Total pages in book: 100
Estimated words: 93948 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 470(@200wpm)___ 376(@250wpm)___ 313(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 93948 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 470(@200wpm)___ 376(@250wpm)___ 313(@300wpm)
I study Nox’s sharp face. They’re giving me little to read, but too often my life depends on reading people who don’t want to be perceived. Nox is a challenge, but I have the advantage of knowing the pinch point to this argument. “I understand you and Bastian have a complicated history…”
They slice an elegant hand through the air. “No, we’re not going to put a spin on this, Siobhan. When you courted me, talking of a rebellion and all the good things we can do for the people who need them most, I agreed on one condition. What was that condition?”
As much as I hate to admit it, they’re right. A single condition and I’ve just broken it. “That I don’t speak to you of Bastian.” It went without saying that bringing Nox and Bastian into the same location was strictly forbidden.
A promise easy enough to make years ago, when Nox was just a clever quartermaster with ambition and Bastian was in my bed. I still don’t know what went so wrong that both refuse to speak of the other, but weighing it against the lives of thousands…“If I had another choice, I would have made it.”
“You do have another choice.” They shake their head, the slightly longer top of their white-blond hair standing oddly on end. They look good, but Nox always looks good. Even whatever trouble they had here isn’t enough to detract from that. Their lean features and pointed chin are a trap, the wicked gleam in their gray eyes the only indication of just how much trouble they’re liable to cause.
“No one else has a chance of reaching them in time.” I have to clench my fists to keep my claws inside. I never lose control of my form, but the stress of this clusterfuck of a situation is getting to me.
Bastian, what were you thinking?
I don’t have answers. Bastian and I argued bitterly a few weeks ago. He was tired of all the secrecy and wanted to take the rebellion public, sure that the majority of Threshold would follow us if they knew what we were fighting for. I called him a naive fool and refused to even consider it. Too many people would die. We’re not ready.
When will we be ready, Siobhan? When will you stop letting your fear control you?
His voice is so clear in my head, I nearly flinch. I didn’t have an answer then—still don’t now—so I used words as weapons to strike right into the very heart of him. And he…left. The last time I saw him, he was standing aboard a trading ship headed for Three Sisters, intent on bringing the leaders there around to our cause. Three Sisters holds no love for the Cŵn Annwn and their meddling, and Bastian is a charming fucker even without his magic. If he could get Three Sisters on board, it would go a long way toward forcing my hand.
I still don’t know what went wrong to result in him using his glamour—and getting caught. In all the years I’ve known him, he’s been so bloody careful to keep his magic contained. He wouldn’t have used it without cause.
Unless he was acting out of character because he was still angry at me.
“Nox, please.” I don’t make a habit of begging. I tell people what I want, and they make it happen. I’ve worked hard to ensure my network is as expansive as possible so there’s always someone in my corner wherever I go. So I’ll never be desperate like I was at nineteen, when my entire world was turned upside down and I lost everything.
Nox curses long and hard. “You don’t have to beg—I already said I’d do it—but you’ve set forth an impossible task. We don’t know which ship has him or what route they’ll take to deliver him to the Council in Lyari. I can hardly set up a single ship blockade and check every Cŵn Annwn vessel that tries to pass.”
At least I have an answer for this. “We don’t need a blockade. We just need information.” I nod at the magical map next to their desk. All Cŵn Annwn ships have one, a direct way of communication between captains and the Council. It’s how they get their orders and update the status of their hunts.
Nox curses again. “It will break my cover.”
“Yes.” I can’t pretend otherwise. “And if Bastian is taken before the Council, your name will be among those tortured out of him. Either way, they’ll know you’re a traitor. It’s your choice how you deal with that.”
“You are such a bitch sometimes.” They laugh as they say it.
A growl slips free of my lips, the rumble in my chest almost vicious. “Help me, Nox. Don’t make me beg.” Again.
“I won’t.” They sigh and flop down into the chair behind the massive desk bolted to the floor. “As charming as it would be to see you on your knees, it would be undignified for both of us.”