I took the back staircase down, coming upon three fae lords, something I’d never seen in the servant’s areas. I kept my eyes trained on the floor, but I could feel their predatory gazes slithering down my spine after I passed. I was grateful to reach the bottom and slip into the back hall leading to the rear door without one of them stopping me.
Someone called out from farther down the hall, and when I turned, he lifted his hand, striding my way with a slimy smile on his face. Nope, not letting this fae guy try to lure me.
I bolted through the rear door and outside, slamming into someone standing on the outer platform.
Kerune latched onto me, steadying me with a too-tight grip on my upper arms. “There you are.”
“Yes, here I am.” I wrenched away from him, backing until I ran into the stone building. A spiked edge stabbed my hip, but I ignored the flash of pain.
“You didn’t answer my question.” His voice slithered like a serpent’s, his tone sucking all the warmth from the air.
“I don’t plan to.” I flitted, landing inside the shed where we kept the tools we used to clean dragon stalls.
Would he follow?
My breathing rasped around me as my heart pummeled my ribcage. I swiped hair off my face and hated how my fingers shook as I undid the bottom of my braid and added the loose strands of hair before securing it once more.
I remained near the row of carts for what felt like forever, waiting to see if he’d follow to finish off what Delaine started.
Bad place to hide if he does,my brain aiming for self-preservation shouted.
I rushed to the shed door and squeaked it open, peering around but not finding Kerune outside. With my small knife lying across my sleeve, the reassuring hilt nestled in my palm, I stepped out of the shed and strode over to the aerie, ducking inside the cool, welcoming darkness.
As always, the scent of dragons and the soft murmur of sand beneath my boots reassured me as I walked down the hall. My tension eased, and I wiggled my spine to shake off any unease that lingered.
When I bumped into someone, I was able to hold back my yelp. I didn’t gut them either, though I flipped the blade around in preparation for such a move.
“Tempest,” Airia said, shifting to the side to lean against the wall beside the row of saddles. “Phew.” She swiped her hand across her forehead. “You spooked me.”
I slid the knife into the sheath on my thigh, trying to make the movement appear casual. “You startled me too. It’s dark in here.” Scary out there.
“Yeah.” Her gaze traveled to the entrance. “I like how cool it is here even when it’s hot outside. I feel more relaxed here than anywhere else.”
“I feel the same. I’ve always been around dragons, and when I’m not near them, I swear I can feel the pull of the closest aerie. It calls in my mind, telling me to come visit.”
“Is that why you come here? I heard more about you.”
“Such as?” I asked.
“That you’re more than a plain old Nullen collared for periodic draining—to the controller, that is.”
My skin prickled, and I peered around, though we appeared to be the only ones inside the aerie other than dragons shuffling their claws across the sand within their stalls. “Who’s spreading gossip?”
“Will.”
Since he was Delaine’s collared Nullen and on my watch-out-for list, this was hardly surprising. How much had Delaine shared with him?
“What else did he say?” I asked.
“The usual slick stuff guys spout about women.”
“Too bad he’s like so many of them when it comes to things like that. They just love to gossip about us.”
“They sure do.”
I wasn’t sure what I should do about this, if anything. I could tell Will to keep his mouth shut, but I was sure Delaine had pushed him into acting this way. He might stop now that she was dead.
“I guess I should get to work,” I said.
