Page 49 of Vicious Little Vows
“I didn’t mean for him to tell himnow,” I huffed to myself, increasing my pace.
Crispin kept up with me. “Tell who what?”
Gabriel and Lucas had caught up behind us, and we all reached Sebastian and Mistral at the same time.
“You should not have told her,” Mistral growled, his silver eyes glinting. I had so rarely seen him angry, I took an involuntary step back.
“She has earned my honesty.” Sebastian crossed his arms, casual. “And she requested I tell you the truth.”
Requested.I rolled my eyes.Yeah, it had totally been a polite request.
“This is not her burden,” Mistral said lowly, ignoring the three of us watching them.
“She deserves a choice.”
I was surprised to hear the words coming out of Sebastian’s mouth. Of course, maybe he just wanted to win the argument. Unfortunately for Mistral, I was on the devil’s side.
I stepped between them, facing Mistral. “I’m glad he told me. If we can’t return your people to their home realm, maybe it’s no longer a death sentence.” I wanted to say more, but he already looked so defeated.
And when I glanced back at Gabriel, I knew the truth. He wasn’t half as good at hiding things as Mistral was. I turned back to the goblin standing in front of me. “You already knew. You both already knew.”
“My mother was not foolish enough to leave such information in a devil’s hands. He believed he was the only one who knew, and his withholding let me know his character.” Mistral peered past me at Sebastian. “And now he has drawn you further into my problems.”
I put my hands on my hips, my frustration powering me through when all I really wanted was to take off my boots and sit down. “You let me think theonlyway to save you and your people was to create a new pathway. You didn’t tell me there was another way. A way to at least buy you some time.”
His mouth twitched, but he didn’t quite smile. “You didn’t ask.”
I swiped a palm across my face, shaking my head. We had a bargain of truth between us. If I had asked, he would have told me, but it wasn’t crazy for me to not consider there might be another option.
I jerked my hand from my face, pointing one finger to poke him in the chest. “You knew I wouldn’t think to ask. That’s as good as keeping it from me.”
What little smile he’d managed fell, though Sebastian was looking terribly pleased with himself. Tentatively, Mistral gripped my arms. “Eva, I would never ask that of you, so why does it matter?”
“It doesn’t have to be me.” My stomach dropped to my feet the moment I said it, but it needed to be said. I wasn’t sure if I could make that sacrifice, but I was sure there were plenty of other goblins in the Bogs who would.
“The land has responded to no one else. Only you.”
My breath hitched, and suddenly I felt too embarrassed to look at any of the other guys. I didn’t have a reason to be embarrassed, but there it was, lighting my cheeks on fire. I had never wanted marriage, but a little part of my heart skipped a beat at the thought of tying myself in that way to Mistral. “I thought you didn’t know why the land responds to me.”
His voice softened. “I don’tknow, but I can speculate.”
“The plants do seem to like her,” Crispin muttered, I thought to himself, but he still drew everyone’s attention. “And they chose her to see the pool. It didn’t make sense before, considering she has no goblin blood, but with this new information in mind…”
He was right. It had listened to me before, when the vines had overrun Evenlee. They were crumbling homes, trapping people inside. They seemed an unstoppable force, but when I combined my will with Mistral’s—the land had listened.
But Mistral couldn’t step foot outside the gates. If I married him to save the Bogs, would I become just as trapped? And what would it mean for my connections with the other guys?
Lucas cleared his throat, and I realized he had just witnessedwaymore than he ever should have. I couldn’t meet his eyes as he said, “Perhaps we should prioritize assessing the threat and ensuring the safety of Eva’s mother.”
It was a much more diplomatic statement than I would have expected from him, and I appreciated the break. “You’re right. One step at a time.” My eyes slid reluctantly toward Mistral. “We can discuss the rest later.”
He managed another sad smile. I wanted to kiss him and yell at him at the same time. He hadn’t told me because he’d worried I would do it. He’d worried that if push came to shove, and he was destined to lose his battle, that I would do whatever it took to save him, no matter the cost to myself.
It was both selfless, and incredibly stupid. Lovely, and infuriating.
Because he was right. In that moment I knew that if it came to it, I would marry him to save the Bogs. Maybe not if I could never leave again, but if I could still leave, I would do it. If the land wanted my help, I would give it. I made a silent vow to myself that if I could, I would save Mistral and the goblins.
A sudden wash of wild magic made all the tiny hairs on my body stand on end. I stopped in my tracks as the ground shifted right in front of my feet. The soil churned, then something green and glowing began to emerge.
