Page 74 of Blood On His Lips

Édouard narrowed his eyes. “What are you hiding? The three of you are always keeping secrets.”

Tereille wrapped a hand around Édouard’s upper arm.

“No, Tereille,” Édouard snapped, “I won't be pacified. If they're keeping vital intelligence from us, we have to know.”

“Rinne?” Tereille said softly.

“It wasn't on purpose. You asked me a while ago who my tutor was. Renaud was my tutor.”

I'd already had everyone's attention, but now that attention sharpened.

Édouard stiffened. “How is that possible?”

I knew my cousin. I knew my cousin very well. The sudden slow, thoughtful cadence of his tone meant he was about to snap.

“He developed a mind bond with me when I was a child. He put me under a compulsion to never discuss it. To not even think of discussing it. To not realize how odd it was that I did not even think of thinking of discussing it. So on and so forth.”

A well-crafted, insidious, compulsion. The kind that was even more dangerous because there was no way of sensing its presence. When under compulsion from an amateur, the victim would be aware their thoughts and will was being manipulated.

“Do you mean he has had access to everything you’ve known since before your mother died?” Édouard asked.

“I haven't had time to discuss the mind bond with him at length, of course. From what I believe, he has no knowledge of events that happened when our minds were not merged.”

“And how often are your minds merged? Are they now?”

“No. I'm doing my best to keep him out.” I steeled myself. “But we should consider me a security risk from now on.”

“Oh, I have always considered you a security risk, Lady Aerinne.”

I didn't like his tone, as usual, but for once what could I say?

“We're going to have to have this discussion later,” Numair said. “The debrief is going to take much more time than we have now. For now, we have to decide what to do.”

“I already said what I will do. Find Darkan, like he said.” I shut my mouth. Too late.

“Darkan?” Édouard asked.

I shrugged a little, chagrined. “It's what I've called him all this time.”

“You named him. A name he answered to.”

“Yes.”

We held our breaths, waiting for the commander to explode. But he only nodded once, sharply. “Numair’s right. We don't have time for the debriefing this requires. We need Danon.”

I laughed without humor. “We needed Danon years ago. Right now it's too dangerous to remind the Prince that my brother is still among the living. Until we come to an agreement, I'm not going to bring the subject of him up. Especially since—” I couldn't say it.

But the commander could. “Especially since killing him would be the perfect revenge for killing Embry.”

“Let's redirect,” Juliette said.

I nodded at our cousin, and she released the soundshield. “There's nothing left to discuss. I’ll find the Prince, and—

Manuelle stiffened, then turned as the door to our basement op room opened. “What is it?” he asked the Wyvenne scout who entered.

“The Prince has Lord Étienne.”

I stilled, closing my eyes to sink into the gray part of my mind.

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