She held me fast and repeated, “It wasn’t your fault.”
A bereft sound vacated my chest. While I might convince myself otherwise later, her conviction was enough for me to believe the declaration might be true.
We split apart and continued to The Lost Treehouses. A cathartic silence trailed in our wake. Occasionally, we traded small smiles that lasted until we crossed into the enclave.
Then Aspen stopped. Following her gaze, I halted beside her.
To the outside observer, we had returned from an exploratory hike. Nevertheless, Lyrik slouched against one of the trunks, his tall frame blocking the entrance. With that shrewd gaze leveled on us, he tossed a pouch to the dirt. The landing wrenched open the drawstring, black powder spilling across the ground.
The rogue clucked his tongue. “Can’t say I blame you for checking that elderberry nectar before taking a swig last night. But lacing drinks is for amateurs. Reactive powder, on the other hand, is the work of an elegant alchemist.”
Stiffening, I recalled that incident when Lyrik fished this identical bag from his pocket during dinner, shortly after I deemed the elderberry nectar safe. Except this double-crossermade it clear. I shouldn’t have been worried about the fucking drink.
“Did you know inhalation provides immediate access to the bloodstream?” the knave inquired. “The powder reacts to heat, which becomes a breathable vapor, which binds itself to the blood. Prep the same powder in advance, dust it onto a map of the forest for instance, and it’ll tell you the location of its host at all times.”
Aspen sucked in a breath. A curse rolled off my tongue.
“Sooo,” Lyrik drawled, angling his head to the side. “Had fun with the troops?”
32
Aspen
Even if we came up with an excuse, the ruse wouldn’t last. This man would snuff it out eventually, if not by tactic then with all those brews at his disposal. From one deceiver to another, I would have admired his technique and asked to pick his brain if I weren’t busy piecing together how to proceed.
Not helping matters, Aire reached his tipping point. Stewing in enough fury to roast a side of beef, the knight prowled forward, likely to rip off the asshole’s head.
I snatched Aire’s wrist. None of us, including Nicu, had experienced any hazardous symptoms. That method wouldn’t have made sense since Lyrik meant to track us. Otherwise, he could have garnished our meals with poison instead.
But no. The bastard wanted information more than he wanted us dead.
Since bloodshed would get us nowhere, the giant warrior to my left strove to calm down, drafting oxygen through his nostrils. “You contaminated Aspen and violated the Royal Son.”
“‘Contaminated’ is a bit overkill,” Lyrik contradicted. “As for the other thing, trust me. If I ever ‘violated’ your little songbird, you’d know. But don’t worry, the vapor won’t kill you. Hell, it won’t even tickle. The effects should wear off by midnight.” His lips quirked. “Just in case you two feel like finding another rendezvous spot.”
Mortification scorched my flesh. He knew about the swing, had monitored our presence there.
One. Two. Three.
Aire lunged. I grappled to pull him back while he seethed, “I will gut you like a trout!”
Lyrik waved that off. “Cool your heels, hero. Whatever pornographic fuckery happened last night, I’m no voyeur. Not unless I’m invited.”
“He’s baiting you,” I coached, tugging on Aire’s forearm until he relented.
I’d hardly call myself shy or discreet, but that night with him mattered to me, thus intensifying my desire to chop this scoundrel to pieces. Still, Lyrik hadn’t dropped by to watch the smut unfold. Instead, he must have scanned a map of this forest and took note of us at that same hour.
Regardless, we had more important things to deal with. This rogue acted too independently to be in cahoots with treasonous soldiers. As much as he fancied backdoor deals, Lyrik didn’t like following orders or bending over for the elite classes.
I hedged my bets. “How did you know about the knight encampment?”
“I’ll ask the fucking questions,” Lyrik clamored.
“Your suspicions are misdirected,” Aire groused.
“You said you didn’t see any soldiers loitering near this place,” I pointed out.
“Didn’t know or trust you,” the prick answered. “Don’t know them, either. But yeah, I’ve seen their outpost from a distance while foraging for ingredients. Besides, people who ask about other people usually have shit between them. I want no part of it.”
