Page 24 of Scourged

Delaynie was silent for a moment. “Are you still upset with Sebastian?”

Sebastian. Gods, yes, Ciana was still furious with him. Her best friend—next to Mariah—and the person who perhaps knew her best, but he still had the audacity to tell her what to do and where to go.

He may be in command, but he didn’t commandher. No man ever would again.

A soft hand touched Ciana’s shoulder. She peeked at Delaynie through her mass of curly hair.

“You should talk to him. He should be back from the Bay by now. You’re going crazy in this palace.” Delaynie glanced at the door, where the merchant had just vanished. “And I, for one, would relish a chance to get out and see the city again. If for the sole reason of seeing if the rumors that man spoke of really are running around out there.”

Ciana nodded. “I just feel so … useless here. I can’t force myself to care about everything else, when Mariah …” She inhaled a shaky breath. “When Mariah is still missing.” She clenched her jaw, fighting back the rush of frantic desperation.

She would give anything to be out there, searching for Mariah. To be anywhere but in this old, cavernous palace, wasting her days as the weeks turned to months.

Every day, the sense of comfort and safety she’d found there slipped further away. She’d never known those things before arriving in Verith; her entire life until that point had been filled with fear and suppressed trauma, evilness haunting her at every corner. Mariah gave her a home, a place to finally be herself and feel safe.

But with Mariah gone, the darkness of Ciana’s past had seeped in around the edges of her world. Shadows haunted her in the ancient halls, and her demons inched closer with each terrifying flicker of the lights.

Delaynie squeezed her again. “Talk to him again, Cee. Alone, this time. Make him see that we can do so much more out there than we can in here. That we aren’t helpless, and the risk is worth it if it means we can get Mariah back.”

Ciana met her friend’s fierce stare. She and Delaynie had grown so much closer these past weeks, leaning heavily on each other as the world grew darker.

Ciana nodded. “I’ll talk to him.”

Ciana rappedher knuckles on the black oak door.

“Who is it?” A deep voice echoed through the wood, a voice thick with exhaustion and defeat.

“It’s me. Ciana. It’s Ciana.” She sighed.Smooth.

A pause answered her. Then footsteps. The door swung open, revealing a rather uncharacteristically haggard-looking Sebastian, brown hair tussled, weary dark circles under his hazel eyes.

He leaned heavily against the doorframe, running a hand through his hair. “Is everything alright?”

Ciana nodded. “Yes, everything’s fine. It’s just—” She looked around him. “Can I come in? I want to talk.”

“Of course.” He opened the door wider as he stepped back.

She brushed past him, catching the faintest scent of leather and whiskey. Her eyes settled on the half-full glass on his counter, at the uncorked decanter beside it.

She couldn’t say she blamed him.

Sebastian walked past her, picking up his glass. He shot her a sheepish look, just before taking a sip. “I’d offer you some, but I know you don’t like it.”

Ciana crinkled her nose. “It tastes like shoe leather.”

“Sweet, vanilla-flavored shoe leather. There’s a difference.” Sebastian’s lip twitched up into the faintest of smiles, and Ciana relaxed. Just a touch.

She took a deep breath. “I?—"

“I wanted to apologize. For the way I spoke to you the other day. That was out of line, and I’m sorry.”

Ciana blinked. “Thank you for apologizing. I know it’s hard right now. With … everything.”

He nodded, deflating. “I just want one fucking break, for one thing to go right. I want to get back to searching for Mariah. But I can’t abandon the city. And it’s tearing me apart, making that decision.”

“Well …” Ciana took a step closer, resting her hands on the counter. “That’s actually what I wanted to talk to you about.” She took another deep inhale. “You and the others have to guard the Bay. But Delaynie and I … we hardly have any meetings anymore, and most days, we’re just standing around, waiting for the worst to happen. We are goinginsane, and we can help. Besides, there are rumors spreading in the city—about Mariah—and we think it could be helpful if we learned what those are and if they might lead to?—”

“Ciana.” Sebastian’s tone was quiet but firm. His face had fallen as she’d been speaking, his mouth now set in a grim, tired line. “Just because I apologized doesn’t mean my answer has changed. It’s not safe.”

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