Letting her leave Bismyth was a mistake. Not when we had this war coming and needed every shifter. She had been right when she had told Fear she was wasted in Obsidian.
“You’ll always belong to Bismyth, Maura.” I said it before I could consider that I was offering what Fear had taken.
Perhaps a place in Bismyth was not mine to give. I decided to give it anyway.
Lightbringer said in my mind,“You are learning from your mate. You are going to be a clever pair, aren’t you?”
I wasn’t sure how much of that was judgment and how much was promise.
“I am not the one who decides if I belong to Bismyth or not,” Maura admitted. Then she soldiered on. “At any rate, the debt is repaid through service until I save your life. Which, given the threats against it, should be about an hour or two.”
“You nearly killed me.”
“Yes.” Maura looked as if the topic were dull, though I didn’t think I would ever find my near-death experience all that boring.
“So you endeavor to prove that you’re trustworthy by being my bodyguard instead?”
“Until I save your life. Yes. Then I will watch your back as I would any member of our clan, but I won’t owe you my service.”
“Your service that includes…what, besides protection?”
“I can explain to you the many things that you clearly do not know. I’ve had my moments of misjudging Fear, but I know him well. I can help you understand his tricks. I can help you understand Bismyth and the rest of the clans.”
“And why should I trust you?”
“If you cannot believe that I would regret hurting you for any reason beyond the consequences, I cannot change that with words alone,” Maura said. “But this is a gift from Starfire. Starfire, who knows my heart, who is ancient and honorable. If the gift means nothing from me, well…it is barely from me. I did the work of the forging. Starfire gave up her scales.”
I nodded. “Thank you.”
Disbelief rushed across her face. She covered it quickly. But there had been relief there, too.
And it occurred to me that if I could forgive Maura—not that I had forgiven her yet, but I hoped she would be worthy of it—maybe Fear and I could forgive each other too.
Forty-Eight
Cara
Inside the room I shared with Fear, I stripped off my tunic and contemplated the armor in my undergarments. The Bismyth shifters always commanded respect and envy in their fitted and unapologetically sexy armor.
I understood now. Mortals felt safe and awed in equal measure.
There was a knock at the door. “Who is it?” I called, pulling the tunic back on as I crossed to the door. I didn’t want Fear to catch me in the armor. He had tricked me plenty of times. Rather than try to argue him into bringing Maura back, I intended a little gentle trickery of my own.
“Are you confused about how to put it on yet?” Maura called.
“No,” I lied, swinging the door open anyway.
She was smirking. “This is why you need me.”
You need me more, I thought, but I didn’t say it.
“You should say it,”Lightbringer urged.
Apparently, my dragon was always happy to start a fight.
“It’s a good idea to wear it, given the threats you face.” Maura swung the door closed. “Here’s hoping that Kami got your measurements right, because it should fit you close as a corset.”
She tossed a shirt my way, the material thin and silky but padded in certain places. I turned my back to her and pulled it on immediately.
