The tingles in my temples turned more urgent, burrowing themselves deeper.
I didn’t flinch, but I let my gaze wander lazily around us.
Was the crater trying to warn me? It wouldn’t have been the first time.
But the sensation didn’t feel like a warning. It was…impatient?
It sought–no, needed–my attention.
For what? Everyone stood eerily still. No glint of a weapon, no ripple of an impending attack.
Trust nobody.
Ryker’s words rolled in my mind, as if he were standing right beside me.
One of these people could have led the attackers through the passage, endangering us all and forsaking their homeland.
And they had the gall to watchmewith distrust.
Dax leaned closer to me and whispered, “I haven’t felt on display like this since I visited the Morgana Clan.”
“They’ll warm up eventually.” I hoped. “Best start using those special skills of yours.”
“My silver tongue doesn’t work on command.”
“I’m sure the tongue that charmed thousands throughout Malhaven can work here, too,” I whispered under my breath, barely moving my lips.
He chuckled. “You’ll give these people the wrong impression. They’ll think I’m trouble, too.”
“Youare.”
Probably a bigger one than me, under the right circumstances.
He winked my way. “They don’t need to know that.”
I huffed a cool laugh right as Mrs. Thornbrew’s five foot two frame speared the atrium, bringing in a hint of pine and warm hearths that contrasted with the smell of leather and steel. All the enormous warriors stepped out of the way of her billowing wool skirts. A few silver hairs had escaped her stiff bun after tending to the wounded all night, but her tired eyes were as alert as ever.
Nadya and Geryll rushed behind her. Well, Nadya rushed and dragged poor Geryll along with her, who still couldn’t quite put all of his weight on his maimed leg. He ran a jittery hand through his blond hair, while Nadya patted Francisca, the axe resting on her belt.
I narrowed my eyes on them. “You two should be in bed.”
“So should you, you’ve been up since Solkar-knows-when,” Mrs. Thornbrew admonished, before huffing the stray hairs out of her eyes and giving Dax a more imposing once-over than all of the fighters.
“May I introduce you to my cousin, Dax,” I said, formal down to the long pause. “He’ll be staying with us for a while.”
A ripple of unease spread through the warriors, and I couldn’t stop it.
“They are the Commander’s protegees.” I nodded at Nadya and Geryll. If they wanted to give their full names to him, they would.
Nadya glowered.
Geryll gave an awkward wave.
The pressure in my skull tunneled deeper. I fought the urge to reach back and claw it away.
“My absolute pleasure to meet you.” Dax tilted his head, smiling widely their way.
“So we do have company,” Mrs. Thornbrew said, still assessing him. She must’ve found what she was looking for, because her thin lips finally curled at the edges. “Surprising company.”
