Page 79 of The Robin on the Oak Throne

“Can I come with you?” he asked.

Gen and Kierse exchanged a look. Corey and Ethan had been endgame for so long. It was still hard to believe the news from Nate that they’d gone separate ways.

“Did he really break up with you?” Kierse asked.

Corey clenched his hands into fists. “I haven’t seen him in almost five months. What do you think that means?”

“Not good,” Gen agreed.

“And I know you’re going to try to get in there. You’ll be able to do it, Kierse.”

“Hey!” Gen said. “I could do it, too.”

“Yeah, but…”

“It’s Kierse,” Colette finished for him.

“I am going to see him,” she told him.

“Weare going to see him,” Gen corrected.

All of them looked down at her, and Gen shrank backward. “What? I want to go, too!”

“I should go alone,” Kierse said carefully.

Gen held her hands out. “But Ethan!”

“We don’t know exactly what we’re walking into. You saw the texts from Nate. It’s not like we’re the only ones who haven’t heard from him.” She gestured to Corey. “He hasn’t even seen Corey. Whatever this training is, it must be serious.”

“I know,” she said in a frustrated huff. “It’s bullshit.”

“Itisbullshit,” Corey agreed.

“And you still want to see him?”

Corey bit his lip, retreating at the question. He was hurt, but he was desperate to have it out with the man he loved. “I always want to see him.”

“And you’ve forgiven him just like that?” Colette snapped.

“I don’t know.”

“Again, we don’t know if everyone can get in,” Kierse said.

“But you can,” Gen muttered.

Corey looked between them. “Why can she get in where no one else can?”

“Because Lorcan is obsessed with her,” Gen said.

Kierse flushed. Lorcan had stalked her for weeks this past winter. When he’d discovered she was a wisp, his behavior had gotten even more intense. He’d called her the pulse of his heart in Irish. He’d asked her to come with him. To uphold the allegiance their people had always had. She’ddeclined, considering he’d tried to kill her and her friends.

And now that she’d seen a memory where even her parents didn’t trust him, she felt more justified in her actions. However, she had a feeling he wouldn’t kill her outright the way he might any others who trespassed into his territory.

“That’s awfully useful,” Colette said.

Kierse rolled her eyes. “It’s not like that.”

Colette smirked. “It could be. You have wiles. I wouldn’t be afraid to use them, darling.”

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