Page 98 of Fate's Sweetest Curse
Noble shrugged. “Probably more than I do, but not enough to undo it.”
All the secrets reallydidget in the way of research—safety be damned.
I thought backto that night in the alley and who exactly was present. “The Order of the Mighty knows about you. As does the Order of the Valiant?”
“How do you—?”
“I spoke to Mariana.”
Noble stood, tea sloshing out of his mug. “Youwhat? When?”
I waved vaguely in the direction of the Ire. “Tonight. Just before I came here.”
“Did she harm you?”
I rested my fists on my hips. “Do I look hurt?”
Taking the question seriously, he appraised me, his attention homing in on the dark splotches of blood on the front of my dress. “Your knees.” He looked like he was moments away from making this all about my minor scrapes, so I held up a hand, trying to keep us on track. Trying to think.
In the alley, Faren had wanted to kill Noble for his affliction—but Mariana had stopped him. “Why did Mariana defend you that night? Isn’t it her duty to kill cursed beings?”
“Only the ones who are—” He broke off, but I got his meaning.
“Does she already know about your blank Fate?”
A nod.
I thought back to the night Mariana had come to the Possum.Don’t trust anyone who doesn’t show a future. “Then why did Mariana warn Anya, Idris, and I about others with blank Fates?”
“She—?” Noble shook his head; he must not have known she visited. “I have no idea. She came to me in Waldron, too, asking about my research progress, but that was it.”
“Could she have been warning us about you?” That had been my original hunch. “A scare-tactic to keep us from asking you questions?”
“If so, she really underestimated your curiosity.” A pause. “She also could’ve been looking for information but didn’t want to give itaway.”
Thatdidseem more likely than her warning us simply out of the goodness of her heart.
“Do you know why she’s helping Phina?”
“Do you thinkanyoneknows why Mariana does what she does?”
He had a point.
“What does a blank Fate have to do with being cursed?” I asked.
“Altered blood means altered—” he broke off, choking on the warning of his Oath.
Altered blood. That explained why Anya and Idris had blank Fates but weren’t cursed like Noble was; their dip in the Well of Fate must’ve altered their blood in another way.
Noble’s scarred knuckles paled as he gripped his mug tighter. “Is this why you sought Mariana out? To ask her about me?”
I went to him, easing the mug out of his hand before he shattered it with sheer force. I set it on the desk next to mine, then faced him again. “She wasn’t very helpful.”
“Why didn’t you come to me first?”
“I tried. You clearly weren’t interested in talking, and I didn’t want to force you,” I said. “Besides, I had another request for her.”
“Which was?”
