Suddenly, Cade’s voice entered Cassia’s head.
Stop spying.
Cassia ground her teeth together and stepped toward them.I wasn’t. I was here first.
Your ridiculous attempt to hide behind that bush says otherwise. Are you here to watch?
Yes.
Watching the Andarrian girl cross the gate hadn’t been her original plan, but if Cade wasn’t actively telling her to leave, then she would go. A shiver went down her spine as she remembered the last time she crossed over. The process hadn’t been easy.
Cassia reached Cade and Delphine in time to hear her brother mutter, “I guess we’ll see. They’ll be sending Alexia through any minute.”
“I’m glad you’re here, Cass. I really didn’t want to go down there. Let me know how it goes,” Delphine shuddered. Cassia was glad she wasn’t the only one affected by the courtyard’s aura, but her spirits dampened when she caught Cade send Delphine a conspiratorial glance before she walked away.
Still sensing the tether to Cade’s mind, Cassia added,I’m surprised she’s leaving. I actually thought you would have some stupid plan in place to get her through the gate with Alexia.
I considered it, but our father threatened to kill her parents if I tried.
Cassia searched Cade’s face. He avoided eye-contact with her, a blatant tell that he waslying. More than ever, she was determined to follow him down to the gate to figure out his plan.
But that was Cade. Always on edge. Always planning. Always keeping it secret. More than ever, she wished for the time before Riker’s death when they’d been an actual family. One without the sense of impending doom riding on their shoulders.
“If Bridget was still alive…”
“Sheisalive,” Cade snapped.
“Fine. If sheremembered,” Cassia corrected blithely, “do you really think this is what she’d want you doing? Not sleeping and obsessing over that Cora woman or the Sanguis? I talked to her enough to know—”
“You may have helped her a few times, for selfish reasons I might add, but you don’t know her,” Cade growled. “Whether she remembers me or not, I’m not going to let someone try to drag her here to Elyria again.”
Cassia bit her tongue. Her brother really was stubborn. Maybe even more than her. If he didn’t want Bridget involved with Elyria anymore, why send Castor to find and check on her? Why bother to hold on to someone he was never going to see again? She couldn’t imagine feeling that way about anyone… or maybe she could.
But it was never going to happen again.
“At least fix… this,” Cassia said, pinching the rough stubble on his face. “And the hair. You look like a caveman.”
Cade recoiled and patted down his hair. “Whatever. It’s not that bad.”
Rolling her eyes, Cassia added, “Delphine mentioned something happened at the border.”
“There was… an animal. That’s the official story.”
Cassia tipped her head. “And the unofficial one?”
She forced her tone to stay casual, even as her pulse kicked up. Cade was talking to her—reallytalking to her—and a small, reckless part of her wanted to believe it meant things might finally go back to normal. Before everything broke.
The world around Cassia disappeared as Cade placed images in her head. Images of a burning building. Screams. A shadow careening soldiers to the ground. Bodies with black markings that oozed blood.
Finally, Cade’s voice pulled her out of the vision.No animal did that.
Cassia’s heart pounded as she tried to refocus on the landscape around her. His assault has been so vivid, she’d nearly forgotten she was safe at home.Please tell me that’s not blood magic.
She’d never seen it up close, only heard the stories. Magic always demanded a price, but blood magic destroyed. Cade met her gaze, the same grim understanding reflected back at her.
Finn will let us know,he answered.
“About what you said yesterday…” Cassia said, still shivering from the images, “I don’t want to help our father. I want to helpyou. I didn’t let him into my head on purpose that night. Believe me, I tried to fight him. I think… I think I know how to keep him at bay next time. I swear.”
