I rise on my elbow, needing to see his face, needing to look into his eyes. “I want to know if you believe in Hector.”
“I believe in his intentions. His integrity. His honor. His devotion to his people.” Sincerity sparks from Gabriel’s words.
“He’s never here.”
Shadows flicker in Gabriel’s eyes. Things impossible for me to put into thoughts.
Maybe I have said too much.
“He’s where he needs to be.” Gently, Gabriel slides his calloused fingertips along my jaw and lifts my chin. “Why do you care?”
“Because he is your leader.”
“Is heyourleader?”
My breath catches at that question. What is Gabriel’s purpose? Maybe he means to trap me and rip open my secrets.
“I’m in Astarobane, and I’m married to a Bloodstone warrior. So yes, he is my leader.” The words sour against my tongue.
“Am I?” The question comes out low, husky. “Do you believe in me, Sol?”
Is he asking as my husband? Or does he simply want to know if I believe in his goodness?
“Yes,” I whisper.
“Then tell me why you have come here. Tell me everything, so I may believe in you too.”
Tight bands wrap around my chest, my heart, my breath.
“My people…” The lie curdles in my throat as I break eye contact and sink to my back. “I was shunned when I couldn’t cast magic like everyone else. I wanted to belong to a place where I wasn’t an oddity.”
It’s true. I was an outcast. I was banned from the apothecary.
But none of those reasons are why I came here.
“Sol.” Gabriel grabs my chin and turns my face back to his. “Speak the truth to me. Why were you desperate to stay here?”
Something shifts inside me, something determined to connect with Gabriel in a way I have never connected before. Something longing for his trust. Something desperate for forever beyond my mission.
“For Roland,” the truth bursts free and settles around us like a thick, humid morning.
Gabriel drops his hand and stiffens. “You came here for Roland?”
No. No. Please, don’t pull away.
Admit that Roland was evil too.
Admit it, so I can believe in you, Gabriel.
“Yes, to avenge my mother. Roland murdered her in front of me.” Vivid memories paint my mind. Mother’s cries. The fires. The flames. The way she fell.
I blink, pushing aside the pain and speak in a raw voice. “He slaughtered her and threw her body into a fire like she was nothing.”
A muscle ticks in Gabriel’s jaw as he clenches his fingers into fists.
“He was evil,” I say, freeing all my anger, my fire.
“I’m aware.”
