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Faris and Grace said nothing, but their expressions told all.
“I see. You each believed you could gain the upper hand and steal me for your exclusive use. So how’d that work out for you? Not at all. You fought over your precious toy, and in the end, no one got me.”
“I will admit that I underestimated Faris,” said Grace. “Or perhaps I overestimated my soldiers’ martial prowess. I never imagined Faris could make it past my defenses and steal you from me.”
“I did not steal her.” Faris’s voice had frozen over.
“Ah, ‘claiming what is rightfully yours’ then?” Grace snapped. “That’s how you see it, right? Calling it by another name doesn’t change the essence of what you did, Faris. Stealing is stealing.”
“We had a deal, Grace. The child was to be shared.”
“A deal you had every intention of breaking.”
He kept his face carefully blank. “I suppose we’ll never know now, will we?”
“I suppose not.”
They were glaring at each other so hard that the walls were covered in frost. Literally. Gin was still busily working to open the door, so she hadn’t noticed, but Tessa looked at me as if to say ‘your parents are so messed up’.
Yeah, didn’t I know it.
It was Faris who broke the steely silence. “I didn’t make it past your defenses, Grace.”
She blinked in confusion. “What?”
“I didn’t steal Leda. Or reclaim her.”
Grace laughed. “You expect me to believe that?”
“At this point, I expect very little of you, Grace.”
“I know what happened, Faris, and I know you were behind it. Leda was only a few weeks old when you came for her. I was staying in a secluded fortress, guarded by my most loyal soldiers. I thought Leda was safe, that no one could penetrate our defenses.”
“I didn’t—”
“You did,” Grace cut him off shortly. “One day, I was tired, worn out from all the rituals I’d performed on Leda during my long pregnancy. I’d spent those weeks since birth recovering, trying to regain my strength, to grow strong enough for the final ritual on Leda. To make Leda strong. I went to get a drink of Venom from the next room. When I returned, Leda was gone. She’d disappeared without a trace. Vanished into thin air. Like magic.”
“You believe I did this.” His halo flashed briefly red before it returned to its usual golden hue.
“I know you did this,” Grace growled. “For centuries, you have been collecting magical beings with unique powers, Faris. A djinn could have teleported in and taken Leda and been gone the next instant, before I returned. That’s how you got past my guards.”
“I don’t have any djinn.” Faris cast a speculative look on Tessa.
“Don’t even think about it,” I warned him.
“Very few would dare speak to me in such a manner.” He shot me a look laden with threat.
I allowed a smile to stretch my mouth, but my eyes remained locked on to him. “Well, I guess I’m just special.”
“Yes, you are. One of a kind, in fact.” His tone was icy. “Fortunately for you.”
“Ah, Pops, stop it. I’m tearing up here.”
“You are a very peculiar…”
“Weapon?” I filled in the blank for him.
“He was going to say person, but he just couldn’t bring himself to do it,” Grace laughed. “To refer to you as a person would be an admission that you’re actually a living being with a will of her own.”
