Letting myself into Asinia’s cell, I sat in front of her. She looked much, much healthier than I’d ever hoped for. Her eyes were bright, and even as thin as she was, she was sitting up by herself, tearing off a hunk of bread.
“I’m sorry,” we both said, and she laughed. The sound was incredibly out of place down here, but it felt good to hear it from her.
“I thought you were bad at lying.” I attempted a smile. And yet, she’d kept the same secret I had. And neither of us had ever known.
“I never let myself think about it,” she admitted. “It didn’t feel like lying, because in my mind, my power didn’t exist. I’d buried it so deep, I never dared think about it unless I was alone in my bed at night.”
I’d done the same until recently, when I’d finally realized nothing was going to change and I needed to prepare to run.
“What was your plan, Asinia? For the Gifting?”
She gave me a shaky smile. “I figured I’d be executed then. But some part of me thought I could escape to the city, maybe pay someone to replicate the blue mark and disappear. Or get on a ship to someplace new. There are places where we would be safe. I know there are. What were you going to do?”
“I think some part of me always knew I’d run. I’d hoped for a miracle, but I’d known one day I’d have to flee the village. Once they found me, my plan was the same as yours. I was going to get to the city and get on a ship.”
“But you came here instead.”
“The moment I learned you’d been taken, my plans changed.”
“Even if…even if I don’t get out, it means everything that you tried.”
“You’re getting out.”
She attempted a smile, but her expression crumpled. “They killed my mother,” she whispered.
I pulled her into my arms. “I know,” I said. “And I swear to you, they’ll pay.”
“And your mother.”
“Yes.” I hadn’t allowed myself to mourn her properly, because I knew if I thought about her too much, if I considered her last moments…
“Pris?”
Her voice was barely a whisper, but I shook my head. “Call me Setella. Tibris is Loukas,” I murmured into her ear. “Don’t say Vicer’s name at all.”
She pulled away, her mouth falling open. “Ti…Loukas is here?”
“Oh yes. He’s the reason you’re alive. He was healing you a little each day, but you kept getting worse. It was…”
“Like your father. Gods, it must have reminded him of…”
Of trying desperately to keep our father alive. Only now he knew it wasn’t because our magic had been sacrificed to the gods. It was all for the king’s greed.
I wanted Sabium dead more than I’d ever wanted anything before. In my quiet moments, I fantasized about it.
“Who was the man who helped me last night?”
I had a feeling I knew. I lowered my voice until it was nothing but a whisper. “What did he look like?”
“I didn’t see him. He stayed hidden, but I could hear the healer murmuring to him.”
My throat tightened, and I took a deep breath. He’d come through for me. Even after I’d left him alone in the king’s chamber.
“His name is Lorian. He’s a mercenary. Don’t worry about him.”
Asinia’s eyes were already growing heavy. “Eat a little more before you sleep.” I pushed the bread toward her.
She took it, absently shoving it into her mouth. Something in my chest relaxed at the sight of her eating. She’d lost so much weight, her dress was gaping on her.
“What day is it?” she asked around her next mouthful.
I knew what she was asking. My heart was being squeezed in my chest. “You’re not going to burn, Asinia. I’m going to get you out of here.”
“Don’t forget about me,” Demos muttered, and I turned to look at him.
He’d pressed himself up against the bars, still listening to our every word. When I frowned at him, he shrugged unrepentantly. He looked better too. Even with the scant amount of food we’d been able to bring him.
“I won’t forget about you,” I said seriously. He stared at me for a long moment, and then he smiled. I had that vague feeling of recognition again.
“I have to get back,” I whispered. “I’ll see you tomorrow night.”
Asinia hugged me, and it was a long time before she finally let go.
Leaving her in that cell when she’d been out of her mind with fever had been the hardest thing I’d ever done. Leaving her there when she was alert, her lower lip trembling…
“I’ll keep an eye on her,” Demos said gruffly.
Asinia firmed her mouth. “I don’t need you to keep an eye on me.”
He ignored her. I nodded my thanks, and she gave me a betrayed look. I didn’t know what exactly had happened between them, but obviously Asinia wasn’t pleased by her neighbor.
I froze time and opened the dungeon door.
The guards were standing, one of them gesturing to the spot on his belt where the keys should be hanging. The other was frowning at him from his place against the wall. I sucked in a sharp breath.
I dropped the keys on the floor behind the guard. Then I memorized the standing guard’s face. He was likely to keep a close eye on those keys now. I could no longer risk visiting Asinia when he was one of the guards on duty. I cursed myself as I walked back toward my rooms. I’d taken too long in the dungeon. And I couldn’t afford to make mistakes like that.
At the last moment, I headed left instead of right, moving toward Lorian’s rooms. Since he was already irritated with me, I knocked.
He opened the door, grabbed my arm, and hauled me into his room.
“Not sneaking in tonight, wildcat?”
Gods, this man annoyed me.
“I came to thank you. For what you did for Asinia. And, ah, sorry for leaving you last night.”
He slowly shook his head. “You’re not sorry.”
“You don’t know that,” I said sullenly. Of course I wasn’t sorry. But I was grateful he’d followed through on his promise.
He just smiled. My lower lip stuck out. “You deserved it.”
His smile widened. And then I was in his arms, pressed against the door. His mouth was so close to mine, tingles of anticipation swept through my body. I watched him, wide-eyed, enraptured, desperate to see what he would do next.
Lorian raised one hand, leaning close and tucking a lock of my hair behind my ear. His finger brushed the shell of my ear, and I shivered.
His eyes heated. And he did it again.
I sighed, and he captured the sound with his mouth, his tongue thrusting deep.
His growl was so low, it was more of a rumble, and my nipples hardened. My tongue twined with his until I was clawing at him, dragging him closer. He lifted me in his arms, and I wrapped my legs around him, holding him close. He was hard and thick as he settled between my thighs, rocking against me.
My mind went blank.
And I moaned.
He pulled away long enough to curse, and then his huge hand was cradling my head, his lips were pressed against my throat, and his warm breath danced along my skin. He nuzzled a spot on the side of my neck, and I arched.
“You taste so sweet. Will you taste this sweet everywhere?”
The thought of him tasting me there made me groan, and he cursed again, his mouth dragging up my neck until he found my lips once more.