Hurt flashes across Vane’s face. “Goodbye, Desiree. You won’t see me again.”
My heart lurches painfully in my chest, and for a split second, I consider reaching for him. But I force my hands to stay at my sides. A voice screams in my head to stop him, but pride locks the words in my throat.
Without a second glance, he walks out the door. I stand there, stunned, his words echoing in my mind.
He would probably love never seeing me again, especially after I just drank his blood. But too bad for him, I’ll see him at the Nest tomorrow.
After what the Balam said, I’m pretty sure I know who attacked Vyvyan.
I slipmy phone into my pocket after Soter’s early morning call, a knot forming in my stomach. He’d updated me about a fire in Tsilah Cemetery and rumors of daemon activity, but right now, I’m grateful to focus on something else. Leigh’s train arrives soon.
I know Leigh will be furious about Stellan’s article on Fynn.But she needs to see past her anger—there’s too much at stake for the Nebula. That’s what this meeting is about. If the two of them can drop their grudges for five damn minutes and focus on Aurora. . .
These thoughts collide in my head like stray bullets, a chaotic mix of dread and determination. Distracted by my racing mind, I exit my room and immediately run face-first into Brigid. She gasps, losing her balance, and I barely manage to catch her to keep her from falling.
“Woah, sorry,” I say, steadying her.
Brigid laughs, but there’s a bitter edge to it. “In a hurry to get Leigh?”
“I don’t want to be late.” I retreat into my room. She follows me.
We haven’t spoken in person since before she sent those damning texts about Stellan’s article and Leigh. She believes Leigh knew about Fynn, but that’s because she wants to thinkthe worst about Leigh to justify her hatred for all Epsilon. If she’s here to try and convince me that Leigh is bad news, I don’t want to hear it.
Brigid sighs. “Am I not worth five minutes of your time?”
I sigh, sensing she won’t let me leave until she says what she came here to say. She’s in a dress instead of a uniform—something she only ever did when trying to impress me. “Is there something I can help you with?”
Brigid dangles a pair of car keys before me. “I thought I’d offer my company. She probably has a lot of luggage. My car has all that room.” Brigid smirks, her eyes glinting with a suggestive look. A blatant attempt to remind me of her car’s spacious backseat.
I clench my jaw, unamused by her transparent efforts to worm her way inside my head. It’s a cheap move, using our history to manipulate me. I’ve made it clear I’ve moved on, and her constant attempts to undermine my current relationship only piss me off. I’m not interested in her or revisiting a closed chapter of my life.
I narrow my eyes at the keys. “I am good. Thanks.”
I need time alone with Leigh before the meeting. We’ve been keeping secrets from each other, and it’s time we confronted our lies. I love her and want to clarify that I’m there for her in every way, not just physically. We need to talk honestly about our relationship and where we stand before facing Stellan. I don’t expect Brigid to understand.
Brigid frowns. “What’s your problem? I thought we were friends.”
“We are, but you clearly want more,” I reply.
“That doesn’t give you the right to treat me like trash. Unless you are afraid of being alone with me.” A sly smile plays on her lips as she toys with the locket clasped around her neck. She never takes off her mother’s belongings. Brigid’s motherdisappeared when she was seven years old. Up and vanished, and no amount of Blade resources have been able to find her. Her constant need for affection might directly result from being abandoned at a young age.
“Brigid. Stop.”
She grips her keys tighter. “Tell Leigh to return to Borealis. Take Stellan up on his offer. She’s not right for you.”
I grit my teeth. “This conversation is over.”
“You’re making a mistake.” Brigid crowds me. I shuffle back. “Think of what backing Stellan could mean for you and your family.” She purses her lips, her eyes taking in the sparse furnishings. “Being a Blade isn’t enough. You’re made for bigger things; Stellan can help you, not Leigh. Only a Nebula can understand another Nebula.”
I shake my head. Stellan’s heart is in the right place; I respect his call for more opportunity for the Nebula. But he can’t deliver on that promise without support. Leighcanbe that support. Keeping the country together is my top priority.
I take a deep breath. “Brigid, it’s over. Let it go.”
“You were the one who said she was a grenade with the pin pulled,” Brigid snaps. “Remember, you said that she was a disaster waiting to happen your first week here?”
I wince. Over a year ago, the night Leigh’s family was killed, I found her lying bloody and bruised in the earthquake’s devastation. Despite her injuries, she clawed at me. She spat that I couldn’t help, and I took it personally. Her rejection cut deep—not because I was angry, but because it confirmed my deepest fear: I wasn’t good enough for someone like her. A Blade would never be worthy of a royal. I felt inadequate, insignificant.
When I arrived in Aurora the next morning, I told Brigid and the others some not-so-nice things about her. But I was unfairly channeling my insecurities into harsh words. The moment I saw Leigh again more than a year later, despite everything I’d said,I was drawn to her like a moth to flame. All those feelings of inadequacy were still there, but so was something else—something stronger.
