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Malyr only turned his back on Sebian, crossed toward the rock a few steps, and shoved the tip of his boot through the bare shrubs that slept along the outline of the alcove. “But she did not.”
Sebian made an annoyed sound in the back of his throat. “Freeze to death, then.”
“And you truly think that wasn’t a possibility she considered before coming out here?” Malyr pulled a familiar brown bundle from between the shrubs, and tossed it into the snow by my feet, making it clear once more that he’d been spying on me. “Not only did she stash away three of these in the vicinity, knowing full well that she would be naked after her shift, but she actually licked her finger and held it up in the wind to analyze the drift, determining just where shemightland.”
I leaned over and peeled the contents of the bundle from the cowhide that had kept it all dry: a warm brown dress, boots, and a large woolen scarf.
The latter I wrapped around my upper body and neck once dressed, then I handed Sebian his cloak. “What are you both doing here?”
“Getting you out of here before the attack,” Sebian said and grabbed my hand. “Come. Follow my ravens, and I’ll bring you to our camp.”
“What camp?” I stared down at how he intertwined his scarred fingers with mine, and quickly pulled away from their hold before he would… I didn’t know… make me shift. “No. I can’t leave. Not until I have my amulet, and I’m so close to finally getting my hands on it.”
“Fuck the amulet.” He gave an aggravated swat at the air, only to drag the same hand over black bruises that speckled his throat wherever the stubble couldn’t hide it. Shadowmarks? “It’s not the most important thing right now.”
“It is to me!”
“Until you’re dead under rock and debris.” Jaws shifting, he looked at Malyr. “If you meant to contribute something to convince her to leave instead of just standing there, then now would be a good time to do so.”
Malyr folded his arms in front of his chest, eyeing me for long, silent seconds, his eyes their usual gray-brown once more. “You said you were close to getting your hands on it. How close are we speaking?”
“Why does that even matter?” Sebian asked. “There’ll be plenty of time to look for itafterthe attack.”
“Sieges have a habit of making things forever disappear beneath rubble and boulders,” Malyr said. “And that is only if the remaining servants don’t steal the amulet, along with other jewelry, before they flee the stronghold once the slaughter starts. There is still time.”
Sebian took a step toward Malyr, his elbows angled wide enough it made his back appear impossibly broader. “If you’re seriously considering to let her walk back into Tidestone, Malyr, then you’re a shitty fucking mate.”
Malyr’s eyes narrowed to dangerous slits, sparking with a raw intensity that rivaled the savage gales whipping around us. “You must know.”
“That was low,” Sebian countered, “even for you, and that sure as fuck means something.”
They stared at each other, the energy between these two men filled with mutual aggression, the air growing thick with a tension I’d never felt between them. Ever. Their animosity was palpable, making my gaze draw back and forth between Malyr’s bruises and those shadowmarks on Sebian’s throat. Dear gods, had they fought? Because of me?
Or… over me?
Treacherous tingles coursed through my chest, but I internally swatted them away. Gods, I was a silly girl, indeed…
“That decision is for neither of you to make.” I stepped between them, taking a deep breath because that next words would physically hurt my mouth to say. “But Malyr is right; the risk of forever losing it is too great.”
“There you have it.” Malyr gave Sebian a smug grin and shrugged, then looked at me. “Where exactly is the amulet? You found it?”
“Not exactly…” I shook my head, which caused him to hiss low, which could only mean he once more had an ulterior motive here. “Why are you so eager for me to get it? What is it to you, hmm? Another… how did you put it, token of your affection? Like myanoa?”
“Would that be so hard to believe?”
Sebian scoffed. “I’ll chance a guess here, you can’t bond her without her gift, can you? Probably tried your hardest to get it to tie up there. Clearly without success.”
I looked at Malyr, not surprised in the slightest, but apparently, my heart wasn’t numb to his self-serving motives yet with how it clenched. “Such affection…”
A brief flicker of something crossed his face—Discomfort? Shame?—but it vanished as quickly as it had appeared, replaced by a hard, steely expression which he bore into Sebian. “Tell me, Sebian… Why are you here again?”
“Apparently to make sure you’re not forcing a bond on her while she’s still absolutely clueless about how to reject it.” Sebian stepped up beside me with a swath of his body heat that blanketed my side. “That’s why you’re suddenly behind this idea of her getting her gift, especially since everyone expects her to be a powerful deathweaver. Am I on to something here?”
A deathweaver.
Excitement and fear coursed through me in equal measures. To possess such a gift, commanding over shadows that drove fear and respect into many… I’d never imagined to have such power.
“None of this makes his concern about losing the amulet any less valid,” I said, though I clearly had much to learn if I wanted to avoid getting stuck with Malyr for the rest of my life. “I already knew the only reason he wants to bond is so I can amplify his gift.”
