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“Why so bashful? Don’t tell me you’ve never taken advantage of all those suitors lining up at your door.” Her skin burned hotter even as a smile crept across her lips. “You are the worst.” Surprising them both, she laughed.
“It’s not a crime to have loved a witch, Rune.” He bent toward her until their foreheads touched and his breath tangled with hers. “If it were, you wouldn’t be the only guilty one.” His gentleness snuck past her defenses, unlocking the deadbolts inside her. Letting the enemy in.
IF GIDEON WERE BEING honest, part of him secretly hoped it was Rune who’d escaped him down in that mine. Which should have disturbed him.
But a girl who could outwit him thrilled Gideon too much to deny. Her kiss felt the same. Like the first taste of something forbidden. Heady and delicious. Awakening all his senses at once.
In Gideon’s hasty retreat, Rune lost her balance, went under the waves, and came up spluttering.
I thought you wanted to. She’d completely misunderstood. “Rune!” Either she didn’t hear him, or she was ignoring him. Because she only swam faster.
“Stupid, stupid, stupid!” Witches are cruel by nature. If Gideon believed that, and he suspected Rune of being a witch, he would think her no different from Cressida.
“I’m not accusing you, Rune. I think it’s … admirable.” His warm hand squeezed hers. Oh. A strange silence descended.
If she could get away for a few minutes, she could cast Truth Teller, and this time she would draw the spellmark on something useful.
Ur pllaying witth NAPALM and u want to do more???
“And if I step through that door tonight, I’m afraid I won’t keep my word.” A wild feeling swept through Rune. She didn’t want him to keep his word. She wanted him to take her upstairs. This instant. “Good night, Miss Winters.”
So wild
He doesn’t actually want you. Her skin tingled everywhere he’d touched her. You’re falling for his tricks. Gideon was winning at this game. Because what they’d done tonight, Rune wanted to do again—for reasons that had nothing to do with rescuing witches.
“The dockhands said he had a sophisticated way of speaking, like someone with an education. He also wore a ring on his smallest finger.”
Uhoh
When Gideon first opened the box, he could almost smell her. A delicate scent. Like the wind bringing him the essence of the sea. Beautiful and wild and … dangerous. He frowned, shaking off the thought.
Oh fook
But it wasn’t only her physical attributes that had him spinning. It was her kindness. Her thoughtfulness. Her wildness. It was her willingness to argue with him. If he wasn’t careful, he might fall in love with her.
MAJORA: (n.) the second-highest spell category. Majora Spells are major spells requiring the fresh blood of someone else, either taken with permission or given freely. Examples of Majora Spells include: summoning a natural disaster or inflicting a deadly disease.
“I ENCHANTED THE JACKET,” said Rune,
Omg hee DID smell her mmagic, he justt didnnt knnow
Rune rarely left spell books lying around, and she didn’t immediately recognize this one.
Opening to the first page, she realized it was one of Nan’s rarer spell books, full of powerful curses. That’s odd.
As she flipped through it, the book fell open near the middle, to a spell called Earth Sunderer.
Verity’s grip tightened on Rune, her knuckles turning bone white.
Rune glanced down to see her friend’s fingernails about to break her skin. “Verity, you’re hurting me.” For a moment, it seemed like Verity wouldn’t stop. Couldn’t stop.
Your sisters weren’t using each other’s blood against their will, though, Rune wanted to point out. Which was the accusation Gideon had made against the queens. But Verity was distressed by the memory. And Rune couldn’t blame her. So she let it go.
As if Seraphine Oakes hadn’t aged a single day. Why is she so young? Nan had been over seventy the day she died, and the woman on the platform—Seraphine—looked no older than twenty-three.
But summoning actual fire was a complex spell that required a lot of fresh blood,
A thorny rose enclosed by a crescent moon. The sight of it made him nauseous. “A witch was hidden among the guests tonight.” The brand on his chest flared suddenly. Gideon rubbed at it, but the pain faded quickly, leaving him to wonder if it was just in his head.
Holy shit
“It belongs to a witch who should be dead.” His eyes met Laila’s. “Cressida Roseblood.”
The sight of him was like coming home. Like wrapping herself in a warm blanket on a chilly day. Alex was constant and safe. Gentle and kind.
