He can smell Raven on me.
Despite the shower, despite the soap and steam and scrubbing, there's enough of Raven's scent clinging to my skin that another alpha can detect it. The honey-sweet smell that's uniquely his, mixed with my own blood-and-steel and Cosima's moonlight.
Geo's jaw tightens, and something flashes in his one eye that looks dangerously close to jealousy.
Before he can say anything—before this can turn into yet another pissing contest or fistfight—Cosima opens the door leading out. "Are we doing this or not?"
She's nervous. I can see it in the way her hands twist together, the slight tremor in her fingers she's trying to hide.
Geo sees it too. His expression softens in a way I've never seen before, all that gruff hostility melting into something almost gentle.
"Hey," he says, moving toward her. "You'll be in good hands. The best doctors in Surhiira are going to be tending to you." He pauses, glancing at me and Knight. "And we won't leave you for a second."
She nods, but her throat works as she swallows. "I know."
She straightens her spine and lifts her chin, and just like that, the vulnerability is tucked behind that mask worthy of a queen. "Come on," she says, forcing brightness into her voice that doesn't quite reach her eyes. "Let's just get this over with."
She moves back toward the door, but stops to glance at Knight. "Did you eat?" she asks softly.
Knight's growl is low, rumbling. An affirmative.
What the fuck did he eat, exactly?
Do I evenwantto know?
I watch the exchange, fascinated despite myself. They have their own language, these two. A way of communicating that goes beyond words, beyond the barriers that keep the rest of us at arm's length.
"Good," Cosima murmurs, stroking the filigree etched on the cheek of his mask like she's petting a giant cat. "Hope you brushed your teeth with straight bleach after."
Knight's head tilts slightly, his burning blue eyes tightening with what might actually be a frown. It’s the first I’ve seen of an expression from him outside of total blankness. Even hidden behind the impassive features of his mask, he somehow manages to look confused.
"She's being sarcastic, big guy," Geo says, moving to clap Knight on his metal shoulder. The sound echoes through the room, and Knight's gaze swivels to him without his head turning away from Cosima, pupils blowing wide before shrinking to pinpricks.
There's a moment where I think he might take offense and tear Geo’s arm off. But instead, he just huffs. Almost like a laugh.
Shit. Cosima was right.
Progress.
Cosima leans up, pressing a final kiss to Knight's mask where his cheek would be, then turns toward the door. "Alright. Let's go before I lose my nerve."
We fall into formation around her without discussing it. Knight takes point, his massive frame clearing the way ahead. Geo flanks her left, I take the right, and we move through the palace corridors like a military escort.
Guess we are, in a sense.
The servants we pass all give us a wide berth, their eyes widening at the sight of Knight. Whispers follow in our wake, but I tune them out. All that matters is getting Cosima to the medical wing and making sure whatever happens there doesn't break her.
The walk feels longer than it should. Every step brings us closer to answers we might not want. Closer to truths that could shatter everything. Today is the first step to freeing Cosima from the hold her father has on her.
I just hope it's the right fucking one.
My mind keeps circling back to what Azarel said. The chip in her brain. The kill switch.
The thought makes rage burn hot in my gut.
I've done horrible shit in my life. Killed countless men who deserved it and plenty who probably didn't. Ran guns that ended up in the hands of warlords and tyrants. Built an empire on blood and chaos.
But I've never hurt an innocent. Let alone turned an innocent into a fuckingpuppet. The kind of monster who would do that...
