Page 89 of Unseen Eye
“About fucking time,” Izzy snaps as we weave through the trees. “Seriously, Cal,” Theo adds, “I was about to knock the guard out again if you didn’t hurry up.”
“Well, was it at least worth it?” Izzy eyes us, her impatience simmering.
I glance at Cal, who’s looking at me again, his expression softening. “Yes,” he says quietly, but doesn’t elaborate. “Now let’s get the fuck out of here.”
Chapter Twenty-Five
By the time we get back to Coire, the assembly is just wrapping up. Cal decides to make one last appearance—just for show. As I move to join him, he stops me with a knowing chuckle.
“Different clothes, remember? Let’s not make it too obvious.”
“Oh, right. Good point.” I watch him head back, but then he turns around again, catching me off guard.
“I meant what I said earlier,” he says, his voice softer. “You really are brilliant. And... damn, you’re gorgeous.” He steps toward me, his lips almost touching mine, but I angle my head, deepening it. The kiss is slow, but it’s intense, the world fading around us until we’re both breathless. Eventually, he pulls away, lips lingering near mine.
“Before I lose all motivation,” he murmurs against my lips, “I’ll meet you in the war room.” He starts walking away, throwing a wink over his shoulder. “We’ll continue this tonight.”
I stand there for a moment, watching him go, a heavy feeling settling in my chest. If I wasn’t already falling for him, I’d be head over heels now. Who am I kidding? I’ve already fallen. Hard.
By the time I reach the war room, Izzy’s already there, flipping through the papers and books we brought back.
“Find anything?” I ask, dropping into a chair and grabbing one of the papers.
“Unless you can read the gods’ language,” Izzy says dryly, still focused on the page in front of her, “then no. Most of this is gibberish.”
I flip through the book of runes we found. Izzy’s right—it’s like staring at a foreign language with no key to unlock it. The script is elegant, almost mesmerizing, with its intricate swirlsand flourishes.
“I have no idea what any of this means.”
“Neither did Theo,” Izzy adds dryly, not looking up from the pile of papers she’s sorting through. “He tried before running off to check on his squad. We’re all in the dark here.”
I pick up one of the papers myself and frown at the dense text. It’s beautiful and otherworldly, but utterly perplexing.
“This might be harder than I thought,” I mutter, flipping through the pages. After a long stretch of sifting through the unreadable text, Cal and Theo join us.
“How’s the reading?” Theo jokes as he enters the room. I shoot him a look that makes him laugh.
“Yup, you’re definitely becoming one of us. That bad?”
“It’s all unreadable,” I sigh, setting the latest parchment down. “What if this was all for nothing?” I glance at Cal, who’s already inspecting the page I just discarded.
“It wasn’t,” he says, not looking up.
“And how do you figure?” I ask, sarcasm thick in my voice. “Unless part of your fucking legacy is reading this language.”
“Your lack of faith in me hurts,” he says with a snort, earning an eye roll from me. He glances at Izzy, who shakes her head. “It’s too risky,” she whispers. Then he looks at Theo, who responds, “I disagree.”
“Did you forget I’m right here?” I ask, already annoyed.
Cal turns to me with a grin. “Oh, darling, I could never forget.” He steps forward, sitting on the table in front of me, forcing me to look at him. “What if I said I knew someone who could decipher this for us?”
“Is it your father?” I ask, thinking of Drystan’s connection to Valtris.
“No,” he says slowly. “Someone else.”
“Do you trust this person?”
“Yes.”
