“Bright Lord save me.” Talisa began to pace. “You spun a weave on him.” When she drew near Colum, who now lay senseless in a heap on a nearby chaise, she gave a small, choked cry and whirled away to pace in the opposite direction. Around the room, Adrial’s brother and the other five Fey watched her in silence. “Oh, gods, if anyone suspects—if they find out—you’ll be executed.”
Adrial rose to follow her. “Talisa…”
“No!” She spun to face him and raised her hand. “I’m his wife, Adrial. Hiswife!”
“And you’re my truemate!” he retorted. “DiSebourne can get another wife. Mortals often do. There is no other mate for me but you, and never shall be.”
“Adrial…” A sudden commotion outside the library doors made Talisa break off. She blanched at the sound of familiar male voices calling her name. “Oh, dear gods. My father and brothers are here. Lord Sebourne is with them. Quickly, you’ve got to leave! They can’t find you here!” She whirled and started to race across the room, only to stop in a spurt of panic. “Wait! What about Colum? You can’t leave him like this.”
Adrial turned his head and rapped out, “Ramiel.” The Spirit master moved to Colum’s side, and Talisa saw his hands and eyes begin to glow.
“Talisa?” Her father’s voice called just outside the library doors. The crystal doorknobs began to turn.
“Go!” she cried softly. “Hurry!” Tiny sparks of electricity raced across her skin, raising the hairs on her arms. Adrial and the Fey shimmered into invisibility just as the library doors swung inward.
“DiSebourne!” Talisa’s father stormed into the room and made a beeline for her husband, who had risen to his feet and was rubbing his temples. “What’s this I hear about you planning to take my daughter to the borders? Have you lost what sense the gods gave you? There’s a war on, man!”
Colum turned, his brow knit in confusion. “Lord Barrial? Father?”
“Stay out of this, Barrial,” Lord Sebourne snapped. “You’ve done enough interfering as it is. She’s a Sebourne now, and Sebourne wives go where their husbands guide them. Colum is going home to our estate to help oversee its defenses—and his bridewillaccompany him!”
Talisa’s father whirled on his neighbor. His lips drew back in a snarl, and in that moment, he looked every bit like the wild wolf that dominated the Barrial coat of arms. “You will not endanger my daughter’s life just so your son can feel like a man in control of his wife. If he possessed an ounce of regard for her safety, he would insist she remain here, as far away from the conflict as possible.”
“Oh, would he?” Lord Sebourne sneered. “You’d like that, wouldn’t you? Was arranging for Talisa to be alone here with her lover part of whatever plan you and the Fey were hatching with the king?”
“What in the Seven Hells are you talking about?” Cann exclaimed. “Did a week in Old Castle rot your brain?”
“Don’t play the innocent. Colum and I know what’s been going on here. Don’t we, Colum?”
“I…” Colum shook his head and dragged his fingers through his hair.
Lord Sebourne squinted at him and stepped closer. “What’s wrong with you, boy?” His brows shot up to his hairline.
Alarmed that Lord Sebourne might discover Adrial had been manipulating Colum’s mind, Talisa leapt forward. “Father. Lord Sebourne. Please. There is no need for you to argue.” Talisa put her hand on Colum’s arm. “Colum has already explained why we must go north with you and the king’s army. I was just about to have my maid begin packing when you arrived.”
“Talisa!” her father exclaimed. “It’s out of the question. War has begun. Every estate on the borders is in danger of being overrun by the Eld. You could be killed.”
«Shei’tani, nei! I’ve already told you, it is too dangerous.»
Adrial’s voice was so clear in her head, it shocked her that the others could not hear him. The rich tones shivered up and down her spine like a warm caress, the sound so intoxicatingly sensual it was all she could do not to groan aloud and rush towards the spot where she now knew he was standing.
Her reaction solidified her resolve. Adrial and her father were wrong. The most dangerous place for her wasn’t in the north near the battlefront. It was right here in Celieria City—especially if Colum went north with his father and left her behind. Talisa harbored no illusions. If she were left alone with Adrial—honor, marital vows, even duty to the Bright Lord be damned—she would not long withstand the lure of his presence. She would throw away everything to follow him. To be with him.
And that meant she could not stay.
“We’re borderfolk, Da. We’ve lived in the jaws of the beast our whole lives, and we don’t run from danger. Colum is my husband, and if he is leaving, then I must accompany him.”
“Well.” Lord Sebourne regarded her with an expression that flickered between surprise, suspicion, and reluctant approval. “I’m glad to see you’re thinking like the wife of a Sebourne. It’s about time.”
Talisa bit her lip. Shame rode her hard. She wasn’t any sort of a proper wife for Colum. She never had been. “Yes, my lord.”
“Then see to it my son and you are packed and ready to depart within the bell. We ride out with the king. I’ll send a carriage at half ten to collect you.”
“Yes, my lord.” Talisa dipped a brief curtsy. “Colum and I will be ready and waiting. Now if you’ll please excuse me, I’ll go see to the packing.” She turned to exit the room.
At the foot of the stairs, a warm breeze brushed across her face, and Adrial’s voice whispered in her ear.
«I won’t leave you, shei’tani. No matter your Path, I will walk it beside you.»
