He smirked. I didn’t like it. It suggested he’d seen through some crack I hadn’t covered. Or maybe he was just now realizing why he was still alive.
“Did you stop to think that maybe I simply outsmarted you?” He quirked a brow. “Maybe I was simplystronger. After all it wasIalone who stabbed you with the sword.”
“A sword imbued with a fuck of a lot of dark magic.” I snapped my fingers and blue flames weaved in and out like it was playing along with my game.
“Magic that made mestrongerthan you.” Thayden said in a matter-of-fact tone. “Strong enough to take you down.”
He must have thought I was either fucking stupid or born yesterday.
“No.Human. That’s not how it works. Do not make the mistake of thinking you took me down because ofstrength. You were simplylucky.” I shook my head. “Where I come from, warriors fight face to face. They’re not cowards like you. You hadto tie me upwith magicto defeat me. That is not strength. Now back to my question. Who else helped you?”
His face became ashen, eyes widening as the blood drained from his cheeks like someone had opened a tap beneath his skin.
Good. I was back in control.
“I had no other help,” he replied stiffly. “The Scabbards outsourced all the magic we used to complete the mission and get Elariya back home.”
It sounded like truth. But I knew it to be a lie.
His heartbeat had shifted.
Thump-thump... thump-thump-thump, thump-thump... thump-thump-thump.
It was no longer the steady rhythm of conviction, but the rapid, uneven pattern of deception.
The musk of his sweat had changed too. It had taken on that acrid edge mortals produced when they bent reality to suit their needs.
His pupils dilated slightly, and though his voice had remained steady, there were microscopic tremors in the muscles around his eyes.
All signs of stinking lies.
The Fae were already attuned to have heightened senses, but centuries of reading prey had taught me to recognize the tells mortals couldn't hide.
Thump-thump... thump-thump-thump, thump-thump... thump-thump-thump.
The beat grew faster the longer I stared.
“You never questioned where they got it from?” I gave him a thin stare.
“Why would I? Elariya was missing for nearly a month. All I wanted was to get her back. I wouldn’t have questioned the magic.”
“How did you know she was in the magical realm?”
“A witch with the gift of sight told me. I found her in the Borderlands of the mortal realm. You know some witches can be even more powerful than mages. She was one of them.”
I continued staring at him. He was still screwing with me. But these were half-truths. His heart didn’t beat as fast.
Still…he was giving off the same vibe as the rebels I’d questioned.
They’d retained their silence.
I’d killed them—tortured them as I’d tried to extract information from them, then killed them.
If I killed Thayden now, I’d never know what was really going on. And something was definitely going on.
Whoever had helped Thayden was someone important. Someone with the potential to be a lot more of a threat than me.
Now who could that be?
