Page 188 of Ignite
“Graylen?” I breathe, my voice wobbly. My pulse quickens, and my heart hammers painfully in my chest. “What are you?—”
“Listen to me; I don’t have long,” he whispers quickly.
My muscles strain to twist toward him, but his fingers dig into my arm to stop me from doing just that.
I ache to see him—to fully feel him. All I need is assurance that he’s okay, that he’shimagain, andsafe. Hearing Graylen isn’t enough, and it’s killing me that he’s holding me in place to stop me from turning to him.
My breath hitches. “How are youhere?”
We both know whatheremeans—not physically, but mentally. Still, it’s hard to believe he managed to get away from Opal, surpass Daimon’s careful gaze,anddo it all in Vidaris’s stronghold.
Suspicion laces my words. How could it not? Graylen is good, but he isn’tthatgood—to evade the Goddess of Vengeance in her own domain. Warning bells clang in my mind, but when he leans into me and the warmth of his chest presses against my back, the hesitancy recedes.
“Shh,” he quiets. His lips brush against my ear as he says, “I know how you can get out of here.”
My eyes bolt to the crowd—to Daimon and Opal—but they’re all so absorbed in the show that no one even glances our way.
Graylen yanks me sideways, pulling us behind the massive throne. He spins me around to face him, and my chest tightens.
My gaze collides with his eyes, and I freeze as I take in their color—a bright emerald green, watching me with clarity.
“Listen,” he says quickly, his hands gripping my upper armstightly. “I know this is going to sound insane, but hear me out, okay?”
My brows pull together. He isn’t making any sense. “How do I know it’s really you?” I whisper fiercely, afraid this is where the ruse implodes and a particularly nasty being takes his place.
He releases a soft, resigned sigh, as if he had expected that question. “When I went with you to Linnick’s farm, you cried beneath a lemon tree—afraid to look at it. Afraid it had been taken over by dodders, too. But it wasn’t; it was perfect.”
I gasp. I nevertoldhim that, and we never discussed it.
“You were afraid that you’d have nothing left of Linnick if you had lost that tree, too,” he murmurs. “The pain was unmistakable, little princess.”
His words send a hot, searing agony through my body.Little princess.
Graylen always saw through my mask of indifference, saw through my anger and carefully concealed hurt. But that day, it was clear for anyone to see. Though I have a sneaking suspicion he still would’ve been the only one to piece it all together.
“It’s you.” The words fly out of my mouth, and I fight to twist again, the crowd still chattering loudly around us. “Someone is going to see?—”
“They’re too busy watching Daimon,” he assures.
A new screech fills the air from the other side of the throne—Daimon’s latest victim, no doubt.
“I’m not leaving you,” I vow, my voice nearly swallowed by the new cries. I peer around the side and catch a glimpse of Daimon peeling a scale off of a girl’s shoulder. “I don’t care what I have to do, but you’re not going back to Vidaris. We’ll find a way.”
I feel him shift beside me, his heat so achingly familiar. I turn my attention back to him.
“Don’t move,” Graylen repeats.
With focused speed, he pulls out a blade. I take a step back, but he reaches out and pulls me close.
“Stay still, Lunaria, we’re losing time,” he hisses.
His eyes flicker, a shadow crossing over them momentarily.
Graylen growls, shaking his head violently and clenching his jaw.
The darkness clears, his brilliant green eyes returning to me.
He swipes the blade across his palm, just below his thumb. Before I can ask what he’s doing, he shoves his hand to my face—to mymouth.
