Page 63 of Nidev and Lyric

The conversation weaved in and out of her mind.

“I had to be, working with you.” Mireille cried. “You were never satisfied with anything less than perfection. And I have the stress wrinkles to prove it.”

The laugh that slipped from him wasn’t quite a chuckle, but it was closer to warmth than anything Lyric had ever heard from him.

You’re the only human on this planet I would make such a pathetic sound for.

“That’s because you were the only one worth expecting it from.”

The words hit Lyric’s chest like a punch. Her breathing grew shallow, her lungs tightened as if a steel band were wrapping around them.

“She’s stronger than she looks,” Nidev said, making her realize they were talking about her again. His tone was cool. Detached.

“Well,” Mireille continued, “If you ever need another hand with training the recruits, you know where to find me. You always have.”

“Noted.”

Lyric’s hands were trembling around her notepad.

Her mentor. Her guide. Her tormentor. Giving this part of himself to someone else that wasn’t her.

Mireille’s laughter was light, easy. “You really have become even more ruthless over the years, haven’t you?”

“I do what’s necessary,” Nidev replied.

“Efficiency above all else.”

“That’s the idea.”

Lyrics heart crashed against her ribs as the conversation flowed between them like a familiar dance.

A dance of betrayal. Right in front of her. Forced to watch. To take notes. Was this the assignment? To test her? To push her? To break her?

Unbearable heat pooled in her chest until it felt like her own skin was on fire.

“You know better than anyone that I don’t make promises lightly,” he said as Lyric’s vision blurred.

“Exactly.” Mireille’s tone softened. “And if you ever need anything, anything at all... you know where to find me.”

Lyric’s breath hitched as her throat closed up and something tore through her. Hot. Unrelenting. Impossible to contain. She stood as it burst out in a furious half yell, slamming into the room, hitting the walls and everybody in its path. Pictures crashed to the floor, glass shattered, and Lyric stared in horror at the blood gushing from the woman’s nose.

“I…I’m sorry,” she gasped, shaking and moving in reverse, clutching the notepad to her chest. “I didn’t…I didn’t mean it.”

Nidev’s gaze snapped up from the woman and landed on Lyric with something caught between shock and fury. “Don’t move,” he ordered her, hurrying to the kitchen and returning with something for her nose while the look in his eyes burned in Lyric’s mind still. Something unforgiving, like she’d crossed a line she could never uncross.

Her breath came in shallow, ragged gulps as panic flooded her veins. “Excuse me,” she choked out, her voicenothing but a broken whisper as she turned and ran out, clamoring blindly through the narrow hallway toward the second exit.

The swamp’s frigid air slammed into her as she stumbled down the stairs, her pulse roaring in her ears. Every nerve felt like it was on fire.

She didn’t know where she was going. Didn’t care. All she knew was that she had to get away before the shame and devastating heart ache swallowed her whole.

Nidev appeared out of nowhere, his hand on the back of her neck with a deliberate pressure, grounding her, even as her thoughts fought to spiral as her body fought to shrink away from him.

Oh God, she’d lost control. She'd lost control of her power.

He didn’t say a word as he guided her to the stairs then paused before it. “Wait here,” he ordered.

Even if she wanted to fight him or run, she couldn’t. She had no more bones, no more breath, no more reason. She clung to the railing, her knuckles white, her gaze locked on the uneven cement beneath her feet. Her stomach twisted as she tried to calm her breathing, her pulse still crashing against her ribs like a wild, herd of horses.

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