He stops and crosses his arms over his chest. “So youpurposelyran the wrong way?”
“Yes!” I shout. “I was trying to get away fromyou!”
He looks me over, mildly confused.
“What was that?”
“I was protecting you.”
“Thatback there? That was amassacre!”
“Is that not what you paid me for?” he asks, genuinely bewildered.
“No!” I run my fingers through my hair, only for them to get tangled in the curls, which frustrates me further. “Don’t tell me you’re what I think you are.” I pant raggedly as I drop my arms. “There’s no way those rumors are true. It’s illegal for your kind to exist!”
Thane moves closer—so close I can feel the heat radiating from his massive body. “What is it you think I am, Quinlocke?” His voice is an ominous warning as he searches my face, daring me to say it.
“There has only been one group of people known to fight like you do, but they were outlawed a very long time ago, way before you were ever even born. I’ve heard stories that they’re still around but…you’reyoung,” I breathe. “You can’t be older than, what? Your twenty-fourth or twenty-fifth year? So how do you know how to fight like that?”
“Twenty-fourth,” he confirms. “And how doyouthink I know how to fight like that?”
I take a second to form the words.
“You’re a shadow assassin,” I whisper, like there are other people around who might hear. “A sorcerer-assassin…like the Nightcarvers in the past. Tell me I’m wrong. Tell me you’re just a person who wields magic and is unbelievablygood with a sword. Tell me the black shadows in your magic were all my imagination.”
I search for any tells I can make out, but with his mask in the way, it’s tricky. His eyes, though…they harden at the nearly forbidden words.
Sorcerer.
Nightcarver.
Shadow assassin.
“I asked if you were sure about this before we left. You said yes. Should’ve asked your questions then.” He yanks his mask down, revealing scars that seem much more sinister now. “Thisis what you paid for.” He jabs his thumb to his chest. “Thisis what you get.”
“So it’s true?” I ask.
He shakes his head, working his jaw. “The less we talk about it, the better, Quinlocke.”
“I—I just don’t understand—”
“There’s nothing to understand,” he counters. “You paid me for a service and I’m doing my part, so just drop it and come on. We need to make it over the bridge before nightfall.”
“I don’t know if I can do this.” My mouth goes so dry that when I swallow, the spit goes down rough. “There are already people coming after you, and if more people see you fighting like that, they’ll come for you,too. Do you know how much the queen pays in bounty for people like you?”
“I don’t care.” He mounts the horse, facing forward. “Get on.”
“No. Are you out of your mind?” I protest. “I’m not going anywhere with you! I’ll just have to find another way.” I twist around, ready to storm back to Meriva and forget all about this murderous man. Being around him any longer will get me killed.
“You either get on, or your sister dies,” he says matter-of-factly. I freeze in my tracks. “There is no one else out there with skills like mine who will agree to help you. You’ll never make it through The Shallows alone, and without a prosperity stone, you will never break that curse. You go back now, and you might as well start picking out flowers for her grave.”
Balling my fists, I twist around as tears well in my eyes. “Fuck you!”
I can’t believe it, but the asshole actually smirks. I want to slap it right off his face.
“You’re acting like I can’t go back and report you to the queenright now,” I shoot at him.
The smirk vanishes. With a growl, he’s off the horse and standing in front of me, towering above like a ruthless giant. Seething, he grips my face between his thumb and forefinger. His hold isn’t tight, but it’s firm, like he wants to make sure I look nowhere else but at him. He breathes as hard as a bull, his amber gaze penetrating mine.
