The Hunter held her gaze, unblinking, but the silence that followed felt charged. “You’re pushing into things you shouldn’t,” he said quietly, almost too calmly.
Her pulse spiked. “Tell mewhy.”
“Does it matter? If it gets the job done, why should the reason behind it make a difference?”
“Thewhyalways matters,” she hissed, stepping closer.
He breathed out slowly. “This isn’t about morality, Hallowed. It’s about survival.”
Her lips curled into a cold smile. “Spoken like someone who’s willing to justify anything to get what he wants.”
“Believe it or not, I’m trying to help you.” His voice dropped lower, that dangerous edge creeping back in. “And if you keep digging, you might not like what you find.”
“Oh, I’m sure I won’t. But you don’t get to decide what I do with the truth.” Her fingers brushed the necklace against her skin and her heart kicked into high gear. “I demand you tell me the truth as part of your oath.”
A rush of heat flared against her chest, and she saw it—the brief flicker of resistance in his eyes as the compulsion hit. His whole body seemed to lock up, muscles taut, and he shook his head like he was trying to force it off, trying to fight it.
“You’re really going to waste one of the questions onthis?”
She gave a single nod.
He exhaled sharply, his eyes darkening. “I don’t just want to break my seal. I want you free. From everyone.”
The air seemed to vanish, her breath stalling in her chest.Free? The word slammed into her, each syllable sinking deep, dragging her down like a riptide pulling her under.
“You mean to break the Binding Sigil completely?” She shook her head, her mind reeling, disbelief warring with a wild, desperate hope. “Why? Why would you help me with this?”
His jaw worked, but when he spoke, it was like every word was being torn out of him. “Because I need something from you, too.”
Of course. There was always a catch. Always a price. She swallowed, her throat suddenly dry. “And what is it you need from me?”
“My brother.” The words scraped from him through clenched teeth. “I need your help to save my brother.”
Chapter 38
“You want me to help you save the person whotried to kill me?”
“Yes.”
The Hunter stood before her, shoulders rigid, muscles coiled tight. Every inch of him was braced for the inevitable conflict, but something in his stance had shifted—he wasn’t resisting the compulsion anymore. The weight of the oath no longer tethered him.
Elara’s heart lurched, a cutting, painful jolt. She had just wasted all three questions.Curse me and my absolute inability to mind my own business.
But… even after her last question, the one that didn’t count, he had still answered,“Yes.”An honest answer, freely given, despite no longer being bound by the oath. Just like all those months ago, after Fenlin’s murder. Honest, even when he didn’t owe her anything. He might still answer, if she framed it right—if she hit the right nerve.
“Were you going to tell me at some point, or just hope I didn’t notice until it was too late?”
He didn’t flinch, didn’t even blink.
She let out a dull, humorless laugh. “You've lost your mind.”
“You knew him.”
Her body went still, cold creeping up her spine. “What?”
“You were… close. In a way.”
Close?She couldn’t form a response before he turned away, striding toward a large, weathered cabinet tucked between two towering bookshelves. She watched, frozen, as his fingers traced over the runes carved into the wood, dismantling the wards that layered thickly over the cabinet—wards that seemed as strong, if not stronger, than the ones that had trapped her in her cell.
