unflinching. “I’m not looking for forgiveness from her, Aren.”

“Just from your fuck buddy, then?” Lana slammed the journal closed, and I gingerly set mine aside, measuring the tension between them. We’d all done our damndest to keep the two in separate rooms. Lana hadn’t exactly been shy about blaming my mate for the change in threads that ultimately led to Ansel’s death.

Theoretically, somewhere between Mags rejecting the bond and Reagan capturing her own son for torture, the optimal outcomes had vanished.

But Ally had told my mate there was no chance of emerging without losing a member of our coven. If that had been different before the optimal path diverted… well, only Ally knew.

Mags’ eyes darkened, locked on the threat at hand as she lifted her chin. “Excuse me?”

“Just looking to worm your way back in with Aren so you can fuck us over twice?”

Magnolia went preternaturally still, her jaw tightening.

“We’ve been over this,” I growled. “Let it go, Lana.”

Her head whipped in my direction, short platinum hair fanning around her shoulders as she held her book out like a blade in challenge. “You know why that won’t be happening.”

“That’s not fair,” I warned. “And you know it.”

“I’ve got this, Aren.”

“Hear that, Ar?” Lana said with mock-concern. “Your little itch scratcher has this.”

“Your problem is with me,” Mags snapped. “Leave my mate out of it.”

“Oh, so now you call him mate? Convenient.”

“Got a problem with that?”

“Yeah, I do. Because you wouldn’t know the dedication required of a mate if it bit you in the ass.”