I keep blinking, trying to get the color to go away, but it just gets brighter and more vibrant.
“What?” she asks.
I’ve been staring at her for too long. The confession is on the tip of my tongue, but I have never loved someone like this. I didn’t know I had this in me—not once I came back to life the first time, and certainly not after the many subsequent times. I don’t know how to translate something so shocking into words.
“I see you.”
She frowns, and I tilt her chin up and kiss her. Finally, the tension in her body starts to melt away, and for one moment, she is mine.
The sound of voices and footsteps down the hallway startles us apart.
I glance at the destruction in the room. “We should get out.”
Harlow holds up a hand. “We can’t. Your plan was to overthrow them, right?”
It’s jarring to hear her say it so plainly. “Yes.”
“Then we can’t leave now or they’ll think there’s a break-in, and that means extra security. It will be impossible to get to them. You leave. I will play madwoman.”
“I’m not leaving you with them,” I say.
Harlow crosses her arms. “You are.”
“What if they lock you up?” I ask.
“They won’t.”
“Why?”
“Because they need me for the Dawn and they won’t risk upsetting you when you’re their witness. That said, they can’t know that you’re aware of the madness. So you really need to go.” She points to the window.
I want to argue. It goes against everything in me to leave her here after the day she’s had, but I know she’s right.
Just once, I’d like to be selfish and not think about the bigger picture. But it’s not just my people at stake. It’s hers, too.
“Do you think Kellan knew?” I ask.
“I intend to find out. Don’t count on me coming back to the boarding house until after dinner tonight.”
I take a step toward her. “I should be there.”
She shakes her head. “No. They will never be as open if you’re there. This is something I need to do on my own, but I swear you can help with Rafe. I’ll meet you back in our room for the Descent.”
The footsteps in the hall grow louder, and she darts across the study and locks the door. I climb out the window, thanking the Divine we’re on the first story.
She crosses the distance between us and leans out the window. Her face softens, and she clicks her tongue. “Don’t look at me like that, my wolf.”
“Like what?”
“Like you’re forgetting to hate me?”
“I could never forget,” I say. But it’s a lie.
It has been long forgotten. That’s why I can see the pink flush of her cheeks and the violet of her eyes.
Bleeding woods, no wonder Carter wouldn’t shut up about her eyes. I can’t stop staring at them.
A fist pounds on the door, and she nods toward the path behind me.
