As I turned to go check on Alixe, Taran grabbed my wrist, and our eyes met. “Thank you, Diem. I’m too selfish to say I wish you hadn’t done it. I hope you know I would have done it for you, too.” “Then prove it,” I said, a spark of challenge in my tone. “I faced death for you and lived.” I gestured to his wounds. “Time to return the favor.” His face gave way to a feral grin, that inveterate cheekiness I adored returning once more. “Anything for you, Queenie.”
