Page 19

The loft still thrummed with the echo of the fight below. The scent of oil and sweat lingered in the air, threaded with something sharper, danger, alive and humming. My back was pressed to the wall, my chest rising too fast, every nerve still strung taut from the chaos I’d just witnessed.

“Sit,” he ordered, the gravel low in his throat. He nodded to a heavy leather armchair tucked into the corner of the room, positioned near a low-slung table. My legs carried me there before my brain caught up. As I sank into the chair, Kael loomed over me, his muscular thigh brushing mine as he reached past to set his drink on the table. It was a fleeting touch, a ghost of contact in the narrow space between the chair and the table, but it was enough to send sparks skittering across my skin. He didn't move away immediately. He stood close, a wall of heat and dominance that made the velvet chair feel like a trap.

"You look like you've seen a ghost, little red," he murmured, his gaze dropping to the way my hands were trembling in my lap. "Or maybe just a man who knows how to handle his business." Kael paced in front of me, slow and predatory, his gaze dragging over me, as if he was weighing every secret I kept. “Tell me,” he said finally, voice dipping into a growl. “What do you know about the disturbances in Ebonvale? And don’t dance around it. I have no patience for games.”

My hands twisted together in my lap. “I’ve felt a ripple, that’s all. The wards are intact. No tangible threat yet.”

He shifted closer, crouching so our faces aligned. His shoulder brushed mine deliberately, and heat radiated from him in waves. My breath betrayed me, quick and shallow. “You’re hiding something,” he said, eyes piercing. “And I’m not the type to be fooled. Who else knows?”

My throat tightened, but I forced myself to meet his gaze. “No one knows anything, because there’s nothing to hide,” I said evenly, though my heart thundered. Not him. Not Lucien. Only my closest friends.

Kael leaned in, so close I felt his breath ghost along my lips. His eyes were dark and dangerous—but there was hunger there, too. “You’re clever,” he murmured, almost approving. “But clever won’t save you. That little shard you’re protecting…” his voice dropped to a whisper, intimate and lethal, “…it’s worth more than you realise, and others are hunting it. Just like me.”

My chest squeezed. He knows. Or at least… he suspects. But how? We’d been so careful weaving the concealment spells and layering the wards until they were as seamless as skin. The ripple wasn't supposed to have a signature; it was meant to be a ghost, an echo of nothing. Had I left a trace in the ley lines? Had my pulse been too loud when I’d walked past him? I replayed every second of the theft, searching for the crack in my armour, the one loose thread that had led a predator like Kael straight to my door. I was supposed to be the one pulling the strings, yet here I was, unravelling before he’d even made his move.

No. I wouldn't give him the satisfaction of seeing me break.

I forced the spiralling thoughts into a cold, dark corner of my mind and straightened my spine, my chin tilting upward in a silent challenge. I met his gaze with eyes that I hoped looked like flint rather than fear. If he wanted to play inquisitor, he was going to find out that I didn't break under pressure. I became sharper.

The silence stretched thin between us, humming with tension. My pulse beat like a drum, my body aching with the awareness of how close he was, how sharp the danger felt, how easy it would be to blur the line between interrogation and something else entirely.

At last, Kael pulled back, straightening to his full height. His mouth curved into the faintest smirk, though his eyes stayed unreadable. “Enough talking,” he said smoothly. “You’ve been… entertaining. But this doesn’t end here. You’ll tell me more, eventually.”

I exhaled shakily, sinking deeper into the chair as my pulse tried to steady. This was terrifying. Dangerous too... and utterly compelling.

Kael knew I was in far deeper than I’d ever intended.

Luxury Above the Garage

Kael crouched in front of me, watching me. “If we’re going to do this, I want honesty.”

My breath caught because, gods, he really means it. He’s demanding more than I can safely give him.

“You’re wound so tight,” Kael murmured, his face aligned with mine. His knee brushed mine deliberately. “Do you always squirm when someone invades your space?”

Heat flushed my cheeks. “I don’t squirm,” I lied, voice thinner than I wanted.

“Bullshit.” His eyes gleamed with a dark, predatory amusement. “That little shift of your weight… that pause in your breathing… you’re all nerves, little red. And it’s a hell of a turn-on.”

Oh gods. He was reading me so well, and savouring the friction. I hated how easily he dismantled my defences, peeling back my steel exterior until he found the raw, jumping pulse underneath. The anxiety and anticipation I felt weren't a weakness; they were an invitation, and I could see the exact moment he decided to accept it.

Kael leaned back slightly, studying me with unnerving focus. “Tell me about the Circle,” he said abruptly. “The rivalries. The alliances. Who’s dangerous, and who’s just playing at it. No half-truths.”

I tried to steady my voice, my mind racing. Why was he digging into the Council’s internal politics? Was he looking for an ally, or trying to see how much they knew about the shard? I looked at the hard set of his jaw and realised he wasn't going to let me off the hook with a coy smile or a deflection. He was going to keep pushing until he broke through my silence. If I didn't give him something to chew on, he'd go looking for the truth himself, and that was a risk I couldn't take. I had to feed the wolf a scrap to keep him away from the feast.

“There’s plenty of both,” I said finally, choosing my words as carefully as if I was treading on thin ice. “Whispers, schemes, old grudges dressed as strategy. Some witches are competent. Some… less so. Everyone’s clawing for power, though.”

“And who do you trust?” His fingers brushed mine, a fleeting touch that sent fire racing up my arm. “Don’t lie to me, Ivy.”

My throat went dry. “Trust is earned. Dangerous when misplaced.”

Kael’s laugh rumbled low, husky, curling through me like smoke. “Dangerous. I like that word on your lips. Playing with words to distract me from any real information. Sitting here in that little black dress, trying to look composed while you’re practically shaking apart.” He leaned closer, his breath warm against my ear. “Tell me the truth. Do you like this?”

My body betrayed me, heat pooling low and urgent. “I… don’t know,” I whispered, another lie.

Fingers traced the line of my shoulder, grazing skin with unbearable slowness. “Don’t lie. I can feel it. Resistance is futile.”

My pulse thundered. He was a storm I couldn’t outrun, and gods help me—I didn’t want to.