“She reminds me of Vale,” Caelan murmured. “I don’t want to find her dead like we did her.”
“Who’s Vale?” Adrian inquired.
“An associate we lost while in Zastrad,” Rayne answered quickly, his eyes remaining pinned on Caelan. “I don’t think saving her will be in the cards for us. From her parting statement, I think it’s clear that she’s working as a spy, sharing what information she can garner.”
Eno shifted on the couch, leaning forward to rest his elbows on his knees. “For the Omari?”
“Not necessarily. I wouldn’t be surprised if she’s trying to carefully play both sides.”
“But she hates Clan Takahashi,” Caelan argued.
Rayne nodded. “Yes, but she could be trying to position the Takahashi with the information she provides in an attempt to leave them vulnerable to another clan’s attack.” His advisor rubbed his jaw, and there was a look of admiration that entered his jade-green eyes. “It’s a tricky and dangerous game she’s playing, but if Masaru hurt her family, that would be fuel enough to drive her.”
Caelan fell silent, turning over what they’d learned so far, which somehow managed to be a lot and not nearly enough for them to act.
Mio was a curious person who might prove to be happy, but he wished he knew more about her background. Was she a half-breed like him? Was she an outcast because of her birth, or was there some other reason she was forced to remain outside the clans?
He really hoped not knowing her full story didn’t bite them in the ass later.
You could also peer inside her mind. Read everything you need from her memories, Tula whispered, tempting him in the worst way.
It would be so easy to read Mio’s mind. She wouldn’t even know he’d done it, and he could use the excuse that it had been done to protect himself and his companions. But he’d sworn that he wouldn’t. He wouldn’t invade the privacy of people who’d never hurt him. He’d already betrayed Rayne. He was not doing it again.
“What’s our next step?” Adrian asked, breaking the silence at last.
“We wait,” Caelan replied, and Rayne nodded, proving his thoughts were traveling along the same path. “We placed the ball in Masaru’s court by pushing him to speak with the goddess.”
Eno reached out and placed his hand on Rayne’s thigh. “You don’t think the Goddess of Fire will bond with him, do you?”
Caelan might have struggled to hide his smile. Eno’s expression never changed, as if touching Rayne in front of others was the most natural thing in the world, but Rayne’s eyebrows jumped toward his hairline and he stiffened. It was as though Rayne didn’t quite know how to act, torn between the sweet intimacy and his need to always be the king’s proper advisor. Yeah, Eno was exactly what his advisor needed to keep him on his toes.
But he wasn’t supposed to be thinking about the relationship between his bodyguard and his advisor. He was supposed to be thinking about the goddess bonding with Masaru.
In answer to that question, the gods in Caelan’s head snickered.
“No, I don’t think there’s much chance of it,” he mumbled.
“And he has to know that you’d be able to tell if he was bonded to her or not,” Adrian pointed out.
Caelan nodded. “Yes, I’d know it in a heartbeat.”
“But that doesn’t mean Masaru won’t return and claim that the goddess refuses to meet with you.”
“That’s actually the answer I’m expecting to get from him, but it will be interesting to see if he can surprise us.”
“So, we’re waiting.” Eno sighed.
Adrian made a noise that sounded disgruntled as well. “If we’re taking votes, I still vote for sneaking.”
“Thankfully, we’re not taking votes,” Rayne said tartly.
It probably was a good thing, because Caelan would have likely voted with Adrian. He hated the idea of waiting for Masaru to make a move.
Waiting meant leaving Drayce locked in that damn cell. He looked like shit and had lost too much weight. Drayce was already skinny. He couldn’t afford to lose weight. Caelan wanted him out of there this very second, but there was nothing he could do about it that wouldn’t harm their chances of reaching the godstone.
And as much as he loved Drayce, he couldn’t forget that his main duty was the protection of all the people of Thia. He still needed to bond with Caris and defeat the Goddess of the Hunt. The dragons were currently in control, and Caelan hated every second of it.
TWELVE
Eno Bevyn
A scream tore through the silence of the house and had Eno’s bare feet hitting the floor before he could decide if the sound had been real or part of a dream.
“What?” Rayne demanded, his voice low and rough.
In the darkness, Eno could faintly make out the shadowy outline of his lover lifting his head from the pillow. They’d gone to bed a few hours earlier after spending the rest of the day brainstorming and speculating next steps.