Page 12 of Run of Ruin

“You’re wondering if I’m actually going to poison you,” Ezra said calmly, not even looking up as he uncorked the bottle.

“No,” I said, too quickly.

The corner of his lips quirked up into a smirk as he poured a finger of whiskey into one of the glasses. “You’re not a very good liar.”

I sighed, looking down at the worn wood grain of the bar. “I didn’t mean it like that. I just… forgot, for a second.”

“That I’m a criminal,” he finished for me, his voice matter-of-fact. Not offended. Not angry. Justresigned.

He recorked the bottle and set it aside, then lined up three more bottles in front of me with a pointed look that saidyou choose. He picked up his own drink and took a sip, watching me over the rim of his glass like he could see straight through me.

I hesitated again. It wasn’t fair, this creeping suspicion in my chest. He hadn’t done anything to me. Hell, he’d caught me when I almost fell earlier. But the truth lingered in the back of my mind, unwelcome and sharp.

I didn’t know what his crime was.

Even though he didn’t look like a murderer… Do they ever?

I met his eyes then, green and unreadable, and suddenly the air between us shifted. I remembered where we were. What we were about to face. What this game required of us. Fear wouldn’t help me here.

I didn’t need another enemy.

I needed someone who might stand beside me when things got brutal. Someone strong. Capable. Someone like him.

My gaze dropped to the middle bottle, dark label, worn edges, something smoky maybe. I pointed to it silently.

Ezra raised a brow but said nothing. He took the bottle, uncorked it with a twist, and poured the amber liquid into my glass. Not a drop more than I’d need to sleep. Not a drop less than I’d need to quiet my thoughts.

When he handed it to me, our fingers brushed. I didn’t pull away.

“Cheers,” he said, with that same almost-smirk that made it impossible to tell if he was amused or just tired of the world.

“Cheers,” I echoed, and lifted the glass to my lips.

It burned, but in a good way.

I watched the way his throat bobbed as he swallowed, hisAdam’s apple shifting with the motion. There was a quiet tension in his shoulders that seemed to ease as the alcohol worked its way through him. He exhaled with a low, appreciative groan that rumbled in his chest.

“I’ll admit,” I said, breaking the silence, “I wasn’t sure you were ever going to speak to me.”

He turned his head, giving me a sidelong glance. “You’re not the one who put me here,” he said with a casual shrug. Then his gaze sharpened. “Or maybe you are. Who’d you vote for?”

“Rexen,” I answered instantly, more honestly than I expected. I think I just really needed him to know I didn’t vote to sentence him to death.

He nodded, almost as if he’d guessed. “You really wouldn’t want to drink anything he handed you.”

I let out a soft laugh, surprised by it. His eyes flicked to my face instantly, catching the sound like it was something rare.

“Don’t know whether to thank you or be offended,” he added, the corner of his mouth twitching in what might’ve been the beginning of a smirk.

“I knew you’d do well in the physical trials,” I said quickly. “But I needed someone who stood a chance in the mental ones.”

As soon as the words left my mouth, I winced. “Not that you couldn’t stand a chance. I just meant Rexen had formal training, you know, schooling and-” I cringed. “Not that you need school to be smart. Obviously. I just-”I groaned and buried my face in my hands, mortified. “Please stop me before I say something worse.”

A deep, warm chuckle rolled out of him, and I felt it like a pulse beneath my skin. I slowly peeked up from my hands to see him watching me with that same quiet amusement, his expression softer than I’d ever seen it.

“You’re more afraid of offending me than you are of me,” he said, still laughing quietly to himself.

“Yeah, well,” I muttered, taking another sip of my drink. “I don’t have a reason to be afraid of you.”

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