“I want my seat back,” says Sloth. Just then I feel something like an enormous paw land on my thigh. “Can I at least climb in her lap?”
I rise in a rush, the phantom touch releasing me just as quickly. I don’t give Dominic a second glance as I climb over the back of the seat and drop down into the wagon bed. As soon as I’m seated, Dominic flicks the reins and the wagon lurches into motion. Harlow’s eyes burn into the side of my face, an annoying smirk on her lips. I whip my gaze to her and point from me to the Shadowbane. “That’s not what’s happening here.”
She shrugs. “If you say so.”
Calvin takes a swig of his vial before saying, “He’s not usually like that.”
“Ooh,” Harlow says. “So he only wants to hate-fuck Inana?”
“He does not—” I bite the inside of my cheek to keep from repeating her words. Not that I’m shy about sex. It’s just that her words are ludicrous. I divert the topic away from me and lower my voice to a whisper. “Aren’t Shadowbanes celibate? They take a vow, right?”
“I am not celibate.” The voice that answers is Dominic’s, setting me on edge all over again. “Shadowbanes vow to keep their naked bodies from being seen in full.”
I choke on a laugh. “Do you fuck your lovers through a curtain, then?”
“No.” He angles his head over his shoulder to meet my eyes. There’s a darkness in his smile. A devious glint in his eyes. “I fuck my lovers while they’re blindfolded.”
That takes the breath from my lungs. The cruel curve of his lips has me picturing things I have no right to imagine. A woman in a blindfold, crying out in ecstasy as Dominic caresses her skin with his vile tongue. Him gripping her hips as he slams into her from behind. Or maybe she’d straddle him, and his hands would rove over her breasts. Maybe that dark hair of his would be soaked with sweat. Maybe he’d bite his lip with those sharp canines as he comes—
“Inana.” Dominic’s voice is rough. It pulls me out of my fantasy and makes my cheeks burn hot. There’s no way he knew what I was thinking, right? He’s no longer looking at me, his face forward, his posture stiff. A shadow passes over us as we cross beneath a large tree, and I catch sight of his three Shades, all staring down at me with those dark pits for eyes. “Move to the back of the wagon.”
“Excuse me?”
“You’re too close. Move to the back.”
I’m almost of a mind to argue, for who the hell is he to lord it over where I can sit? But the flush coursing through me finds relief at the idea of widening the distance between us. So I rise on unsteady legs, blaming it on the motion of the wagon, and sit at the rear of the bed. I don’t let myself look at Dominic again. Don’t give myself any reason to return to such vulgar imaginings.
It’s then that I realize just how long it’s been since I’ve been aroused. After my fiancé’s betrayal, I lost all interest in romance, and living on the run made even emotionless sex a low priority. Yet that spark I felt as my imagination took over, that sensual heat that pooled low in my belly…I can’t say I hated it. It was almost as tempting as art.
Chapter Twelve
Inana
Once we’re back on the main road, we discover the true nature of our hurry.
“Are we trying to get to Thornfal by sunset?” Calvin calls out to Dominic as he tugs his cloak tight to his body.
It’s late afternoon, and now that we’ve picked up speed, the air rushes over us in an icy current. I pull my own cloak tighter around me and tuck my hand into the pocket that holds my mask. I run my fingers along the smooth filigree. I recognize the name Thornfal as the village where we’ll be taking up our first post. Didn’t Dominic say he’d train us as much as possible before going there? I wouldn’t call the impromptu exercise we just did thorough training. Surely he meant to teach us more than that.
“We won’t make it by sunset,” the Shadowbane says, “but hopefully before sunrise.”
“What’s the hurry?” Harlow asks, her question aimed at Calvin rather than Dominic. “I thought we left the clearing because the location was compromised by Shades.”
“He must have received a missive,” Calvin says.
I frown. “A missive. But when? And from…whom? I saw no rider bearing a message.”
“The church nearest to Thornfal would have sent it.” At our blanklooks, Calvin proceeds to explain. “Priests are the only ones who can quickly communicate with Shadowbanes while they’re traveling, for they have access to common astrotheurgy.”
My interest is piqued at that. I know the church hoards all knowledge of astrotheurgy. Even the Sinless are privy to just a singular branch—solar astrotheurgy—and that’s reserved for the dukes and royals who light the Holy Braziers. And the Shadowbanes too, I suppose, after what Dominic said about his use of magic. I’ve heard rumors that astrotheurgy once was used in common ways, from infusing tonics with healing properties to sending letters in an instant across any distance. All one needed to know was the exact diagram set with angles, numbers, and glyphs representing the gods to effect the desired outcome. If the church still has that knowledge, it makes sense they’d use it when needed. They’re the ones who perform the Absolution ritual on the Sinless, after all.
“We were due in Thornfal three days ago,” Calvin says, “but had to take a little detour for”—he gestures toward the three of us—“you.”
Harlow arches a brow. “Because you found yourselves with a sudden lack of Summoners?”
“Precisely,” he says, oblivious to how ominous that sounds. “So it makes sense the mayor would seek us out if the situation has escalated.”
“It has,” Dominic confirms. “The missive didn’t say how badly, only that the Shade targeting the village has grown more aggressive. Furthermore, if I don’t arrive within twenty-four hours, my post will be given to another Shadowbane.”