Saving girls from being murdered by the Republic was the only way to make Nan’s death mean something. It was the choice she’d made. And no matter how she might dream of a different life, this was the one she belonged in.
With his eyes still on her, Alex placed his fingers on the piano and resumed the song. And like that, he was gone again. Soaring away from her.
“Of course I’m happy for you.” Rune handed it back to him. “This is what you want.” It just wasn’t what she wanted.
Alex was a cool spring, giving her a place to rest and recover, reminding her that she was a girl with needs and weaknesses, not some invincible savior.
Rune needed Alex more than he needed her. He’d given her so much, and she’d given so little in return. She was doing it now. Being selfish. The selfless thing to do was let him go.
“Will you come back to visit me?” she asked. “If … you want me to.” It wasn’t the answer Rune needed. She wanted him to want to come back. To need her the way she needed him.
putting voice to the thing he wouldn’t. “To put this island behind you.” More quietly, she said, “To put me behind you.” “No.” His voice was soft but firm. His hands lifted to gently cup her face. “Rune, never. I want …”
For as long as she’d known Alex, he’d refused to choose a side. Or rather, refused to choose Rune’s side over Gideon’s. What had changed his mind?
“I didn’t realize what he was doing was saving me. I didn’t know it was him who needed saving.” Alex swallowed, rubbing a hand over his forehead.
Probably whyy hhe ddoessnt waant to stand by anymore while he geets what he wants
Well, he didn’t want to hear that. He said I had to go back. That I belonged in Caelis, not here. Not anywhere near him. It might have hurt, if he didn’t look so terrified. I remember thinking, He’s driving me away to protect me from something.” “From Cressida,” said Rune.
When Gideon sobered, he and I would argue, and then he would storm out. Always going back to her. I think he was afraid of what would happen if he didn’t.”
I told Gideon if he wanted to keep me safe, he’d have to come to the meetings with me. So, begrudgingly, he did. “After a few weeks, he started drinking and fighting less.
I wanted to go with him, but he refused. He saw me as the little brother who needed to be spared from hard things. Not his equal. Not someone he could trust to shoulder his burdens or watch his back.
“I’ve spent two years living here, trying to bring my brother back. But the Gideon I knew and loved … he’s gone, Rune. He’s not coming back.”
It broke something in her, feeling him weep. She wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him close. At her touch, Alex shook harder.
He probably wishes he could have done more
“The curfews and raids were unpopular during the Red Peace. Not only will these measures make witch sympathizers more supportive of Cressida’s cause, they may turn more citizens against us. People don’t like their rights infringed upon, sir.”
Facts
He used this man’s belief in him like a crutch. It took months. But, little by little, Nicolas’s faith in Gideon became indistinct from his own. Soon, Gideon stopped letting his opponents beat him into oblivion.
ahead and behind them, guarding the Commander. “A good leader cares deeply about those he’s responsible for. Again and again, you’ve shown yourself to be that kind of leader.”
“Sadly, though, people don’t always know what’s best for them. Sometimes they need us to step in and protect them from themselves.” Gideon couldn’t exactly disagree with this. If Nicolas hadn’t intervened in his own life two years ago, he’d still be lying on the floor of the boxing ring wishing he were dead.
what fuels his ideas and convictions
Gideon also remembered Rune allowing Penitents to use her footpaths. In a choice between mercy and punishment, Rune chose mercy. What if Gideon could do the same? Perhaps there was a way to find and arrest Cressida without violating the rights of everyday citizens. Without making them live in fear of the Blood Guard.
Turn thhose gears gideeon
The choice is yours to make. Just remember: a great leader weighs the consequences of every decision, and must bear the weight of those consequences.
What makkes him tick
off. “Think it through,” he said, turning to leave. “Then let me know your decision.” Gideon stared at the empty thrones. They were a stark reminder of all he had fought for.
Cant tell if hes being manipulated Or if tthts a motivator forr the ccommander too
Rune isn’t bound by the same duty I am, he thought, remembering her kindness to the Penitents. She can afford to show mercy. Gideon couldn’t. Gideon needed to keep people safe from evil. He had to stop Cressida at all costs.
