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The man and his words. Must’ve been exhausting to live in his head with so many bleeding thoughts bouncing around. “Ready for?”
“For the next move? Is the plan secured?”
My stomach tightened and soured in a knot I was certain would remain until this ended. In our favor or otherwise.
“It’s set. When we return, it will be time for us all to meet our final marks.”
CHAPTERFORTY-ONE
THE MEMORY THIEF
Dull light dustedover Kase’s face. I traced his profile with my finger. His bright eyes held mine. A somber grin cut over his features and he pulled me in for a gentle kiss. Beneath the furs of our sleeping mat, I draped my leg over his hip, wishing to get a little closer, hold him a little longer.
Every time we parted it was a rush of hot nerves. Would we return? Would we see each other again? Today, tension added a vicious pressure in my chest. Niall would take vows with Signe of the Court of Hearts at the full moon on the morrow. For the last week, I’d studied and used the ring to prepare for this moment.
The mesmer in the relic was less about memories and more about desire. A connection to fate for the one chosen to don the ring. Every whisper guiding me whenever I wore the band was unnerving. I could not puzzle out if they came from my own mind or if they belonged to another, but whatever I sought to learn, the shadows in my head would show me.
I knew it amplified my ability to take and share memories, gave me the ability to slip into the very heads of others as I’d done with Valen.
The strangest part of stealing Valen’s curse was the king could still recall the lust for blood. It was as if the ring had allowed me to shadow the desire to answer the call, rendering his curse worthless. A memory that had no power over him any longer.
The ring gave me the power to share thoughts with a simple touch. I could transfer orders. If Halvar, Niklas, or Raum wanted to pass along battle information, I could do it without a single word being written, without the risk of any plan falling into the hands of our enemies.
But my favorite moments were here, with the man who held my heart, when I could share hidden memories of a girl who loved a boy in the hayloft.
I placed my own palm against the side of my head, smiling softly as the hum of mesmer pulled into the glass band. Then, I cupped the side of Kase’s face, pulsing a memory of my own and gave it to him.
He smiled, closing his eyes.
“Do you see it?”
Kase laughed. “I never knew I made you so uneasy.”
The memory of when I’d paced the hayloft, not more than a few weeks before he disappeared, fretting over the desire to kiss him again.
It had been over a turn since his lips had touched mine when we were littles, and I’d determined it was time for another. My stomach had rolled in sick waves. I’d grown sweaty practicing my reasonings out loud, as if I could convince Kase we were making a deal.
Now, he kissed me in our bed. Deep and sweet. “I would’ve done it had you said something.” He grinned with a touch of mischief. “Of course, I would’ve made a big to-do about it all to hide how much I wanted to do the same. I’d insist it was to get you to be silent about it, or another way to make you think I didn’t actually enjoy it.”
I laughed. “It is a good thing I’m bolder with my kisses now.”
“I have no complaints, wife.”
The mood sobered again. I brushed a hand over his cheek, kissing his nose, then embraced him. “I should get going.”
“You’ll be in the clearing to the north?”
I nodded. “Gathering for some of the food stores.”
Kase pulled back, jaw tight, a clear reluctance to let me go. “Then I shall see you soon.”
He pinched my jaw between his thumb and finger and kissed me deeply until we had to finally unravel our limbs. Kase watched me, shadows over his eyes, as I left the tent.
“Ready, Queen Malin?” Sofia had already shouldered a canvas sack used to gather wild berries, nuts, and mushrooms throughout Jagged Grove.
I took up a pack of my own, slipping a fur cloak over my shoulders. Frost shimmered over the curled edges of leaves and branches. The air was sharp and clean, but a hint of blood and smoke seemed to stain the kingdom from the constant bloodshed.
By the head of the path leading into the trees, Ari waited.
