Jesper stepped toe-to-toe with him. “If I catch word of your family hurting Octavia again, I don’t care about the political consequences. I will take your entire family down.”
Jesper turned before he could reply, motioning for us to follow.
I shot Octavia one more look, trying to convince her with my eyes to leave with us. But she didn’t.
As we walked off the front steps, I looked back.
Delphine watched us from a balcony above, eyes glowing with a fury that felt older than sixteen.
Octavia stood in the front doorway, one hand braced on the frame, watching us go. Her expression was unreadable, but her shoulders were a little straighter.
I didn’t like leaving her there. It felt wrong. My instincts screamed at me to turn around, drag her out, and never let her look back.
“I don’t like this,” I hissed. “I don’t like leaving her with them.”
“I don’t either,” Jesper said, falling into step beside me. “But you can’t force someone to leave their life, even if it’s for their own good. That’s not our job. Our job is to tell the truth and act when we’re allowed. Which we did.”
“I’m sorry. I couldn’t?—”
He leaned down and pressed a kiss to my temple, understanding washing over our bond. “I love that you tried to save her. You make an excellent agent, and I’m not saying that as your mate. I’m saying it as your squad lead.”
I rolled my eyes, but I couldn’t help smiling a little. Putting more weight on my toes, I leaned up and kissed him back.
“Are you kissing me as my squad lead or my mate?”
“Can’t it be both, honey drop?”
As we made our way back to HQ, one thought lodged itself in my chest like a stake.
Even if the humans were finally quiet for a moment, there was always some injustice happening in Kalista.
zuko
. . .
Victor perished today.
He’d been a good venomous spider, patient and vicious in all the right ways.
Unfortunately, though, even enchanted habitats couldn’t keep something alive forever. His little life had faded slowly over the last few months. This morning, I opened his enclosure and knew he was gone before I even tried to feed him breakfast.
Rune’s hand brushed mine as we walked, her fingers warm against my knuckles.
I turned my head and seared the sight of her into my memory. Her green hair had been pulled back into space buns, and she wore a black lace cami, leather skirt with fishnets, and a gray cardigan that hung around her shoulders.
She was way too pretty to be walking beside a sulking basilisk who’d lost his best torture partner.
“Thanks for coming with me,” I murmured.
She squeezed my hand. “I’m your mate, toxin. We have to make sure your torture kit stays fully stocked. I am sorry about your spider, though. He seemed cool.”
“He was,” I admitted, bitterness slipping into my voice. “Had him for eight years.”
Her brows shot up. “Eight years? Isn’t that like…um, a long time for a venomous spider?”
“Yeah.” I sighed. “For that species, at least.”
Sympathy rippled through our matebond. “I’m still sorry, Zuko. That sucks.”
