“I don’t think I can trust you,” she says, almost like a question, locking eyes with me.
I don’t want to lie, not toher.
“You should trust your guts, then.”
“Why?”
“My old man wants me watching you. In case… you’re a spy.” The words slip out before I can stop them. The urge to reassure her is bigger than my logic. When she’s around, my guard drops. Vi makes me feel weightless; air in the depths of this abyss.
The truth hits her like a punch, confirming something she was suspicious of.
“What if I can’t control it?” Avilyna whispers.
I raise an eyebrow, confused. “Control what?”
“The thing that could make me pass as the enemy.” Her vulnerability hits me like a sucker punch.
“Look, only your actions count. If it’s something you can’t change, how can you be blamed for it?” I slide my hand into hers and squeeze lightly. No idea why, just some gut pull making me act. If I can’t have her, at least I can protect her, and maybe these moments of good deeds will be enough to keep me from drifting too far from duty.
“I’m not a witch. Not just some mundane.” I keep quiet, careful not to scare her off. “I think I’m… a valkyrie.” Her words fall softly, almost swallowed by the night. Without my lycan senses, I might’ve missed it.
But everything clicks.
Why has she been hidden away? Why does she have that raw connection to Kvirr without any training? How the hell did she survive that demon attack?
She finally lifts her gaze to meet mine, scared as hell, and damn, that rips me open.
I keep my face neutral, “So?”
“What do you mean, so?”
Yeah, what the hell do I mean?
Valkyries were the first suspects in the Bloodmoon War. They were all hunted down forinterrogation,and because of that, they nearly disappeared. But who could blame them when there’s no real justice? When the power isn’t equally divided? And never has been. During the first years after the tragedy, the ones who were arrested, well, we never saw them again. So really, who could blame them for disappearing?
“As I said, it’s your actions that matter, Vi. But let’s keep this between us for now.” She slowly smiles.
A real, rare one, full and shy, the kind that lights up the darkest corners of your soul and wrecks you all at once. And just like that, she becomesmyfucking weakness. Mine, whether I want her to be or not. Avilyna will terrorize me until I die, I just know it.
And what a goddamn beautifullittle terror she is.
I am so fucked.
“I figured.”
“Smart girl,” I growl it out, her cheeks flush, and yeah, I’m a little proud.
“Why do you call me Vi?”
“Your name’s a mouthful.”
“Better than some three-letter abbreviation. Your parents were lazy.”
“Probably.” She doesn’t expect the honesty in my tone, and suddenly she’s pulling me in, arms wrapping tight around my neck, crass forgotten.
“What the hell are you doing?” My voice gets swallowed in her curls.
“Shh. Don’t question it, just enjoy it.” Her voice is soft, a whisper that threads through the tension gripping me. I’m stiff as stone, every muscle locked tight, but her warmth presses against me. Slow and steady, and something inside cracks, then melts.
