“Verity,” I say, suppressing a smile.
But she spins on her heel and runs from the room. The door slams shut behind her, but I know Navi is on the other side. I know she likely heard everything and knows what happened between me and Verity. I drop my head back onto my pillow, grinning.
I don’t know what came over me. Verity is a beautiful woman to be sure, but she still wants to return home. She doesn’t want to be here with me. I think back to her ruined dress and the fact that she stayed by my side all this time. My heart pounds loudly as I think of it. I haven’t felt interested in anyone in many years, decades maybe.
I would occasionally delight in the company of women, but it meant nothing. And I always left them feeling nothing. But with Verity, my heart is beating wildly, and my blood is rushing like fire through my veins. She’s stubborn and clever. Funny and sweet. And beautiful of course. She’s not afraid to slap a king who’s gotten out of hand either.
My grin widens. That’s exactly what I need. A woman who isn’t afraid.
Chapter 10
Verity
I can’t forget the sensation of Altair’s lips against mine. Soft yet commanding. A shiver trails down my spine at the memory. Even now, a day later, I haven’t been able to keep my mind off of it. Or deny that I desperately want another.
I haven’t visited him since I left him last night. It’s daylight now, so he won’t be himself. I feel a sympathetic pain in my chest at the thought of the curse. To be trapped between two bodies, two selves, must be torture for him. I lift my eyes from the ground in surprise. I haven’t doubted once what the Bloodbane witches told me. The longer I’m here, the more I come to believe that this is all real. It’s no game or fantasy devised by a kidnapper.
Pursing my lips, I rise from the chair in my room and pace. If it is real, and I’m not trapped in my own hallucinations, then Altair truly does need my help. The witches told me I was Bloodbane. I don’t know what that means, but the word itself sends my blood stirring. My brows furrow, confusion mingling with fear. Is my mother truly my mother? Or my father? Is my life a lie? I clench my hands into fists at my side, so tight that my knuckles are white. Who am I?
A part of me wishes Acubens—Altair—didn’t rescue me from Nakarr and Tegmine, if only so I could meet this Maaz and learn my history from her. I chew my lip, trying to imagine what Maaz is like. She cursed Altair long ago, almost a thousand years. And yet, somehow, she’s still alive. I imagine she’s an old hag now, bent over with a hump on her back and long, scraggly gray hair.
Remarkably similar to cartoon witches in every children’s movie.
Suddenly, a knock sounds at my door. I recognize the sharp, business-like raps of Navi. I open the door wide for her to enter. She looks me over coldly, hands clasped behind her back. I meet her gaze evenly. I get the sense Navi doesn’t like me much.
“Yes, Navi?” I ask, looking at her expectantly.
“What did the Bloodbane witches want with you?” She asks.
I shrug. “They wanted to bring me to Maaz, I don’t know why.”
“What else did they tell you?” Her voice is laced with suspicion.
“Why do you want to know? I haven’t done anything,” I say, arching a brow.
“The Bloodbane witches came to our front door, killed two of my men, and snatched you. I want to know what they wanted with you,” Navi snaps. Her eyes flash furiously, and I feel a tendril of fear in my gut. “It is my duty to protect Altair. He almost died for you. Surely you wouldn’t be so callous as to deny me of information that could protect him from his enemies.”
I drop into an arm chair and stare at the stone floor. “Your duty,” I muse. “Are you in love with him, Navi?”
“How dare you.” Her voice is cold.
I know instantly that I’ve crossed a line. And I don’t know what possessed me to ask about her feelings for Altair in the first place. But every time she says his name, I feel my heart clench painfully. I purse my lips, considering her words and her anger. She has every right to her fury.
“The witches told me I was one of them. They said Altair needed me to break the curse but that a Bloodbane would never betray her Sisters,” I say. “That’s all that they told me.”
Her eyes narrow at me. “And will you betray them? Or will you become the Bloodbane you are?” She spits.
I round on her, anger flaring within me. “I’m not sure if your disgust for me stems from the fact that I’m a Bloodbane witch or if it’s because you can’t help Altair the way I can, but you don’t know me, Navi,” I murmur. “I have no allegiance to the Bloodbane witches, just as I have no allegiance to you. I’ll do what I want.”
Wordlessly, Navi spins on her heel and stalks from the room. She moves lithely, like a predator. I know if she wanted to, she could cut me in two with one swipe of her blade. I sit back, fuming. I don’t know why I said what I did, or why I asked her about her feelings for Altair. It truly is none of my business. But then why did I feel a spark of
