Silas narrowed his eyes, and Viola looked at me. “I do not care if you order me to stop. I do not care if you get harmed in the process either, Lena. Not when it comes to our people.”
I kept my shoulders high. Viola was always more of a leader than I was. She was extroverted and confident and always helped with any conflict that arose in our village, petty as they were. If anything, it would have made more sense if she had been named Supreme.
“I will gladly accept harm to me if I have this wrong—if the Prince betrays us.” I turned to him, his eyes flickering with an emotion I couldn’t decipher.
“The good thing, Vi, is that I can always tell if he’s lying,” Merrick remarked, a sinister smirk on his face.
Silas crossed his arms. “Not that it matters, but you have my word,” Silas promised.
Viola just huffed and sat back down on the stone bed while Silas turned to me.
“I will be back in a few hours when it is time.”
“Okay,” I nodded. He stared at me for a moment more before walking up to Merrick, who stiffened.
“Allow me?” Silas asked, gesturing to his cuffs. Merrick hesitated but held out his arms. Silas held his fingerprint and separated the device, allowing Merrick to move his hands freely. He didn’t say thank you.
Silas started to leave when Viola spoke. “What about me?”
He turned, slight amusement in his eyes. “Can I trust you not to swing at my face?”
She gave him a mocking smile. “I can never be sure with a face so punchable present.”
The corner of his lip went up, and to Viola’s surprise, he separated her cuffs, too. She was examining her wrists as he exited the room, giving me a glance before shutting and locking the door behind him.
“Where exactly are we going, Lena?” Merrick whispered.
We sat beside each other on the other stone bed, opposite Viola, who was now lost in thought.
“Mount Rozavar,” I said as quietly as possible. “Not many know there is a family of Mages living atop it. Mages with excellent skills.” I smiled softly. “Igon made sure to tell me of the place. This must be why. It’s no coincidence the mountain is close by.”
Merrick gave me a slanted smile. “Seers.”
I smiled bigger and rested my head on Merrick’s shoulder, his head then resting atop mine.
“How did you know it’s near?” he asked.
“When they showed me a map on the road—and before you ask, no, I did not tell him where it was. I didn’t even mention where I planned to take all of us.”
“A lot of this is wild to me, Lena, but…I trust you.”
I reached over and squeezed his hand. “I appreciate it,” I murmured, then hesitated with the next part. I lifted my head up. “Igon also mentioned how the mountain dweller’s wife was born without an arm…and how he was able to enchant a prosthetic to work like the real thing.”
To that, Viola sprang up. “You’re joking.”
I shook my head. “I can’t help but think that information was for Edmund.”
When I turned to Merrick, his icy eyes were wide.
Chapter Forty-Five
Thehourswentbyslowly—Merrick and Viola were exhausted, and with their hands now separated, they sprawled out on the concrete, finally getting some rest. I was sitting on the opposite bed, watching as Viola slept on Merrick’s chest.
I had always thought they would be a cute couple. I wasn’t sure of either’s feelings, though I knew Viola usually preferred women. Merrick certainly loved her as he loved me—I knew it wouldn’t be weird for me to lie on his chest, either.
I began to hear footsteps and sat up straighter as the door creaked open. Merrick and Viola’s eyes shot open. I couldn’t help the sweat that began to form at my hairline or the quickening of my heartbeat.
You are okay. Those men are gone. They are gone.
