Page 17 of Bitten & Burned
“Your thanks and your smiling face are enough, Dearheart.” He took it from me and walked to the back of his office, behind a partition, where the mother stone apparently was. I’d neverseen it, but to hear Silas talk about it, it was massive. I might have felt better if I could have seen it, but I still didn’t know how to ask for things. Well, I knew; I just didn’tlikedoing it. Asking Silas for anything more than what he was already doing felt as if I were taking advantage of his kindness.
I waited, my leg throbbing slightly more than it had been. It felt like hours had passed, but finally, Silas appeared, with the amulet in hand.“You were right, it was basically drained. You poor dear.” I fumbled trying to put it back on, and he took it from my hands. “Here, move your hair, Dearheart. Let me.”
He moved around behind me, and I moved my hair out of the way. His fingers brushed the back of my neck, making my skin itch, and his breath tickled the back of my neck in a way that wasn’t entirely pleasant. I brushed it off as my discomfort from the wound.
“There you go, good as new.”
I dropped my hair, and he walked back around to face me. He watched as I took a deep breath, feeling the crystal’s energy seep into my skin, warming my blood as it circulated through my body, the curse draining slowly. I let out the breath and felt it cool everything, including the angry burn on my outer thigh. It didn’t go away completely, but it was just barely there, in the background.
“Gods, that feels so good,” I murmured. “Thank you so much.”
“I truly would do anything for you, Rowena. I’m glad you’re feeling better. So…” he clapped and began to walk back to his desk. “Do you have plans for the rest of today?”
“Well, I had lunch with Thalia and Bram already, and I now must attend to some filing at the archives, and then I suppose I’ll head home to pack for this weekend.”
“Well, I suppose I’ll have to release you, then,” he said with a laugh. “Can’t hold you captive forever, now can I? People will talk.”
I laughed too, but I sort of hated those kinds of jokes. Oneswhere he joked about keeping me in his office and not letting me go, forcing me to rest.
“Well, I’ll try and get in touch with you again soon,” I replied.
“Don’t feel like you can’t send me a message or two if you need help,” he said. “I’ve got a homing bird here, and I’m sure your vampires have some way to send messages from that mouttain. Do let me know how that amulet holds up this time.”
“I will,” I said, smiling tightly.
“I’ll look forward to it. Until then, be careful, Dearheart. Have a great week, Rowena.”
“Thank you, same to you!” I said, turning to leave.
I thought I heard him say something else as I was pulling the handle of his office door, so I stopped and looked back, but he was just muttering over some scrolls on his desk. I must have heard him talking to himself.
I stepped out into the crisp Caer Voss air, the amulet’s warmth seeping into my skin.
The pain had dulled, but my limbs still ached with fatigue, and every step felt slower than the last—like Silas had taken more from me than I’d given.
Three
THE ROAD TO HALEMONT
Caer Voss, Sol, Verdune
3 Ebry, Year 810
I woketo the soft press of lips against mine and the faintest brush of fingers at my temple.
Blinking, I found Vael leaning over me, his hair tousled, his expression smug.
“Oh…” I yawned, stretching in the chair. “How long was I out?”
“You were asleep when I rose at seven. It’s nearly time to leave.”
I bolted upright. “Time to—? Vael, I haven’t?—”
Normally, I needed half the morning to ease the ache in my thigh before moving; the curse pulled on me worse in the dawn hours.
He held up a hand, all calm patience. “I’ve done it. Fed Fig, gathered his things, and pulled out your bag. All you need to do is choose yourclothes.”
“You… did all that?” I rubbed my eyes, trying to shake the sleep-haze.
