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She eventually shifted her focus to me. “Why now? If he’s as old as you say, where has he been all this time?”
“To our knowledge, Gaige is the first Charmer assassin. There was no need to strike until the Lost discovered Gaige’s power. As to where he’s hiding…” I tried to hide my frustration, but Gaige’s grip on my hand tightened. I didn’t like not having the answer. I didn’t like that being in the dark essentially meant putting my family in danger. Because I’d witnessed the Lost’s power, but more terrifying yet was his drive. He would come back for us. For Gaige. For Calem.
My eyes drifted to Kaori. Possibly for her, too.
Raven shifted uncomfortably in her seat before palming her glass. “What’s to keep him from coming back now?”
For the first time since I’d glimpsed her at the table, Isla relaxed. A glimmer of life reanimated her dull umber stare. “Magic takes a toll. That world he created, the one where he was apparently not even really there… That takes an immense amount of power even for an Unfractured. He’ll need to recuperate. It’s probably why he takes so long between choosing his victims.”
“We need answers,” Noc said. His hand found Leena’s on the table, and the two of them shared a knowing look before he onceagain met our waiting gazes. “And it sounds like we might have some time. Leena and I still have a kingdom to run, but we’ll comb through the libraries in Wilheim to see what we can find out about this mage.”
Leena nodded in agreement, and then tilted her head toward Isla. “Can you contact anyone in Allamere? We need to know what we’re dealing with.”
She flinched. “It’s not for lack of want. I simply don’t know anyone in Allamere.”
Guilt wormed through my gut. I’d more or less insinuated she was useless, and she’d proven to be the exact opposite. Without her, I never would have been able to get to Gaige. Without her… I might never have been able to express just how much I loved him or learned that he felt the same way.
“I’ll see if I can regain contact with Eryx.” Gaige followed my tight stare to Isla. “I still have that parcel he left with me. If I threaten to damage it, I’m sure he’ll turn up.” Relief washed over Isla, and she straightened against her chair. Though after our last encounter with Eryx, I wasn’t certain her relief was warranted. We had been desperately trying to break an ironclad magical contract, that, if reneged, would have resulted in Noc’s death. Eryx had been unable to help, yet he’d still demanded Gaige still do something for him in return. In exchange for absolutely nothing—his time, I suppose—Eryx had given Gaige some scrolls and insisted he keep them safe in return.
Gaige had never spoken of them again. Likely because Eryx had insinuated that examining the contents would result in Gaige losing his vision. Given the strength of Eryx’s magic, I was inclined to believe his threat. His power was different from Isla’s. A peculiar luster had filled his gaze, and with one simple command, he’d rooted Calem to his seat after one of his typical outbursts.
The same luster as the Lost’s.My stomach churned. The sheenthat had obscured the mage’s eyes and the eyes of Gaige’s shadow beasts… He’d been manipulating them just like Eryx had manipulated Calem.
The Lost truly was Unfractured, and that meant on top of the shadows, he wielded five unique types of magic that even a goddess thought were too much for humankind.
Leena stood and offered a defiant, resolute nod. “Let’s plan to meet in Wilheim in two weeks. Until then, research. Try every contact to see what we can learn.”
“I think I can manage two weeks. Of course, everything will need to be cleared by my queen,” Isla said.
Kaori glanced out over the clearing. Her gaze lingered on a few of the homes that were midrepair. “We’ll do whatever is necessary to protect what’s left of our home.”
“You two have a kingdom to run.” I tilted my chin to regard Leena and Noc. “Leave the research and inquiries to us.”
The tension racking Leena’s shoulders dissipated as her lips curled into a small smile. Instead of responding to me directly, she glanced up at Noc. “Wasn’t he supposed to be our royal adviser?”
He grinned. “He was.”
“But he isn’t. Should we consider his advice valid, then?”
I grimaced as Calem and Ozias chuckled. “We can discuss my future once we’ve dealt with this rogue, undead mage. I feel like adviser or not, that’s something we can all agree on.”
“I always thought it was strange you didn’t stay in Wilheim,” Gaige mused, a hint of mirth skating through his eyes. “Seems like a nice place to for us to call home. Lots of libraries.”
“Your tailor lives there, too,” Calem added, his mocking grin on full display. “Imagine having all the clothes your heart desires only a short walk away.”
The banter continued as Ozias and Raven even joined in, butit was all din in my ears.A place for us to call home.Us. Not me alone. He and I, together. Forever. Accepting the role as guild master of Cruor had been a natural progression, but it’d been born out of a sense of duty. I wanted Noc to know that the home he’d left behind would be cared for. More than that, I wanted the assassins to have a place where no one feared them. I didn’t want them to experience what I had. But maybe now, with Noc and Leena shaping our world for the better, perhaps there was a chance for us to be something more. All of us. It would take time, but… My gaze slanted to Gaige, and a knowing smile—authentic and warm and stunning—graced his face.
“My home, Kostya, is wherever you are,” he whispered against my ear, and gooseflesh rippled down my neck.
Turning quickly, I placed a chaste kiss on his lips before my blush could completely ravage my face. “The feeling is entirely mutual, Gaige.”
With the laughter of my family bubbling around us and the promise of a future—our future—unfolding right before my eyes, I knew I’d finally found my sliver of happiness. My forever. And no one, not even the Lost, could take it from me.
EPILOGUE
THE LOST
I’d long since grown used to the wails reverberating against the cavern walls. The incessant moaning of lesser minds unable to fathom a way out of this nightmare. Water dripped from pointed stalactites reaching from the ceiling like jagged fingers. We were all crones because of them. Broken backs bent at odd angles. Knees that creaked when we moved. The musty air was thick with the scent of shit and body odor. Nothing about this place was pleasant. And yet, the most damning thing about this prison was the glyphs on the walls. They were glowing reminders of the magic seeped deep into the stone. A barrier far stronger than the iron bars preventing me from roaming through the maze known as Galvanhold.
