So why did that option sound so much less appealing than what was standing in front of me?
My eyes traveled back to Alastor. He was rigid, his face flat. He didn’t add anything, only nodded his agreement with my assessment of the situation.
“We’ll travel outside Ring-Around-the-Hill, of course,” I continued. “To be safe. No reason to draw any more attention here. We can go up into the hills, somewhere secluded. And be done with it before the sun is high.”
She nodded, slowly. Like she didn’t fully agree but didn’t want to say so.
“Did you want to stay?” I asked.Let it be her decision.
Her eyes snapped to me so fast that I knew I’d hit on the truth. Or close enough.
“No one’s going to force you to go,” I said carefully. “It’s your choice, butterfly.”
“But what’s the alternative?” Alastor countered. “If she stays here, she’ll always be in danger. Both from the Circle, and from…herself.” He gestured to her shaking hands. “She doesn’t belong here, and she never should have come to Therador in the first place.”
Marigold stiffened as my brother spoke, color returning to her cheeks. She was a sensitive thing, allowing herself to be riled at what was objectively the truth of her situation. All of us could see it, even if we wanted to pretend otherwise.
But perhaps she realized as much, because she deflated slightly before saying, “You’re right. It’s best if I go.”
That settled it, then.
There will be other distractions, I told myself firmly.Other pleasures.
Still, it was a pity. The exquisite taste of her still lingered on my tongue, sweet and luscious. There was so much pent-up desire in her, just waiting to be spent. I’d been enjoying drawing it out of her, bit by bit.
“We should leave as soon as possible,” Alastor said. “Before any of the others track her here.”
Why the sudden urgency, Brother?I silently growled.What are your true feelings in all of this?But I’d let Alastor have his secrets for now. They’d come out eventually.
He was right, though—now that the decision was made, it was better to be done with this.
Pluck off the petals
Slice off the wing
I bore down on the cut on my finger until a fresh spike of pain cleared my head once more.
To Marigold, I said, “Gather your things. We’ll leave as soon as you’re ready.”
“I’ll go get us some horses,” Alastor said. “Meet you by the northwest tunnel.”
He marched off, and I followed him with my eyes, still wondering what he was hiding from me. He was too eager to be rid of her.
“I don’t really have any things,” Marigold said when my brother was gone. She was still twitchy, still fidgeting as if she couldn’t bear to be still, even for a moment. “Just… There’s a little boy asleep in my room. His name is Jex. Will you tell him I said goodbye? And help him find his family?”
“Of course,” I said.Maybe Talon can finally do something useful with that extensive ‘network’ of his.
“Then…I guess I’m ready.” She put on a brave face, and I respected her enough to refrain from questioning her commitment to her decision.
Instead, I slipped closer to her, letting my mouth twist into a smile.
“Tell me honestly, butterfly, are you going to miss me?” The madness was pressing at my mind again, trying to get in, but I focused my attention on her.
She’d given a little jump at my question, but now some of the fear and tension left her expression as a blush bloomed on her cheeks. Her fingers fluttered at her sides.
“Are you all right with me going home and leaving our bargain unfulfilled?” she asked, a playfulness returning to her. She was getting better at our game, and it was a shame I wouldn’t get to see how she continued to progress.
“We’re leaving quite a bit of unfinished business between us,” I mused, reaching out and sliding a finger beneath her chin. “I suppose I’m going to have to find a way to live with that.” I could feel a tremor in her skin that I suspected had nothing to do with her sensitivity to essence. The voice in my head quieted a little more as the air thickened between us.
