“Prove it.” Sebastian’s demand was so stern that you would be a fool to argue with the order.
A crooked smile parted the seam of her lips and she used a finger to gesture him forward. “Very well. Come here.”
I knew him well and could sense the reluctance in his body language as Sebastian sauntered over to her. I doubted anyone else could tell, though. He was able to disguise his emotions well enough for most people not to notice, but not when it was just us. I could see right through his fake smiles and daring stares.
At least I thought I could.
The moment Sebastian approached Venay, she took his hands in hers. Her eyelids closed and she began to hum a repetitive melody. Her fingers slid up, locking around his wrists and searching for what I could only assume was his pulse.
“I will ask you a few questions to which you will respond with the truth. I will be able to tell if you are being honest by the way your blood flows through your veins,” she whispered as to not disturb her own inner peace.
Before he could counter with some cocky remark about how that sounded like bullshit, Venay asked her first question. “How many people have you killed?”
My throat bobbed as my fingertips found the pendant around my neck, using the charm to calm the sense of unease that flooded me with her question.
Starting off strong, I guess.
Sebastian shuffled in his boots. “I don’t know.”
Eyes snapping open, Venay’s mouth fell flat. “That is a lie. You do know. And by the way your pulse is racing and skipping beneath the pads of my fingers, I suspect the truth is a number you are ashamed to share.”
Sebastian paused to glare at the woman before repeating flatly, “I really don’t know. What kind of question is that, anyway?”
“If you insist on lying, we can attempt another form of the question,” Venay suggested, closing her eyes once more. “Is the number of people you have killed over ten?”
Seriously? Couldn’t she ask him for his favorite color or something?
“Pft. That's light work,” Sawyer quipped from over my shoulder. “Any soldier whose stepped foot on a battlefield has killed that many people.”
Empathy clouded over my anger with him, as I knew Sebastian had killed at least that many people before he even hit the age of ten.
“Yes,” Sebastian confirmed. His hands folded into fists, clenching so tightly his knuckles paled.
“Ah, the truth this time. Ready for another?” Venay didn’t await his response before asking anyway, her tone stringing along a hint of joy. “Have you killed over five hundred people? Have you taken over five hundred lives by your very own hand?”
“Woah.That'sa little personal don’t you think?” Sawyer actually sounded shocked. At the number or the question, I was unsure. “Ask him to tell you about him and Maeve in the archives instead.”
A sharp jut of my elbow into his rib shut Sawyer right up.
Ignoring him, Venay repeated herself, tightening her grip on Sebastian’s veins. “Have you taken over five hundred lives with your own hand?”
I could hear Sebastian's jaw grind as he snapped his wrists free. He stormed from the room, his fists strained by his sides, the silence answering the question for him.
Chapter
Five
“Have any of you ever been to Draemor?” Delani asked back in the common room after we’d finished a nearly silent breakfast of eggs and salted meat, though I had struggled to eat more than a slice of buttered toast.
Five. Hundred. People.
At least.
Was he…okay?
“When the fuck would we have gone to Draemor, Willawood two?” Sawyer quipped, throwing himself to the ground and starting a repetition of sit-ups.
“Don’t be an ass, Sawyer,” Pia scolded as she gathered herself a cup of water.
