As Vladim moved to turn the locks, I heard Genya whisper. "You definitely owe me a kiss after all this, Don't think I won't hold you to it."
I laughed lightly. "We'll see."
"There is no seeing, you will, if I have to be the one to do it then so be...
Deze afbeelding leeft onze inhoudsrichtlijnen niet na. Verwijder de afbeelding of upload een andere om verder te gaan met publiceren.
"HOW DID YOU FIND US?" ALINA RASPED, "You two left a very expensive trail," the Darkling responded, and lazily tossed something onto the table. I recognized one of the golden pins Genya had woven into my hair so many weeks ago. We'd used them to pay for our passage across the True Sea, the wagon to Cofton, our miserable, not-quite-tick-free bed.
The Darkling rose, and a strange trepidation crackled through the room. It was as if every Grisha had taken a breath and was holding it, waiting. I could feel the fear coming off them, and that sent a spike of alarm through me.
The Darkling's underlings had always treated him with awe and respect, but this was something new. Even Ivan looked a little ill. The Darkling stepped into the light, and I saw a faint tracery of scars over his face. They'd been healed by a Corporalki, but they were still visible.
So the Volcra had left their mark. Good, I thought with petty satisfaction. It was small comfort, but at least he wasn't quite as perfect as he had been. He paused, studying me and then Alina, "How are you finding life in hiding, Freya and Alina?" He looked back over to me a faint smile on his lips, "You don't look well."
"Neither do you," I said. It wasn't just the scars. He wore his weariness like an elegant cloak, but it was still there. Faint smudges showed beneath his eyes, and the hollow of his sharp cheekbones cut a little deeper.
"A small price to pay," he said, a chill went up my spine. For what? He reached out, and it took everything in me not to flinch backward. But all he did was take hold of my hand, pulling up the sleeve of my hand and the coin came visible, the skin melting over the grey metal, "Back to pretending to be less than you two are, I see. The sham doesn't suit you."
A twig of unease passed through me. Hadn't I had a similar thought just minutes ago? "Thanks for your concern," Alina murmured.
He left my side, his hand grazing over the metal a few seconds longer than it should have, and stepped in front of Alina and pushed away the scarf that was around her neck, unraveling it until it fell at her feet. His fingers trailed over her collarbone, "It is mine as much as it is yours, Alina."
She batted his hand away, and an anxious rustle rose from the Grisha. "Then you shouldn't have put it on my neck." She snapped, "What do you want?"
Of course, we already knew. He wanted everything— Ravka, the world, the power of the Fold. His answer didn't matter. We just needed to keep him talking. I'd known this moment might come, and I'd prepared for it. I wasn't going to let him take us again, even if I was powerless to him.
"I wanted to thank you, Freya." the Darkling said, glancing over at me. My breath hitched, and I remembered him saying 'thank you' in my nightmare on the Verrhader.
