Dammit, I should have done my reading. Wait…seafolk? “You’ll have to enlighten me.”
He sighed, a flash of annoyance coloring his features. “Well, I can’t say I’m surprised. The Coterie probably think it’s redundant information.”
I had no idea what he meant. “You’re going to have to spell it out for me, Arnav.”
He blinked sharply. “You have her blunt tongue too, I see.” His gaze dropped to my mouth, lingering for a moment before flicking back up to meet my gaze. “Dharma and I were betrothed.”
“Ana, we should go.” Dori appeared beside me, tugging on my arm.
“Wait a second, I?—"
“Now!” Dori dragged me back a step.
“Go,” Arnav said, his gaze lingering. “We’ll talk later.”
He melted into the crowd, leaving me seething with questions—and more than a little annoyance with Dori.
I pulled my arm free. “What was that for?”
“He’s dangerous.”
“He was also once engaged to Dharma Onyx.” He’d known her. Actually fucking known her. He might have vital information about what happened to her. Information that he might not even realize was important.
Dori’s brows shot up. “Really?”
“Who’s engaged to who?” Benedict asked, joining us.
“Arnav said he was engaged to Dharma Onyx,” Dori said.
“The Land-Sea Pact…” Clary covered her mouth. “Oh…wow…”
I threw up my hands. “Will someonepleasetell me what that is?”
“You should read up on it,” Clary said. “But in short, part of the agreement states that the land folk provide men and women to the seafolk for procreation.”
“And how does that work?”
Benedict made a circle with his index finger and thumb of his left hand and poked his right index finger through it.
I rolled my eyes. “I mean, land and sea don’t mix.”
“There are ways,” Dori replied.
“And Dharma was meant to procreate…with him?”
“It sounds like it, but it obviously never happened, and from the way Arnav was looking at you just now, I get the impression he wants a redo. With you.”
Whoa. “Not happening.”
“Arnav is a bit of a manwhore,” Benedict explained. “He can get anyone he wants, and he takes advantage of the fact.”
“Youcould get anyone you wanted too,” Clary said.
Benedict snorted. “I have no interest in the stuck-up Arcanus females that go here.”
Twin spots of color bloomed high on Clary’s cheeks.
Was he really that clueless? “Clary and Dori aren’t stuck-up.”
