“I am glad he has people who care for him,” Myanin said, as she struggled to keep her voice strong. She wanted them to accept her, to be a part of something good. The djinn also really wanted to know what the hell was up with her power because it felt like a ticking time bomb about to go off inside of her. She didn’t need to appear crazier than she already came across, which, according to Tenia, was pretty freaking crazy.
“Really?” Peri asked. “Because your actions would suggest otherwise.”
“Peri.” Lilly sighed. “Must we really go through all of this again?”
“She has a right to ask,” Myanin said, forcing herself to focus on only Peri. This woman was who she needed to convince. Myanin had to make Peri see she was changed, not by her own strength, but by the Great Luna’s. This time her voice wavered. She felt the sheen of tears that wanted to fall. There was something terrifying about bearing your sins before others, but also freeing, as if you’d been holding your breath, hoping no one would find out. But once you’d confessed, you could suddenly suck in a breath of life-giving air.
“Damn right I do,” Peri snapped. “If you were a Canis lupus and pulled the shit you did, they’d have killed you on sight.”
Myanin nodded as the first tear fell. “And rightfully so.”
“Why shouldn’t I kill you?” Peri’s voice was full of challenge, but she would get none from Myanin.
“I have no reason. And I won’t stop you if you try.” The resolve in her voice might have made it sound like Myanin wanted to die, but she didn’t. She’d accepted that it was most likely her future because her actions had led her to this end. The djinn didn’t know if she could truly be okay with herself, even if others could forgive her. She wasn’t sure if she could ever forgive herself.
Suddenly Tenia stood between Peri and Myanin. She must have flashed because one second she wasn’t there and the next she was. “You’ll have to kill me first, Perizada,” Tenia said, even as she bowed her head. “I’m sorry, but Myanin is my friend.” Her voice wavered a bit as if she was on the verge of tears, though Myanin couldn’t see the fae’s face. “I don’t agree with what she’s done. But she is remorseful, and she wants to make amends for her actions. She’s a little creepy and says weird things, but I’ve known you a long time, Peri, and you are kind of similar. Nobody’s killed you yet.”
“Not for lack of trying,” Lilly muttered.
“Queenie.” Peri’s voice dripped with warning.
There was a long pause. Then Peri spoke again. “It is good to see you, Tenia.” The high fae’s voice was much gentler as she spoke to Tenia. “You look a little worse for wear, but otherwise all right.”
“It is good to see you as well. But I still cannot let you kill Myanin,” Tenia said, her voice firm.
Myanin swallowed as another tear fell. She didn’t deserve Tenia’s loyalty, and yet, the fae was standing up for her. Once upon a time, she’d had friends that cared for her, but would they have stood up for her the way this fae was, knowing what she knew? “Tenia, it’s all right,” she mumbled.
“No, it’s not.” Tenia shook her head, vehemence in both her action and words. “You’re my friend. The Great Luna has given you a chance to prove yourself. Perizada, powerful though she may be, does not get to challenge the goddess’s decision.”
“As much as it irks me,” Peri said through gritted teeth. “Tenia is right. Stand down, Tenia. I won’t hurt her.”
Tenia didn’t move.
“I give you my word. Unless Myanin does something that proves she isn’t working with us, I will not harm her,” Peri promised.
Myanin tried not to give herself even the slightest bit of hope, but she desired it desperately. She wanted a chance to prove herself. Her hands fisted at her sides, and her nails dug into her palms. Sweat dripped down her back beneath her clothes as she let Peri’s words play on repeat in her mind. “I won’t harm her.” The high fae had every right, as an upholder of the supernatural law, to run her blade across Myanin’s throat. Yet she’d stayed her hand. After several tense minutes, Tenia finally moved to the side. But then Lucian stepped forward, and the fae froze.
He frowned as his eyes narrowed on Tenia. “Why do you smell like Skender?”
“Mother of pearl,” Lilly muttered from behind Peri and Lucian.
Before Tenia could respond, a man, nearly as large as Lucian—though not a wolf, based on yellow eyes with the classic warlock vertical slits up the center—stepped up on the other side of Peri, directly in front of Myanin. If she could have taken a step back, she would have, but there was a wall holding her in place. The intensity of his gaze was enough to make a shiver run down her spine. Her magic lunged so hard that Myanin grunted as it tried to jerk her closer to him. Down girl, Myanin snapped as she felt her body and magic respond to a male in a way it had not in a very long time. She frowned and then considered it again. Had her body and magic ever responded this way to any male, even Thad? The answer was no.
“Gerick?” Peri asked, her voice sounding unsure for the first time since she’d arrived. She glanced from the warlock to Myanin.
So this was the male Lucian had been struggling with, the one he hadn’t wanted to hurt. And this
