For the moment, things are calm.
I see Phoenix’s shoulders straighten. “Are you decent?”
I finish buttoning my pants. “Yes.”
She turns around and takes a breath like she’s steadying herself. “So we haven’t exactly had a lot of time to talk, huh?”
I shrug, offering a smile. “We were a little busy dealing with the fallout from that almost-end-of-the-world thing.”
Plus the fact I think both of us willfully allowed the aftermath to distract us from the reality of our upcoming nuptials. But I don’t add that part.
She nods, looking down at her hands. “I don’t think I told you before, but I’m in school. I’m getting my Ph.D. in Ancient Religions.”
I blink several times. “Vlad lets you?—?”
Her eyes flash up. “Vlad doesn’tlet medo anything. He doesn’t get to decide what I do anymore.” But there’s less bite in it than I expected. Like she’s defensive rather than aggressive. “I live my own life.”
“I’m really glad, Phoenix,” I say gently. “I know things were different last time I was here.” I didn’t know much at the time, except that she’d disappear at odd hours to do jobs for him.And sometimes come back withdrawn, unwilling to talk to me or Sabra for days sometimes.
She stares at me for a long moment before her eyes drop. “Yeah. He and I came to an understanding after you left.”
I feel my eyebrows go up. I’ve never known Vlad to beunderstandingabout anything.
She sees my skepticism. A small smile tugs at her mouth—not a fake one, either. “As in, Imadehim understand some things. It involved compulsion on everyone around him. Some threats. And a binding contract written in blood that even he can’t wriggle out of.”
“Phoenix—” The name comes out impressed. Awed, even. “You stood up to him.”
“I stood up to him,” she confirms quietly. Her eyes meet mine, and there’s something vulnerable there. “I wasn’t going to spend the rest of my existence being his weapon.”
My chest tightens. “I’m so proud of you.”
She looks away quickly, but not before I see her throat work like she’s swallowing hard. “Don’t.”
“Don’t what?”
“Don’t be proud of me for doing what I should have done centuries ago.” Her voice is rough.
“Phoenix, we never talked about it, but I want to apologize for how I was back then?—”
She holds up a hand. “Please don’t.”
“I wasn’t conscious enough of what you were dealing with. I should have thought more before I?—”
“Layden.” My name on her tongue stops me. She so rarely uses it. “You were fine. Better than fine. You were...” She trails off, shakes her head. “If you’d stayed, Vlad would have found a way to use you against me. We both know it.”
The words land differently than I expected. Not as an accusation. More like... an explanation. Maybe even a regret.
“Like he did the second I came back,” I finish for her.
She nods, still not looking at me. “Yeah.”
The cold, familiar ache seeps into my chest, but it’s different this time. Because I get it now. She didn’t push me away because shedidn’tcare. She pushed me away because shedid.
And now we’re both trapped in Vlad’s web again.
But this time we’re together.
“You tried to protect me,” I say quietly.
