Page 21 of Wicked Thieves
Anelize crashed into him, shoving him against the bookcase with all the force she could summon, rage becoming her one true ruler.
“You,”she sneered, bracing her forearm against his throat.
“Anya!” Zara cried as footsteps rushed toward them.
The man, still grinning down at her as if he found her outburst incredibly amusing, raised a hand over her shoulder, and the footsteps behind her came to an abrupt halt. It didn’t matter who dared to try to pull her away from him, she would find a way to return. Rip him to shreds with her bare hands if not with her own feeble power.
“Now, is that any way to say hello to an old friend?” he drawled darkly.
Anelize bared her teeth. “You’re no friend of mine. You’re the one responsible for all of this.”
That question seemed to bring him great displeasure as his smile slowly dropped, his eyes narrowing. “What?”
“I saw you,” she hissed. “I saw you take Enid. And after we saved your miserable life, you?—”
“Anya, please, you’ve got it all wrong,” Zara began.
“It’s all right, Zara,” the man said calmly, not looking away from her. “Are you sure I am the one to blame for your misfortune? Lest I remember incorrectly, it was your aunt who came up tomypatrol to report her nieces for suspecting they werecommitting treason by allying themselves with the rebels. All to claim a lofty sum the king has been offering to capture Vedrans. Or have I gone and mistaken her for someone else?”
“You have the gall to make light of this? Do you have any idea what you’ve taken from me? What you’ve done to your own kind,Vedran?”
Somehow, she hadn’t noticed that he’d leaned forward so they were standing eye-to-eye, him dropping his head just enough for her to see the specks of black dusted along his irises. They were so close to one another that she could feel his heart beating beneath the soft fabric of his tunic. Alive and well, all while Enid was gone.
A somber look passed over his face as he spoke. “If it had just been me taking the report, I never would have shown up on your doorstep, but unfortunately, she ensured to tell half the Watchmen patrolling the city that day about you and your sister. By the time I arrived, there were already men beating Wellyn halfway to death. Believe me when I say that my hands were tied and I took no joy in any part of it.”
“Believeyou,” she scoffed. “As if I would be so foolish.”
“Anya, please, listen to me. He is not to blame for any of the tragedy that took place today. Let him go, and I promise you I will explain everything there is to know about our plight.” Zara said.
Their plight?
Stepping away from the Vedran, she turned to face the placating looks on Zara and Henry’s faces. Both of their hands held out as if to calm a feral animal. As if they expected her ire. That was when she truly took a look around the room. The many weapons laid out on a long table in the corner, the black cloaks hanging over the settee, the young man seated at thetable where maps and letters were strewn before him. The four pointed star, the mark of therebels, drawn over one of the closed envelopes beside his hand.
“What is all this?”
“This is the reckoning,” the man with the scar said. He crossed his muscular arms over his chest and a twisted grin spread over his lips as he added, “The king’s reckoning, to be exact.”
Zara sent him a reprimanding glance, as if merely uttering those words were enough to get them all arrested by the Watchmen.
For many years, the Vedrans had long since gone into hiding. So many, far more than she knew, had gone and hid amongst the people of Elvir. There were others, however—the very ones who painted all of them in a terrible light—who chose not to hide but fight. Stand up against the king, killing Watchmen and sparking fear in the people who would gladly report Vedrans if it meant earning themselves any bit of money, just as Magda had done.
Rebels.
Anelize shook her head. “You can’t be serious.”
“Of course we are, why else would we all be here?” the other man said. His eyes deep and rich, full of anger. His voice dripping in condescension, vaguely familiar. “Otherwise, we’d be as useless as you were. Defenseless in the face of danger.”
Anelize’s eyes sliced toward him. His voice, his stance, even the air of unmistakable arrogance made it clear exactly who he was. And why he regarded her with annoyance.
He was the rebel who had saved her then. The very one who could have gotten her killed with his loquacity.
“Don’t mind my brother, Miss Yarrow. Adan here never didlearn how to properly talk to a woman. I’m Idris, by the way, Idris Bane,” the other twin said as he threw an arm around his brother, jostling him playfully. “If you keep this up, you won’t be gaining her affection any time soon.”
Idris laughed when he received a shove in response.
Adan mumbled a curt, “Shut up,” before he turned to face the hearth.
Anelize ran a hand over her face. Despite having been asleep for two days, she felt the weight of all that had happened pushing down on her shoulders. More worries seeming to fill her head.
