Page 93 of Fortress of Ambrose
“I won’t fail at us, too.” She peeled his fingers off her skin, recalling the memories that flooded her as they touched.
“You agreed to try,” he said.
“I need time alone.”
“I’ll see you at dinner, then.”
“I’m taking it alone here.”
He pleaded with her wordlessly. Nore was sure she didn’t have a heart because in that moment it would have shattered.
“After dinner?”
“No, Yagrin!”She should send him away from here, kick him off the property. But she could not do it. He was the only person who knew her. Feelings aside, he was trustworthy. And right now she needed people she could trust. “I’m sorry. I will see you soon.” She marched to the door and opened it. Yagrin didn’t move. He started to speak several times butstopped himself. When he joined her at the door, he reached for her hair and ran his fingers through it.
“I was going to throw everything away until a free-spirited redhead made me realize there are things in life worth fighting for more than revenge. That bitterness is worse than death. I will wait my entire life for you, Nore. Because you gave me mine back.”
He stepped through the door, and she watched him go down the corridor. There was a part of her that wanted to call him back. She knew how he made her feel. She could not deny that he was on her side like no one else had ever been. She knew he would never betray her. She knew how he could make her feel like the only girl in the world with a kiss. He could tend her wounds with the way he held her. He could make her feel things physically that made the world itself cease to exist. She couldn’t string him along. It was selfish. Rationally, the kindest thing she could do was to push him away.
But as he disappeared around the corner, she shouted, “Wait!”
Yagrin’s chin slid over his shoulder.
“Tomorrow, could you be there? Beside me, I mean.”
“Of course. Sleep well.”
Ainsley was nowhere in sight when Nore shut the door. She walked the length of her room, replaying the last day. She passed the picture of her mother, her, and Ellery, and picked it up. There were no creases of joy in her mother’s face. Just a stoic, icy expression as Ellery grinned and she herself stared bright-eyed at the camera. Nore sat on the edge of her bed and pulled the picture out of the frame and saw a faded message written on the back.
The sun shines, and it reminds me of you.
Storm clouds, thundering rain, behind them all, the sun remains.
She held a handkerchief to her face. But nothing came. So she hugged her knees and glared at the angry, unwieldy, powerful fire across the room until her eyes were heavy. Then she lay down and curled up on her mattress, handkerchief in one hand and the picture in the other.
Thirty-Nine
Jordan
The church clock bells chime again in the distance. Tippets Square thins of tourists as emergency personnel arrive to deal with Mynick’s body. Quell’s eyes burn with worry. She is wary of trusting this extraction plan with Zecky’s safe house team. But I will make sure there is nothing to fear. Iwillmake a world that is safe for her, even if I have to burn this one down with my bare hands.
“I need your help,” I tell her, fighting the urge to comfort her with a kiss and promise this will be over soon.
Abby watches us, and Yani eyes the box where the diadem is.
“Just Quell,” I say. “We’re going to round up everyone inside. They know the procedure. They are the sharpest magical minds I’ve seen. If they can do the procedure once, they can refine it to make it safer and do it again.”
“You want to take them prisoner?” Quell asks.
“Do you have a problem with that?” Yani asks.
I pull Quell aside to the church steps to speak alone. “We can ask them to come along. But if they refuse…” Toushana stretches in my chest. “They will come anyway.”
“Jordan.”
“There’s no time to debate this. Do you trust me?”
“With my life.”
