She rolled her eyes, and at the hearth, Evera suppressed a giggle. There was, in truth, some similarity in the two women. Both in their candor and in their refusal to adhere to convention. Perhaps that was why I got along with the innkeeper.
When Maerel left, I bolted the doors behind her for the sake of caution and turned back to the group. “Evera says I can trust you.”
Ruairc nodded.
“What is your stake here. Why do you care?”
“I care for Evera. I want to ensure she is safe.”
Narrowing my eyes, I measured his words. There was a slight condescension behind them, as if I were incapable of assuring her safety, or perhaps it was only that he disapproved of my bringing her into this position to begin with. Fair enough. I let it go.
Holding up my arm, I revealed the marks of our bond. “What do you know of the old magic?”
The cobbler frowned. Evera stepped in, covering the basics of what I was and who we were to each other. When she exposed Calix for what he was, the boy flinched visibly and turned up the end of his drink.
“Magic binds us,” Evera said, “but what you said before the market stands true. Magic alone could not speak for my heart.”
I wrapped an arm over Evera’s shoulder and curled her into me, smiling as I spoke against her hair. “Your heart speaks to mine?”
Elbowing me playfully, she huffed. I laughed in turn, grateful for the lightness she gave me even when the stakes were high.
“I suspect that the Queen sent Eaumond with the guards. It is a great error in judgment on her part.”
Evera pouted. “How so?”
“Though Queen Astraea’s restraint far surpasses that of the children, she still is one of them. It has been nearly a fortnight since she … Since the festival. Without my blood, her reasoning will begin to waver, and she will act more brashly. This is a sign that she is becoming desperate. Sending the boy with a pair of huntsmen means both that she has exposed the child’s abilities to detect me on a baser level, and that she is avoiding the involvement of the King. If not, she would send the guard.”
“Will you help him?” Calix’s soft voice drew my attention.
A bitterness rose in my throat. “I will not treat you like a boy, not when you’ve proven yourself capable and earned the respect of a man.”
Calix nodded, and his throat bobbed.
“Taking you in … I do not regret it. You’ve earned my trust, Calix. You have a place with me—”
“With us.” Evera reached for the boy’s hand, offering it an encouraging squeeze.
His eyes rounded, and he sucked in his lips.
I sighed. “But I cannot simply take on the care of any child who needs aid. It is much more complicated than that.”
“I understand.” Calix raised his eyes again, a resoluteness there. “But will you let him feed? Once?”
My heart fumbled. Calix was not ignorant. He knew, as I did, that to let one of his kind feed only prolonged the inevitable. If they did not continue to receive the blood, it was a temporary kindness. A swift death would be more forgiving. Yet I understood his concern and could empathize.
“If it does not risk anyone else’s safety,” I conceded.
Nodding, Calix turned his eyes back to the empty glass in his hand without further note.
“So, what is your plan?” Ruairc leaned forward, bracing his forearms on his knees. To his credit, he’d listened with few questions and had shown no outward sign of disbelief. Whether this was due to a trusting nature or simply a desire to stand by Evera, I was unsure.
“Calix will have to stop feeding,” I said decisively. If I didn’t draw my blood, the huntsmen would not be able to use their leverage. “It’s the scent of my blood that attracts their kind.” I met Calix’s eyes. “At a baser level, they can pick it up from quite a distance.” I turned back to Evera and raised a brow. “And you, love, will have to refrain from stabbing me.”
“That was an accident,” Evera quipped, wrinkling her nose.
Ruairc laughed, then stifled it with feigned coughs as the attention turned to him.
“So, what do we do?” Evera asked.
