“Very top of the central tower of the citadel,” he explained. “The roof. He goes there when he wants to get broody and upset. Thinks it’s his secret place. I don’t know what he calls it, but from up there, you can see everything for miles around.”
I nodded slowly. That sounded likesomewhere Caz would go given the mood he was in. “Take me there.”
“What?” Dirk shook his head. “No way. I have my orders to take you back to his quarters and keep you there safely.”
“Dirk. We aren’t going to play this game,” I said, looking at him but not really seeing him. All I could picture was Caz sitting on the edge of the roof, surrounded by the gargoyles that dotted every wall. The black clouds would be gathering around him, and he would let them.
Unless I stopped him.
“Exactly. You’re going to come with me back to his quarters and make sure my ass doesn’t get in any trouble with him,” Dirk said, moving to block the corridor Caz had taken.
“How are you going to make me do that without touching me?” I said, taking a step toward him. “If Caz smells me on you …”
“Are you threatening me?” Dirk rumbled unhappily as he gave ground.
“Only if you don’t do the smart thing,” I said. “I’m going to go see him, Dirk. He needs me. I will tell him I did not play fair and threatened you so that you are in no trouble. You will be the best guard to walk me up there, ensuring I arrive unharmed.”
Dirk didn’t look happy. “This is gonna hurt,” he muttered but fell in beside me.
“What is?”
“The beating Caz is gonna give me later.” He already seemed resigned to it.
“He’s not going to give you a beating.”
“I’m disobeying a direct order.”
“No, you aren’t. I’m just altering his order. I’m his mate, which means I’m technically of his rank. So I can do that.”
Dirk snorted. “That won’t fly until you bear his bite mark.”
I fingered my shirt absently, under which the faint green line was etched. “If he tries to punish you, I will let him know that he is … making a mistake.”
“I’m sure that will go over well for both of us,” Dirk said dryly.
We began ascending stairs and kept ascending. Twice we had to change stairwells. They became narrower as well, less used.
“Through there,” Dirk said, pointing at a door. “There’s a study room. A metal staircase inside leads up to the roof itself. I’ll stay out here. It will be better that way.”
He pushed open the single door. The face was carved with a ferocious dragon head, its mouth open and ready to breathe ice across everything.
I entered the study and looked around. Two walls were covered in bookshelves. Oddly enough, each book seemed the exact same. Black, tall, and with gold writing on the spine.
A magnificent desk sat in the middle of the room. Broad and deep, it curved in an arc around the seat, a dark, plush thing with a back high enough to loom over even Caz if he sat in it.
In the corner was the staircase that Dirk mentioned, which would lead to the roof, the very top of the Ice Citadel.
I climbed it, only hesitating at the top before pushing the door open. Was I doing the right thing? Caz wanted to be alone, but this was all my fault. I had left the room without telling anyone and gotten myself in trouble. I owed it to him to apologize and do what I could to make it better.
“Caz?” I called as I pushed the door open, air blasting my hair back and out wildly. “It’s me, Anna.”
“Go back,” a dark voice growled from somewhere out of sight, the winds this high up tearing and pulling at the sound before it reached me.
I paused. His voice was different. Deeper. Harsher, but also more sibilant. Which meant …
“Are you okay? Did you shift?” I stepped out a bit more.
“I said go back!” Caz roared, and ice spread across the stony surface. “You’re in danger here.”
