“Enough!” Prince Dev’s voice cracked as he yelled. “Cut out his tongue!”
Next came the blood.
Days of wondering if my friend would make it.
Mourning my baby brother, while comforting my other siblings.
What had Gideon asked?
Was it an accident.
“I don’t know,” I whispered honestly, since he could read my thoughts anyway. “Probably.” My voice cracked a little. “But does it matter?”
Gideon didn’t answer right away. “You called me to bear witness to a Jinni’s Gift being misused.” His blue eyes seemed especially pale this morning. “I haven’t noticed it in your memories. Does this prince have a Gift?”
I toyed with my uneaten food, moving it around with my fork to avoid his gaze. “He does,” I said, but my mind betrayed me. He’d never used his Gift that day. He hadn’t even discovered his Gift until after his 18thbirthday.
“Mmm,” Gideon murmured, as if I’d told him more than I’d meant to. I supposed I had. “And what is his Gift?”
I tried hard to keep my thoughts in check. “He can speak any language,” I mumbled.
Gideon’s brows rose. “Is that so.”
I nodded, but kept my mind blank.
“Has this prince ever used his language Gifting for vile purposes?” Gideon probed.
“That’s what we’re here to find out,” I said, straightening to face him, pushing away from the bar to stand.
But Gideon stopped me, placing his hand on my arm. His touch wasn’t ice like the stories. It was warm like any other man’s.
But I still shivered.
When he didn’t speak right away, my mind drifted to his last question, but I stopped it and did my best to throw up mental shields like I had before.
“Very good.” Gideon nodded, just once. “You’re a quick study.”
I took that to mean I’d successfully kept him out of my mind and felt the tiniest sliver of relief. “Thank you,” I said in response.
His hand was still on my arm.
“Is there anything else I can help you with?”
“When do I begin bearing witness?” he asked in that calm, quiet tone, releasing me.
“How does an hours’ time sound?” I asked. Everything in me was focused on that mental wall, keeping him on one side and my thoughts on the other.
“Very good,” he replied, watching me closely.
I bowed quickly and left the room, putting some distance between us before he heard the truth: I didn’t know if Prince Dev had ever abused his Gift.
I hoped he had.
And I was ready and willing to provoke him into doing so today, if necessary.
