Seeing his face almost blanched white with pain, Tate couldn’t help fussing over him. “Next time, I say run. You should run.”
If he had, he wouldn’t be like this now, struggling to remain upright even as he leaned against the wall.
Alive and in pain was better than dead but it didn’t make Tate happy.
Dewdrop flapped his good hand at her. “Give over. You should know by now none of us are abandoning you to face danger alone. Get used to it.”
Tate huff sounded a little wet. “Stubborn ass.”
“Takes one to know one,” Dewdrop said without opening his eyes.
Ryu helped Tate up. “We should head back. The emperor needs to be made aware of the new situation.”
Dewdrop opened one eye. “Not just him. If that crazy goddess is truly under Nathan’s control, the entire underground needs to be informed.”
Dewdrop’s face was tight. More than any of them, he had friends spread throughout the Night Court. With Ai having switched sides, it meant every single person currently in her territory was in danger.
“She’s not fully awakened,” Tate said suddenly.
“How do you know?” Ryu asked.
Tate shook her head. “A feeling.”
She didn’t want to tell him the origin of that feeling rested in the data Christopher had passed to her—or the way it felt like certain things had been unlocked in Tate’s mind. Almost as if the barrier separating her from her memories had been removed. They crowded close, just waiting for her to reach for them.
“Nor do I think Ai has fully fallen to him. Otherwise, we would already be dead.”
Tate was under no illusion. Ai hesitated, only releasing the shock wave after Tate had reached Dewdrop. Though whether that was because of some lingering feelings of attachment to Tate or whether Ai was playing some deeper game, Tate didn’t know.
Seeing the way Dewdrop listed to the side, relying more and more on the wall to remain upright, Tate shook herself free of her contemplation.
“Let’s head up. We can talk about this later,” she said.
“I don’t suppose we can avoid Night for the next however long it takes me to heal.”
“What do you think?” Tate asked in an arch voice, knowing exactly what Dewdrop was worried about.
“He’s going to treat me like an idiot cub, isn’t he?”
“Oh, I’m pretty sure it’s going to be worse than that.”
Having an adventure without Night and then daring to get injured in the course of it? Oh yeah, Night was never going to let him hear the end of this.
Tate felt a moment of levity. For once, it wasn’t her in the hot seat.
Dewdrop groaned and staggered into the darkness.
Tate’s smile died, disappearing as if it had never been as she glanced at the spot where Ai had stood.
Ryu touched her shoulder. “Come on. There’s nothing you can do now.”
Tate’s exhale was long and sad. He was right about that. There was no way to recover Christopher’s body, nor could she pursue Nathan. As soon as she took the first step into the tunnel, Ai would know and react.
She closed her eyes and faced forward. “I know.”
Even if it didn’t make her feel any better to admit that.
SEVENTEEN
