A Million Roads to Nowhere

Amorous Intent

The next day passes slowly, as all Clementine is doing is patiently waiting for Leif to crack. It's at dinner that Leif finally asks her what she's here for and Patrick knows by the smile that flicks across her face that things are going according to plan.

"I'm still thinking it over," she informs him. "It's important not to rush into things."

Leif's cool facade begins to look frazzled as his smile becomes strained and his voice tightens. "Of course. Get back to me once you've had more time to think."

"Most definitely," Clementine promises.

Leif returns to making merry with his people, jovially walking circles around the room as he converses with each and every person. Leif, Patrick realizes, is also good at pretending nothing is amiss. He thinks Alistair mentioned Leif once, said that he talks a lot of nothing- or maybe it was someone else. It's been so long he can't remember.

Signe nudges Patrick's foot with hers to catch his attention. She leans close so he can better hear her over the noise. "Do you want to get out of here?" she asks.

"All right," he agrees, nodding as he shoves a final bite of apple tart in his mouth.

The two of them slip away and find the stairwell that leads up to the ramparts. Out in the open, there's a slight breeze. Signe shivers, cheeks flushed with cold. Patrick grabs her wrist and traces the fire sign on it and his fingertips glow bright yellow, like a duckling's feather.

"Thank you," she says. "That's much better."

And I didn't even set you on fire, Patrick refrains from saying and instead inquires if she's okay.

Signe shrugs. "I'm not fond of the noise is all. It makes my head buzz."

"William is like that, too."

She smiles and looks over the wall out at the town, face softening into a more neutral expression. "Maybe I should go back. I'm not getting anywhere with Leif and I might be able to talk to Alexei."

"It's really not any more fun over there," Patrick answers. "One of Morwenna's dragons is hanging about."

"Really? That's not good at all."

"Did you come here through the portal in the woods?" he asks abruptly, just as the thought crosses his mind.

Signe glances over at him. "How did you know about that?"

Patrick shrugs. "Investigative business."

"Oh. Well, yes. I didn't mean to. I usually have to make a door, but there was already one open here. It's a really old one. I've never seen anything like it before." She tucks a strand of hair behind her ear and looks at him, face turning serious. "There was a god monster in there."

"Like a familiar?"

"No, one of the big ones."

"And that's bad."

"It's not great to have open doorways around them. They're dead things and dead things don't belong in the living world. That's why I cross them over."

"Are you going to close the portal, then?"

"I don't think I could," she says, staring out over the wall.

When Patrick and Signe bid each other goodnight, Patrick heads back to his room, thinking about god monsters. He flips through his book in search of information on them, but finds nothing.