Page 26 of Born of Starlight
I stepped forward, mere inches stood between us, this time meeting his eyes of my own volition.
“The intent is not to fight or conquer on any battlefield. The intent is to reinforce the Central Corridor’s defenses. I have seen a prophecy. The city of Luz will fall.Youare among our last hopes to stop it.”
He held my gaze intently, expression softening.Hazel.His eyes were hazel and ruinous behind thick dark eyelashes. Glints of gold and green almost distracted me from continuing. I had an odd impulse to reach up and touch his cheek. I physically shook my hand at my side to dismiss it.
“Innocent women and children…no one will be spared. This isn’t an attack on soldiers. It will be an attack on thepeopleof Luz—civilians. We want a fighting chance to save as many as we can.”
His lingering gaze unsettled me as it trailed down my face and settled on my lips. “And who is the aggressor in this supposed attack?”
A sigh escaped me. I hadn’t foreseenthatcritical detail—and the moonstone not responding now made it impossible. Mattock thought it would be the Wastelands rising, but it felt foolhardy to reveal too much to the warlock.
“We don’t know. The prophecy didn’t reveal it. But it led me to the Queen, who led me to you. That has to mean something.”
I didn’t break eye contact—we needed him. The people of Luz needed him.
Meeting him felt right.
His demeanor was no longer playful or light-hearted. Instead, his eyes seared me with quiet intensity and something akin to confusion.
“I believe you have good intentions.”
“Then you will join us?” Emmerick asked eagerly.
The warlock shook his head, turning to look at the Commander.
“I’m a firm believer in sleeping on big decisions.” He motioned for us to follow as he began to walk away from us. “My cabin is just a mile north—unless you’d rather sleep out here and get eaten by something.”
Emmerick eyed me, clearly uncomfortable with staying under the warlock’s roof for even a minute. However, the other options were limited and we had no packs. I shrugged with raised brows.
I wouldn’t let the warlock out of our sight now that we had found him. The idea of sleeping under a roof and between four walls was simply a worthwhile bonus.
“After you.” Emmerick sighed, holding an arm toward the retreating warlock.
Chapter10
Fenris
There was no reason to help the trespassers. If it had just been the boy, then I may not have. But seeing the enchantress in peril had struck a nerve. Something about her—I couldn’t help but intervene.
The enchantress and the boy trailed me, keeping close together as we neared my cabin.
“Those things, the giant rats, belong to one of your Sisters?” the boy Commander whispered.
“Yes. They’re one of my Sister’s…companion animals.”
“Not very companionable.”
“If you knew her, you would understand.”
The boy scoffed. A smirk crept across my face at her slight. When we arrived at the cabin, I held the door for them before snapping to light the fire and lamps. Even in late spring, the woods grew cold at night.
I hung my cloak on a peg by the door and offered to take the woman’s bloodied cloak.Asterie.She seemed to be taking in my space—the hearth, the sofa, the one-chair wooden table where I ate my meals alone. Some items were crafted with magic, and some were handcrafted to pass the time. It was better than what I had started with, which wasnothing.
When first bound here, I was thrown into a jarring, rustic existence. Considering most of my life had been lived amongst the court’s pampered nobles, the first ten years were fucking miserable. But I deserved misery. For nearly a century, I allowed myself to wither away, wishing they had just killed me as planned.
Learning how towantto live again came slowly, but never fully. Time has a way of dulling pain. One hundred forty-sixthousanddays had passed. But my guilt would always be there, a dull ache in my chest.
“Boots off,” I requested, not wanting to deal with the mud they would track in. Plus, I liked my pelt rugs.
