Page 59 of Enemy of the Heart

Upon closer inspection, it’s Lou’s slender, muscular arm that’s the source of the movement. She has a blanket draped over her lap and a mug in her hand, her black fingernails drumming absently against the ceramic. She must be on the couch that’s pushed up against the wall that separates us.

I’m about to tap on the window to get her attention when a deeper, somewhat muffled voice that certainly doesn’t belong to my best friend speaks. I shouldn’t snoop. Not when Louhi’s having a private moment with her brother, but I set down my mug and quietly pull out a chair at the table.

I can’t make out everything being said, but at least it’s in English. There’s a long beat of silence, and I wonder if they realize that they have a ghost listening through the wall. But how would they?

“I meant to come get you, Lou. I wasn’t going to abandon you.”

There’s a beat of quietude, and I imagine she’s reaching out to touch him. “I know.”

“What the meaty one said—”

“Digs,” she corrects, but I can hear the smile in her tone. I like that she’s been giving out my nickname, leaving the more personal aspect up to me to share. She did it with Viktor, too. After all, this is her world. These are her friends.

“Right, Digs,” he goes on. “Did he hurt you?”

“Yes.”

I close my eyes. Will the truth of that statement always hurt? I lean forward, rest my elbows on my spread knees, and stare down at the floor.

“But he also saved me. He’s…mine.” There’s a warm tingling sensation that spreads through my chest as I fight a smile.

“You love him.”

My head snaps up. I stare through the wall like I’ve somehow developed X-ray vision. Mercer didn’t phrase it as a question, but as an unequivocal statement.

Louhi doesn’t reply, at least not that I can hear.

“Isä would like him,” Mercer says. I think that word is Finnish. Isn’t that Mom? Shit, maybe it’s Dad? I really need to take some lessons.

A short, feminine giggle rings through the wall. “He really would. So would Äiti. She told me once that loving Isä was like the sun shining on the coldest day of the year. That he made the world feel warm and light. I didn’t understand that feeling until I met him.”

My grin cracks my face in half like a glacial crevasse. She fucking loves me.

“What are you smiling at?” Jace’s sleepy voice sounds as he steps into the dining room. “It’s weirding me out to see you like that.”

He rubs at his eyes, and I snort. I raise my finger to my lips and jerk my chin in the direction of the wall. He doesn’t ask, just shrugs, then walks into the kitchen.

“…you just…try to be friendly with him?” It’s probably my own guilt talking, but that softly spoken request seems like it’s meant for me as much as her brother. I should make an effort with Mercer. I owe Louhi that much. He’s obviously going to be in our lives for years to come.

“Anything for you, Lou.”

On that, Mercer, we agree.

Louhi

I smile at my brother as I finish securing the bandage to his head. Snuggling deeper into the blanket, I drop my head onto his shoulder. A large part of his left ear is missing, but he claims he can still somewhat hear out of it. I still chose to sit on his other side. I hate having to repeat myself.

He even let me help him get his arm into the sling I purchased for him yesterday. Luckily, the gash on his neck wasn’t as deep as I’d feared. I’m sure he only allowed me to tend to him this morning because we were alone.

He drapes his arm around my shoulders and holds me the way he did after our parents died. I swallow hard as a wave of nostalgia wells up inside me. “I’m glad we’re back together again,” I tell him in Finnish. This shift in topic suddenly feels too intimate for English.

“I missed you. I thought about you every day. I’m…sorry.”

I don’t hold anything against him—not at this point—and I nestle into his side. “It’s over now.”

He’s quiet, then murmurs, “Is it? Are you sure they can be trusted? They’re military, Lou.”

I frown and sit up so that I’m looking into familiar eyes. In a firm, steady tone, I confirm, “They were military. They don’t pose a threat. I vouch for them.” Are we safe from whatever you’re planning? The question is on the tip of my tongue, but I don’t give it life. While I didn’t study the wall or so much as enter Mercer’s bedroom, I saw the strings and drawings when I passed his open doorway. He’s up to something…