Page 150 of Adversary to the Villain

Gideon Sage had so many things in his life worthy of his regret. He had allowed the burden of running their family to fall to Evie. He’d escaped the pressure of their mother’s erratic moods instead of supporting her through them. He’d narrowly avoided his father’s devotion to Benedict and the cruelty that happened as a result, but he’d allowed it to fall to his sisters instead. And when his memories finally returned…he had chosen the easy way out.

The coward’s way.

And now, he had decades of shame built up. If there was anything he knew about hiding the difficult things, it was that they always found their way out into the open.

Twisting in the knight’s arms, he searched for Keeley, feeling a shot of panic, hardly noticing the poison burning its way through his bloodstream. “Where is she? They were right behind us.”

“Stop moving, you bleeding deserter.” The knight jerked him up and held a sword to his throat. The chains around his wrists were so tight it felt like his bones were being rubbed raw.

“Keeley!” Gideon bellowed, ignoring the commands of his old comrades. Gods, if they touched her…if theyhurther— “Where is she?”

“I am here. I am all right.” Her smooth voice felt like ice held to his flaming skin. His heart pounded in his chest when he turned to see a knife at Keeley’s throat.

“Oh yes. That appears all right.” Gideon’s sardonic response was lost in his thrashing to get closer to her. “Unhand her.”

A fist landed in his gut, and Gideon fell to his knees.

When he looked up, Evie was charging for him but was stopped by another knight grabbing her from behind, clapping cuffs on her wrists to subdue her.

“Remember these, Trystan?” the king taunted. “They once belonged to you.”

The handcuffs Gideon had imbued with his shielding magic, which repressed the magic of whoever wore them. Yet another thing for him to feel deeply ashamed of.

Evie was defenseless.

Gideon turned again to see his father come up next to the king. Griffin let loose a sound of outrage before shuttering his expression, tightening his lips before speaking. “This brutality is unnecessary. You need her willing to help.”

Evie noticed—Gideon could tell by the slight twitch in her jaw—but she showed no indication that she was touched by their father’s concern. Instead, his sister’s immediate response was…to laugh.

“My goodness!” Evie shook off the guards, and they let her, the light sounds of her merriment drifting to the sky, her head dropping before looking up with a hopelessly amused expression. “The concern for my well-being is flattering but far too late.”

Griffin glared at her. “I wasn’t looking for absolution.”

She smiled with gentle menace. “Good. Because you’ll never have it from me.”

Gideon tried to help, inching closer until the guards released his arms and he fell to the ground, the burning in his chest making it impossible to stand. “Eve.”

His sister locked eyes with him, and he gave her a stiff nod he hoped she’d interpret as,I’m all right. Are you?

She nodded back, her mocking smile going softer before turning on the men holding Trystan. “You’re going to do what, exactly, if I don’t comply? Let the poison kill my brother? Have you some kind of fixation on attacking siblings? Is it only-child syndrome?”

“Let’s not give them ideas,” Gideon pressed lightly, trying not to notice that several swords were unsheathed and about two steps from running him through.

Benedict waved a dismissive hand at Evie. “Ms. Sage, please. I’m simply presenting you with a choice: you proceed with enacting this curse or your brother will never get the cure.”

“Don’t make a choice, Evie,” Gideon demanded. “Don’t play this out with them. You’re not responsible for anything they do.”

Evie stared at him, something unreadable in her expression. It looked startlingly close to resignation. It was a look he had never seen on his sister’s face. There had always been a drive, a wheel turning, an energy that she seemed to wield in endless supply.

This look now? It was that of a shell.

“Sage,” Trystan called carefully.

But Evie ignored them all, addressing only the king when she asked, “What does the curse involve?”

“Evie, no!” Gideon yelled.

Benedict appeared surprised, his eyes going wide for a fraction of a second before he schooled his expression. “I will need each of the Sage children’s respective powers. I have a bit of Lyssa’s starlight magic in the memory flower; fortunately, I believe it will be enough so that we might leave the child out of this.”