Page 48 of Kingdom of Chains

She hugged herself against the cold. ‘I cannot breathe that close to flames.’

He stopped a few feet from her. ‘You all right?’

‘I cannot marry that man. I did not want to marry him to begin with, but now…’ She shook her head. ‘I pray this new information will finally convince my mother that he is bad news for the whole family.’

He watched her in the dark. ‘You’re going to have to be smart about this. Hodge has the power to raise you up like a queen and tear you down just as fast.’

‘I do not care about that. If it were not for my family, I would have scaled the walls of Hampstead Keep long ago. Or jumped from them,’ she added quietly.

He dropped his gaze.

‘This is so much bigger than me and my family. You saw the people in that camp.’

‘I did.’

‘We can help them.’

‘We?’ he asked, looking up.

‘All of us. We can work together to get them out.’

‘You going to join forces with your new St Clare friends? Whose numbers have dwindled so low they’ve resorted to hiding?’

She stepped up to him, reaching for his weapon, but he caught her hand. His grip was firm enough to hold her in place without hurting her. She did not have the same urge to pull away that she had with Hodge.

‘What are you doing?’ he asked.

‘I want to feel how heavy your sword is.’

‘You going to learn how to fight too?’

‘That depends on the weight.’

His gaze fell to her mouth. ‘That’s not a good idea.’

The heat in his stare made her step back, and he let go of her the second she did. ‘My father would not let me near weapons of any kind. He wanted me to be a proper lady, like my mother. I do regularly watch my brother spar, however. I have often wondered if I have it in me to kill a man.’

‘And what did you decide?’

‘The right man, perhaps.’ She saw him smile at the ground.Smile. ‘Will you help me?’

He looked up. ‘Kill a man? That depends on the who and why.’

‘I meant help me get them out.’

‘I know what you meant.’ He exhaled. ‘Not unless I’m ordered to.’

‘But you are a defender. You protect people.’

‘A defender who follows orders, and I’ve been instructed to observe and ensure Hodge gets safely back to Hampstead Keep.’

‘Well, that is terribly inconvenient.’

He watched her with an amused expression.

‘What if I decide to get my revenge on Hodge?’

‘I’d suggest you do that in private to avoid my interference.’

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