Page 114 of Seduce Me in Shadow

Instead, I simply nod, hoping she can read in my eyes what I can’t bring myself to say. That I’m here for her, come hell or high water. That despite my own misgivings and the looming threat of war, she’s become precious to me.

And as she smiles back, tired but radiant, I realize I’m in far deeper than I ever intended. Magic, Mathias, the whole bloody war be damned. I’ll find a way to keep her safe, even if it kills me.

Chapter

Fifty-One

Sydney

After Aquarius and I hug, cry, and reassure each other, she tells me about Zain’s horrific torture. It fuels the fire in my belly. What Mathias and his goons have done to her and Anka makes me more determined to help protect others, Caden’s protests be damned.

I’m going to push Bram on this transcast thing. After all, he didn’t say no earlier. The Council might be against it, but Bram is itching to spread the word about Mathias. I’m simply going to help him do what he’s dying to.

I race down the stairs, adrenaline pumping. Raised voices leak from Bram’s study, and I pause, hand poised to knock.

“Are you out of your bloody mind?” Ice’s boom carries through the heavy wood.

The irony of the “mad” warrior questioning someone else’s sanity isn’t lost on me.

“For the first time in nearly two hundred years, we agree on something,” Bram quips.

Shock’s growl follows. “Are any of you stupid sods listening? I can’t lead you to Mathias in his lair with your hands tied and your wands confiscated. Mathias fell for that trap once, and it led to his exile.”

“Aye,” Marrok agrees. “Though we call him many unpleasant things, he has never shown himself to be hen-brained. We will get but one chance to surprise him.”

“Indeed,” Hurstgrove adds. “Besides, if you pretend to lead us to Mathias and we unleash our fight, he’ll be suspicious of you in the future, Shock. I’m not certain that serves our long-term interests.”

“But a pair of us claiming to be traitors and offering to bring him the book?” Ice again, his tone conveying the absurdity of Shock’s idea. “Why can’t we simply lure him out and whip his arse?”

“No.” Bram’s authoritative voice cuts through. “Should we fail, that plan leaves him a base to run back to and regroup. I want to destroy his home turf, disrupt his operations. And if Shock lures him out, to Duke’s point, Mathias will never trust him again. We’re missing one important point: If we want use the diary as bait, a woman must carry the book.”

That’s my cue. I burst through the doors, chin high. “I’ll take it to him.”

Six pairs of male eyes all swivel my way, expressions ranging from stunned to intrigued.

“You’re not a witch,” Bram points out.

I swallow my hot retort and play it cool. “I’m female, but if you insist on someone magical, I suppose you’ll send Sabelle.”

Bram rears back. “Absolutely not!”

Ice’s glare could melt steel. Clearly, he’s against that, too.

I laugh, as if I’ve been incredibly daft. “Of course, you’ll take Olivia. Married to the ultimate warrior, descendant of Morgana, she’ll be a gifted witch.”

Marrok’s hand flies to his sword hilt. “I know not what game you play, but my tender, untrained wife will be nowhere near this battle.”

I blink innocently. “But if you need a woman to pretend to deliver the book to Mathias in order to breach his defenses and you’re against using Sabelle and Olivia, who did you have in mind?”

Silence. Not one of them will meet my eyes.

I clear my throat, triumph bubbling inside me. “Might I suggest that I’m the perfect candidate. I loathe Mathias for what he’s done to Anka and Aquarius, and I relish the opportunity to be a part of an attack that could destroy him.”

Bram’s eyes narrow. “How do you know what we’re about?”

“Your voices are louder than your doors are thick. I’m volunteering because I know you need the assistance, and I’m not personally valuable to anyone here. Unless you prefer to try the trick that felled Mathias once before…” I struggle to keep the smirk off my face. I’ve got them, and they know it.

“Caden does not consider you expendable,” Hurstgrove says softly. “Quite the opposite.”

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