Page 57 of This Monster of Mine

Cisuré examined the table with interest. Sarai glanced at the rest of the tavern, her skin crawling at the curious, gleeful eyes watching.I’m back in Arsamea. But tonight, she wasn’t the target.

She thought about it for all of a second. Then, snagging Harion’s amphora with practiced ease, she dashed the contents in his face.

“What the fuck?” He jumped to his feet, crimson darkening the robes on his chair.

Cisuré clapped her hands to her mouth. Anek looked like their wages had come early.

“Sorry,” Sarai said without an ounce of sincerity. “You’re drunk. Spewing nonsense. Thought this might snap you out of it. Really, Harion. We’ve a workday tomorrow.”

“It’s on my fucking robes!” he spat.

“It’ll stain,” Anek noted gravely. “Tullus won’t be pleased.”

“Fuck!” Harion stormed out of the tavern. Seconds later, everyone heard the splash of him throwing his robes in the horses’ water trough and starting to scrub.

Anek shook with silent laughter, clinking their cup with Sarai’s.

She grinned. “I know you can handle him, but Ireallycan’t stand him.”

Cisuré looked like she’d gained Sarai’s headache. “What were you thinking?” She leveled a look of such disappointment that a knot formed in Sarai’s throat. “You’re a Petitor, not a common drunk! No—don’t tell me. You got angry, and you thought assaulting a colleague was the right choice.”

“He was being an ass—” Sarai raised a placating hand and froze when the illusion over it wavered.Shit, I’m almost at my limit. Cisuré’s gasp said she’d seen it too. Thankfully, Anek hadn’t. “At any rate, probably best if I leave. Good seeing you, Anek, Cisuré.”

Grabbing her birrus, she apologized to the barmaid for the mess, tipping her with one of the shiny new aurei she’d received as wages, and ran outside. She’d barely gotten a foot in the stirrup when a figure blocked her horse.

“Get out of my way, Harion.”

The tinny whistle of an object through the air was her only warning. She ducked right as a knife thudded into a post by her head. Caelum jumped in fright, and she stumbled off, catching herself on her knees.An inch to the right and I’d have lost an ear.

“You—” She struggled to keep her voice calm. “What the fuck was that?”

“What?” Harion spread his arms. “I didn’t see anything.”

She had to get out of here before she ran out of magic. “I’m not doing this. You’re drunker than I thought if you’re trying to assault ahavïdPetitor.”

“Are you one, though?” In two steps, he bracketed her against the wall. Fear slipped down her spine like ice. “My family saved foryearsto get me into the Academiae. Worked themselves half-dead and used decades of savings for four years of tuition. Andyoujust sauntered in from the middle of fucking nowhere to act like you’re one of us.”

Insecurity pricked at her. “This isn’t going to solve—” She flinched when his hand balled into a fist by her head. “Harion, take it up with your Tetrarch. They agreed to abolish training. The dead Petitors left a vacancy.”

“They didn’tleave,” he hissed. “The man you’re fucking killed them.”

I don’t know.Blood hummed in her ears. “Is it that hard for you to understand that some men don’t get their rocks off by forcing colleagues to sleep with them?”

“Keep defending him. He’ll still kill you.”

“I’m defendingmyself, damn it!”

A familiar glint lit his unfocused eyes that she’d seen many a time on Marus. “So am I.”

Shit. She reached for her armilla when he wrenched her head by her braid, throwing her against the tavern’s outer wall. One hand seized one of her wrists, the other gripped the back of her head and dunked it into the water trough. Liquid burned up her nostrils. Her vision was black. She struggled uselessly, elbowing his side with her free hand, trying to find purchase on the trough to rear back and slam into him.

“Maybe now you’ll respect your betters,” he panted, lifting her head. “Or maybe I’ll just keep you here.” He shoved her back in.

Squirming to reach her pockets, she found the knife Kadra had given her and slammed the hilt into the wrist on her head. Harion yelped, releasing her. She swiveled, gritting her teeth when the other wrist he still held wrenched at the motion, and slammed her fist into his face. She took vicious pleasure in the snap of bone.

He collapsed, howling. “Bitch!”

“Don’t fuck with a tunnel rat.” She wiped her knuckles with a feral smile. The blood vanished into her robes. Perhaps this was why Kadra liked black so much.

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