A chill slips down my spine when that smile deepens, faint lines crinkling at the corners of his eyes.
“You’re the answer to a question that’s eluded me for far too long.”
Maybe it’s the lingering numbness, but I’m not afraid of him. Just…wary.
I cross my arms, expression flat. “Which is?”
He crosses the room, movements fluid and deliberate, and turns back to me, poised and almost elegant.
“How much power can a single bloodline hold before it begins to consume itself?” He offers the answer to me casually, yet his eyes are full of delight.
“Drink. You’ll feel steadier,” he adds as almost an afterthought.
I glance around, about to tell him there’s nothing to drink, when he snaps his fingers.
A small table materializes beside us—black marble legs and more silver inlay—on it, a crystal pitcher of lemon water and a single glass that wasn’t there a moment ago.
I hate lemons in my water. Figures.
“What are you?” I ask with a crinkle of my nose. “Some sort of witch?”
That gets me a glower so deep, I take a step back. “Youthink me that pitiful? No, Rowan. I’m the only other person who might truly understand you because we are similar, you and I.” He pauses, and I swear my whole world stops. “Except better. I’m a Sorcerer Ashmark. One who intends to change this world now that you’re here.”
He nods toward the water, but I ignore the gesture and fold my arms tighter. “You talk like you’ve just won the lottery.”
His soft chuckle grates over my nerves, frown lines completely removed. “Only time will tell.”
The way he says that makes the tiny hairs on my arms rise. He watches me, unblinking and without breaking eye contact. It’s like he’s cataloging every reaction I give him, every twitch and breath, until I feel like a specimen pinned beneath glass.
I observe him closer. He says he’s Ashmark, but I thought I was the first and only. If I’m not… Does that mean the prophecy doesn’t actually apply to me? Have I been terrified of becoming evil incarnate for no reason? I don’t know, but maybe this guy can tell me. Though something tells me the answer to that won’t come easily.
With the way Malrik is still looking at me, that hungry look in his eyes, I doubt he’s going to give me the only answer that could set me free.
I grab the glass of water just to end the staring contest. “If this is some kind of kidnapping, you’re missing the ransom part.”
At least my sarcasm is still intact.
“Kidnapping is such a crude word,” he murmurs, stepping closer. “I’ve done so much more than that for you, even before last night. Now, not only am I offering you ahaven—fromthemand from yourself—but also the chance to become who you really are without judgment. In return, I only ask for patience. There’s much you need to learn before our time is over.”
I take a sip. The cool liquid burns like lightning down my throat, but he was right. The fogginess in my head begins to fade.
“What do you mean you’ve already done things for me?” Now that I can think better, I want to know how long this guy has been after me and what the hell kind of trap I might have just walked right into.
He clasps his hands, a small smirk rising. “Who do you think hid the body of that dead shifter for you that you so carelessly left in the forest?”
“I was going to come back and bury him.” I swallow thickly. I’m not sure this makes me feel any better.
“Well, I saved you the trouble and the risk.”
“Right,” I mutter. Something tells me that’s a lie. “And what, exactly, am I supposed to be learning?”
Malrik’s expression doesn’t change, but the faint hum in the walls grows louder, like the structure is preparing to answer me.
He comes closer, moving quicker than I expect, and sets a hand on the cold stone table beside me. “Control. Before your power decides for you what kind of creature you’ll become.”
I set the glass down, pulse kicking hard. “I already know what I am.”
“Do you?” His voice drops, a near whisper. “Because I think you’ve only seen what happens when you’ve been left…Untamed. You could be so much more than aweapon, Rowan. But first,” His smile sharpens, “you need to stop pretending you don’t want anything to do with the power that lives within you.”
