“Leela?”
I pulled myself out of my thoughts. “C’ael saved me from the nagrata, but the shields he put up must have used too much energy. He vanished but said he’d be back.”
“Shields, huh?” she frowned. “Not something that any being can construct.”
“Yeah, I figured.”
She jerked her head toward the tunnel. “I assume we can trust your silver-haired friend.” Her eyes narrowed. “He’s a drohi, correct? So there must be a posting nearby.”
Dhoona replied before I could. “That is Pashim. I have fought alongside him before.” He glanced at me. “We heard rumors of his death. Obviously false.” He added kindling to the fire carefully to feed the tiny flame Yudh had created.
“The rumors were true. Pashim died saving me from a pischacha.”
Both Dhoona and Yudh looked up at me, their silver eyes wide with shock.
“How is he here now?” Kalani asked.
“I don’t know, and honestly, I don’t care. I’m just…I’m glad he’s back.”
“Are you sure he is who he says he is?” Yudh asked. “There are many strange beings in our world. Beings that can shift forms and imitate?—”
“It’s him. I know him, okay?”
“We must be certain.” Dhoona drew his sword. “He will explain how he still lives, and if his explanation falls flat, then we will do what we must to keep you safe.”
Yudh drew his blade too.
Part of me understood the need for caution, but the other part, the part that had held Pashim, that knew the feel of him, the scent of him, that recognized the way his eyes lit up and the shape of his smile, bristled with indignation.
“You dare touch him and you’ll meetmywrath.”
“You may not be the best person to judge his authenticity,” Kalani said softly. “It’s obvious that you cared deeply for him, and when we want something to be real, our will can make it seem so. We sometimes choose to ignore the warning signs and focus on what validates the illusion.” She didn’t say it, but it was obvious what she was referring to: the fact that I’d believed the primordial evil was Araz.
The fact that I’d seen what I’d wanted to see.
My stomach trembled. Was I doing it again? Making a mistake?
“Leela, we need to be wary,” Dhoona said.
I’d be a fool to ignore the warning that even though everything in me screamed that Pashim was truly here, there was always the chance that this was some kind of trick.
I nodded. “Then we test, and we ask, but we don’t hurt him on assumption.”
“It’s all right, Leela.”Pashim stepped out of the tunnel. His arms hung loose at his sides, but his gaze was sharp and fixed on the brothers. On the threat. “You want to know how I’m here, then I’ll tell you. Death pulled me out of an in-between place and gave me a second chance because my time wasn’t done. It wascut short. I know I’m here to help Leela. To stop this primordial evil and save my friend Araz.”
“How do you know all this when you were dead when it happened?” Yudh demanded.
“Death filled me in.” He smiled wryly. “She knows things.”
“She?” Kalani’s eyes narrowed. “Death isnota female. In fact, Yama left this world to its fate a long time ago.” She stepped forward to join the brothers, blocking Pashim from leaving the tunnel.
Pashim sighed. “I do not wish to fight you. I do not wish to harm you. Please sheathe your weapons.”
I rushed forward on instinct, pushing between them to stand with my back to Pashim’s chest. “What did I say about not hurting him?”
“Leela, you’re not thinking straight,” Yudh said. “You want your friend to be alive, and this creature is feeding off that desire. It is how these beings operate.”
The ball of doubt in my chest pulsed. Was I seeing what I wanted to see? Did I want Pashim back so badly that I was somehow feeding an entity the power to shape itself into him?
