Page 31 of Ashborne Phoenix

“Vane, of course!” I said, one hand fluttering at my collarbones. “My lady, I would never—”

“Of course you would, if you love my son.”

“I… but…” What?

She smiled and sat back in the chair, staring at me. A cat on a mouse.

I searched the room as if looking for answers. “I’m very sorry, my lady, but I’m not sure I follow. If you could explain—”

She tapped her lips with one perfectly manicured finger. “I believe you wish for my son. He truly desires you, as well. That is obvious. And if I’m honest, given your bloodline, I wish for him to have you—”

“Thank you, my lady!”

“—but what I have yet to determine is how much of this you knew. How much you have manipulated for your own gain.”

I let very real shock show. “I haven’t manipulated, my lady. I was unaware—”

“Your parents sold you to Breckon. They knew.”

“I… that is…” I blinked. It was a question I’d had since Voski revealed the Cruors—and even more since he’d told me his story. He’d mentioned names in passing that were known to me, though distantly. How much did my parents know of this group?

“You play the pampered, empty-headed lady very well, Grace. Don’t doubt yourself. That will be useful for years to come yet.”

“My lady, I am not—”

“How did he get you to offer the vow?”

My head spun. She changed subjects, and implied answers to questions she didn’t voice with such swift turns, I struggled to keep up.

Voski had warned me she turned people in circles. I was beginning to see how. “I offered the vow voluntarily. I wasn’t aware when I spoke. That is, I only understood the impact of my words after he was gripped by it.”

It was the first time she showed a genuine reaction to anything I’d said. Her face went blank and she blinked once. “How was he gripped?”

Nervous tension fluttered in my belly. I reached for Voski. ‘Do I tell her the truth?’ I did my best to relay the question and her reaction to it, so he could measure her for me.

‘Bitch still thinks I’m faking this, that I’ve used my power to make you appear as if your blood ignited. Tell her the truth, Grace. For once, it will serve us.’

I cleared my throat. “I’m not certain how to explain except that… I declared my love and desire for everything with him. I was afraid when he left me so long in Breckon’s hands, you understand? I worried he had lost interest. But no. He came for me. And after I told him my feelings, what I offered, it… took his body. He felt the magik take hold. It pained him for a moment—and then… then the opposite. He seemed to swell with it,” I said breathlessly.

When I met her eyes, there was no expression on her face. But then she smiled. Slowly at first, then wider. She pushed to her feet and walked toward the window at the end of the room. To hide her triumph? Or something else?

“Is it possible?” she murmured. “Has he truly taken possession of his power?”

“Oh, most definitely.” I let my tone sound as if I were relieved to finally know the correct answer.

“You seem very certain?” She’d reached the window, and she turned to face me, standing properly, and with her fingers twined to keep her hands sweetly at her waist.

“Well, he is… that is, he’s quite frightening, isn’t he?” I said quietly, with a hint of apology. Voski had told me that I needed to appear impressed by his power, yet also emphasize my ignorance of it. “I find him quite terrifying when he sinks into the shadows and no one can see him and… well, he says I will learn to trust. And of course, I will,” I added hurriedly.

She tilted her head, fixing me with a penetrating gaze. “He described you as impressive as well.”

I gave a humble shrug. “He speaks with such kind words, always. I have never felt I deserved them. But—”

“Have you made your first kill?” She threw the words at me flippantly, but the intensity in her gaze wasn’t faked.

I felt the blood drain from my face and gripped my skirts as my belly flip-flopped. “I… that is… why would you—”

“So, he wasn’t lying. Interesting.”