“I don’t hate him, you know. Just because Ander does.” Nixi’s voice had an unexpectedly wistful note. “If I’d ended up in his clan…I guess I’d be enamored with him too.”
“I wouldn’t say I’m enamored.” Maura’s voice was amused. “I’m keenly aware of his flaws, and he knows it.”
“Right. But he fought for you. Do you know what he plans with the mortal?”
“No.”
Nixi laughed, an unguarded, bubbly laugh, and I felt myself relax slightly—charmed despite myself. Then she said, “Putting her in thepath of those wyrms was a thousand times kinder than putting her in the path of the queen.”
My pulse jumped. I leaned closer, my cheek brushing the stone wall. How was I in the path of the queen? And how had he put me in the path of the wyrms—he had saved me from their attacks, hadn’t he?
“He protected her from the wyrms,” Maura said. “They would’ve been drawn to her anyway, once she’d been marked.”
The spit. I’d been covered in wyrm spit when he pulled me into his arms with that heartstopping smile. “Any other wyrms in the area should be here soon.”
He’d known they’d be drawn to me. He’d used me as bait.
My cheek stung, and I pressed my fingers to it, probing the wound. I’d scraped myself against the stone wall trying to listen more closely.
“Can he protect her from thequeen?” Nixi asked pointedly. Then, “No, don’t look at me that way. Let’s go get some sparkling wine and desserts and pretend for a while we aren’t on opposite sides of warring clans.”
Their footsteps faded. I stayed frozen, every word they’d said still echoing in my head, as if I might become one with the wall.
Fieran had been scheming. Every kindness, every touch of concern, every kiss we’d shared might have been just strategy. He knew how to manipulate my stupid mortal mind.
Butwhy?
I pressed my palm to my chest, feeling the frantic beat of my heart. Tay’s pale face flashed through my mind. And then, after it, the way he’d once been. Easygoing, laughing, ruddy cheeked. He was one of the shortest boys in the village, and girls had always flocked to him anyway because he was so funny and kind and real. Now he was fading.
If Fieran’s games bought my brother back his life, did it even matter if I was the pawn?
I just needed to understand the game.
If I must be a pawn, I would twist the rules to stay on the board.
Twenty
Ididn’t trust Fieran to tell me the truth. But if I cornered him with enough of it, perhaps I could read his reaction.
As I made my way out of the dining hall, he was sitting with the clan, and I could’ve sworn he paused to watch me leave. I shoved through the gilded doors with a sense of relief to escape into the expanse outside; darkness had fallen, but lights glowed in the trees that grew throughout the foyer and luminescent light fell in streaks with the waterfall, casting enough light to see.
How could I unravel Fieran’s intentions? Anayla seemed kind, but she was loyal to Fieran; I had the feeling that despite the way they mocked each other, the clan’s loyalty to Fieran was deep and unyielding.
I didn’t trust Ander either. But I could steal some of his puzzle pieces, and some of Fieran’s, and maybe eventually I’d gather enough bits of Fieran’s plot.
As I started up those damned stairs, golden silk brushed past me. Nixi glided by, her perfume—sweet vanilla and something faintly floral—curling in her wake.
She floated, each step effortless, her skirts whispering against the stone. I hated how easy she made it look.
The shifters had constructed this place for their height, andeveryone was far taller than me. Which meant I felt like a clumsy toddler stumbling up the stairs.
I took one oversized stride, misjudged the height of the next, and promptly barked my shin on the edge.
She glanced back over her shoulder at me, a flash of derision in her eyes. Of course she’d heard me. I tried to jog up the steps, but then, she could probably hear me panting.
Was she seriously heading all the way up to Fieran’s floor? Of course she was. That way we could go on the entire journey together, as she floated effortlessly and I tried not to die. At least if I rolled all the way down these damn stairs, whatever Fieran was plotting would be ruined. The thought cheered me slightly, even if I was out of breath.
She stepped off at the second-to-last landing and strode inside without a backward glance.
