She slapped his face.
He grabbed her arm and held it. “Wex said he told you.”
“Told me what?”
“What it means.”
“It marks me as yours, right? So everyone will know.”
“Yes, they’ll know.”
“And no one else can have me? Because I belong to a hunter?”
“No,” he said sharply. “It’s not a mark of possession.”
“What is it then?” she asked.
“It’s my vow. It means that anyone who tries to do you harm will have a Macon hunter in his wake. You’re under my protection forever. No one will ever hurt you. It carries a death sentence.”
She stared at him.
“What if I marry someone else? And live millions of miles away from Canypsco?”
“I’ll always know where you are. You and your family will always be safe.”
“And in return?”
“Nothing. It’s one-sided. It’s my vow to you. Nothing more.”
“Why?”
“Because I recognize you.”
“You recognize me? From where?” she asked.
“A place that has no name.”
“I don’t understand.”
“You don’t need to.”
“I thought you were going to train me to survive?”
“You don’t need training. Just show the mark. Powerful men, bad men, they’ll all know what it means.”
“But if you challenge someone like the magistrate, he’ll just have you killed.”
He let out an amused sound.
“You couldn’t stop them from taking Larsinc. I don’t understand why you think they’ll succumb to the pressure of a tattoo when you were there in person.”
“Linc is a warrior from my crew, but he doesn’t bear a mark from me. If the magistrate or anyone arrests you now and tries to put you in the Wilds, he will not live out the month. Whether his kin comes for me or a band of assassins he’s hired is chasing me, he will still be dead because there are no better hunters than Macons. He’ll die first. I’ll see to it.”
“So it may be a death sentence for you, too?”
“It may be.”
“I ask you again,” she whispered, putting a hand on his cheek. “Why?”
“And again, I say... I recognize you.”
She kissed him, sliding her tongue into his mouth. His arm tightened around her waist and he gripped the rock ledge with his free hand.
“Put me inside you,” he said. “Ride me until we both come.”
She wrapped her legs around him and did exactly that.
