The image of another recruit touching her, of anyone threatening what was?—
I stopped the thought cold. She was nothing to me but an anomaly, a potential asset or threat to be assessed like any other.
Yet the leather in my hands felt oddly personal, as if they would mark her.
“These will do,” I said. “Thank you.”
“Of course, Sire.”
“I’ll take this as well unless it was made for someone in particular.” I lifted the small dagger.
“It’s yours,” she said with a soft smile.
Taking the garments and blade, I left.
10
ISI
Iwoke as dawn smoldered on the horizon, to Nia banging on the door and shouting in the distance. “Get up. Get dressed! Breakfast and then the trials.”
Turning, my face brushed against something that sent me reeling back and rising onto my elbow. A set of black leather clothing lay beside my pillow. Soft, yet strong appearing. Well-stitched and supple. They had to have been crafted by a master. No scratches or scrapes; they clearly hadn’t been worn. Boots that looked like they’d been crafted specifically for my feet sat on the floor beside my bed.
Addie’s pendant had been tucked into one of the tunic’s pockets, the chain, now repaired and whole, dangling out, laying across the leather fabric.
“Who…?” I didn’t finish the thought.
Someonehad been watching me very carefully.
Sitting, I tugged the pendant from the pocket, and brushed away a few tears as I secured it around my neck. I’d felt the loss of it, as if my only connection to my little sister was gone forever.
Not any longer.
Next, I directed my attention to the clothing, lying back on the bed to study it further.
The leather felt feather-soft under my fingertips, and it smelled faintly like cedar andhim, that wild, mysterious scent that made my pulse race and my magic stir beneath my skin.
He’d chosen this for me. The intimacy of it stole my breath. This wasn’t just armor, it was a claim. A mark of ownership that said I belonged to him, whether I wanted to or not. And the fates help me, part of me did want to.
I pressed the leather to my nose and breathed him in.
I was so fucked.
Slipping from the bed, I tucked the garments against my chest. I strode out into the hall, finding it empty except for a dark stain on the stones.
After bathing and drying, I stood naked, staring at the outfit lying on the wooden bench.
The leather slid across my skin like a caress, and I shifted it into place over my undergarments. It fastened with enough snugness I could move fluidly, yet it wasn’t so tight that it would rub. As if it had been crafted specifically for my body.
Every curve, every angle, every measurement was perfect. The way it hugged my waist, the exact length of the sleeves, the precise fit across my shoulders and chest.
Trew had been studying me, learning the dimensions of my body. And somehow, he’d commissioned this gear to fit me like a second skin.
Or magicked. I was beginning to see that there might be no boundaries to what magic could do. And I’d yet to hear anyone talk about madness or humanely killing someone to keep them from running rampant. This was feeding my traitorous suspicion that maybe there was a different reason to murder those who showed special abilities.
I gasped at my audacity and peered around the bathroom as if someone would storm toward me with a cup of tainted wine in theirhand. But the other women appeared too busy getting ready themselves to pay any attention to me.
The leather had been reinforced, making it as strong as armor.
