Page 105 of Ecliptic

“All right,” the warrior said as she grabbed a dried fruit and plopped it in her mouth. “Let’s go.”

“What about Maddock?” I asked, grabbing my boots to put them back on.

Dyani huffed a laugh. “I just checked on him. He’s out and snoring like a baby. Plus, this mission requires a light touch, not a bumbling oaf. I think it would be best if you and I went alone.”

I shot a glance at Rowen, who looked deep in thought. “What do you think?” I asked, tying up the laces to my boots.

“If you think I’m going to let you?—”

“Let her?” Dyani snapped before he could finish his sentence, her tone feral. “She doesn’t need your permission. Nor do I need a whole lecture about keeping her safe. You know I’ve got her.”

“If you’d let me finish,” Rowen said, resting his palm on his knee, his posture relaxed in front of the predator before him. “I was going to say: if you think I’m going to let you have all the fun, you’re sorely mistaken. I know you are both quite capable of taking care of yourselves.”

I laughed as I adjusted Mithrion.

My soul flame continued, “I think it’s a good idea. Though waiting for you will drive me mad. I’ll gather more information and map out the city while you two ladies handle things.”

Dyani stared blankly, struck silent for perhaps the first time. Her shocked stare made me laugh again.

She blinked a few times and said, “That’s actually a good idea, Damascus.”

“I know.” He smiled. “Now, am I allowed to say be careful?”

“No, that’s for me to say,” I teased as I kissed him, placing my hand on his rugged jaw.

Dyani groaned in disgust. “Can you not?”

Rowen ignored her gripe and grabbed the collar of my vest, pulling me closer toward him. “Seriously, be careful,” he said as he kissed me again.

“I will,” I replied, my heart lurching. I would be careful—at least for tonight.

I hadn’t forgotten what Indrasyl asked of me. It was written in the stars for me to give my life.

But I refused for that to be true. To reject the heavens wasn’t something that could be done quietly or cautiously. It would have to be bold, precise, and loud. I would have to grab the heavens by the horns, shake the sky with all my might, and rearrange the stars.

We stood at the balcony’s edge as Rowen rummaged through his pack for rope. I leaned over the railing, calculating the distance to be at least three stories high.

Dyani’s gaze followed mine, her throat bobbing with a gulp. “On second thought, you can go alone.”

“Are you afraid of heights?” I asked in surprise, taking in her white-knuckled grip on the railing.

“No,” the fierce warrior shot back. “I just don’t like looking down from high places.”

“Right.” I grinned as she shot me a glare that was sharper than steel. “That’s totally different.”

As Rowen wrapped the rope snuggly around my hips, he peered at me through his thick lashes. “We’re getting quite good at this,” he said with a smirk.

I returned his smile, recalling when he’d used a vine to lower me into a well. “I seem to remember promising that if the knot held, we could try it again sometime.”

“There is still time,” he said, his voice low. The desert wind wrapped around us, stirring the loose strands of my hair around my face.

My heart clenched. I knew our time left was fleeting, but I had to stay focused. This was the only way to ensure we gotmore time together. “Until then,” he continued, “I’ll imagine all the ways I can put these knot-tying abilities to good use.”

“Ew,” Dyani hissed from the darkness. “Not the time!”

I stifled a laugh as Rowen threaded the rope through the carved railing, his hands expertly creating a pulley system. I climbed over the balustrade and held onto the railing from the other side.

“I love you,” I said softly, taking his mouth in a fierce and fleeting kiss.

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