Page 84 of The Gilded Survivor

“Would…” I trailed off as soon as I felt Antonio finally look at me. He had this way of listening with his entire body that made me forget how to breathe. It was unnerving how attracted to him I was, although he had proved not to be interested in me outside of tournament business.

“Say it, Carmen,” he murmured at last.

I shifted in my seat.

He smirked. “Since when were you ever afraid of telling me exactly what you thought?”

I blinked. It was such an odd, friendly statement. He had made it clear we weren’t friends. I had made it clear we would never call a truce.

“Since you locked me up with Señora Olguín two to three hours a day for San Volcán knows how long.” The words flowed out of me without even an inch of apprehension. There was something about him goading me that made me fall open like a morning glory touched by the first rays of sunlight.

He smiled and leaned back in his seat, clearly waiting for me to continue. He studied me. His posture was relaxed, and his eyebrows had migrated up a fraction.

Listening with his whole body. Damn.

“I was just wondering… if I could recommend someone to be my Key Bearer,” I said calmly, keeping my chin level with the floor.

Antonio canted his head to the side, and his expression darkened. “It can’t be someone already competing in the Blood Tournament.”

My eyebrows furrowed. “No, I mean someone who isn’t an Élite at all. I would like Magda to be my Key Bearer.” I stumbled over my words, silently hoping he didn’t notice.

He shook his head and my heart hollowed out. “No.”

I leaned forward. “But why? They don’t need to be someone with Blood Magic.” A lump formed in my throat. I hadn’t expected getting emotional over this, but, aside from my warm-up time spent with Isaac in the training center, I had no one who I could call my real friend here.

Antonio held up his hand while his elbow rested on the desk. “The absolutely last thing we need is someone looking into why you chose a seemingly random girl as your Key Bearer.”

I fisted my hands. “She’s not a random girl. She’s practically my sister. You know that.”

Antonio sat up in his seat. “I know you love her, Carmen. I understand you consider her family. Do you want her to die? Hell, do you want to?”

I flinched when he said the word “love.” I couldn’t bear the weight of love—simply hearing the word had me bursting at the seams. Antonio Castillas knew my weakness. “Then stop calling me Carmen!”

His face hardened. “I told you, I know what I’m doing.” He rested his arms on his desk. “You will pick one of these candidates, and in return, I will keep you, and by extension Magda, safe.”

There was no room for negotiation.

My cheeks were already burning as I looked down at the stack in the folder once again. I didn’t need to say anything, because Antonio continued.

“Though you are technically correct, the person doesn’t need to have magic, it is still important they have the right status. If you do not select someone from that list as your Key Bearer, they will compete. It shouldn’t take you long to realize that they are not equipped with enough power to make it a full week in the Cinturón del Fuego.” Antonio spoke as I skimmed the pages and ignored both the tightness in my throat and moisture in my eyes.

I was grieving for Magda, longing for closeness, but also feeling imprudent because I had once written an inane letter to Antonio about becoming someone’s Key Bearer. I was so idiotic for hoping I could find a better life. So moronic for thinking he would ever consider choosing someone who didn’t have the right status.

He continued, “You would do any of them a kindness. By asking them to be your Key Bearer, you would save them from danger and probable death, not to mention how you would elevate their social status for the rest of their lives.”

I pursed my lips. “If I win, that is.”

Antonio’s eyes swept over me. “Whenyou win.”

A heavy weight settled on top of me. Helping people I didn’t know was noble, but I had spent so much time focusing on my survival. It had been challenge to incorporate Magda into my new world view. I needed to think of my life with a wider lens. One day, this would also be of benefit to Magda and I.

It was for the best that she remained hidden from the Élite.

“How long do I have to decide?” I asked, gingerly looking at the faces of people who were put at a disadvantage in this system, this society, by something as completely uncontrollable as birth and bloodline.

“You have until Saturday evening. It should be plenty of time to make it through that stack and choose. I will tell you, there are no wrong answers. Maestro Joaquín and I have gone through them together in our strategy meetings, and they are all deserving of this opportunity,” Antonio said.

I nodded and then closed the folder. “Right then. I should probably return to Señora Olguín. She was incredibly unhappy when you pulled me away.”

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