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“And since you don’t like to use those who are only part Atlantian—”

“I know my preferences, Kieran,” I interrupted. A cold breeze stirred the branches overhead, sending a few needles to the ground. And he knew why I didn’t like using them. Half-Atlantians weren’t accustomed to feeding. They were also a hell of a lot easier to injure—or worse—and because of the Blood Crown, I…I’d taken enough lives that way to last me a lifetime. I preferred not to repeat that. “You know, the older you get, the more of a mother hen you become.”

Kieran snorted behind me. “Someone has to make sure you don’t descend into madness.” He paused. “More so than normal, that is.”

If he knew who I’d been with minutes ago, he would think I’d reached all new heights of madness.

And he’d be right.

That was exactly what the time spent with the Maiden had felt like. Madness.

The all-too-fresh memory of the Maiden’s soft body under mine told me it would be one hell of a way to go, though, and I planned on doing just that after I was done here. I would go a little mad when I returned to the chamber. That was if the Maiden honored her promise to wait for my return.

She had to.

I cleared my throat. “Who came?”

“Emil,” Kieran answered.

My brows shot up. “Didn’t expect that.”

“Yeah, me neither, especially since he’s not that familiar with Solis. But Naill couldn’t make the trip.”

I nodded, not liking any of them to be this far into Solis, but all of them were loyal to me. Too loyal.

“You going to tell me what that was all about?” Kieran asked after a moment.

“Not sure what you’re speaking of.” I kept my gaze trained ahead, a little surprised it had taken him so long to ask.

“Sure.” He drew out the word, walking ahead of me.

I said nothing.

“In case you’ve forgotten,” Kieran said, lifting a low-hanging branch to dip under it, “I can smell another on you.”

Hell, I could still smell the Maiden. I was drenched in her sweet scent—

Cursing, I caught the branch Kieran let go of before it smacked me in the face. “Asshole.”

“You weren’t alone,” he said, glancing over his shoulder. “And I don’t recognize that scent.”

“Do you know the scent of everyone in Masadonia?” I brushed past him.

“I know the scents of those who frequent the Red Pearl.” Fallen needles and twigs crunched under our steps. “And I know the scents of who you typically spend your evenings with.”

“Fucking wolven noses,” I muttered. Even I could decipher differences between those I usually spent my nights with. Considering that, I should’ve known it wasn’t Britta the moment the Maiden walked into that chamber.

But never in a thousand years would I have guessed it would be her. Nor would I have thought she had such a biting tongue on her. And that intrigued me.

As did her sympathy for me when I spoke of loss. She didn’t know me, nor did she know anything about what I’d lost, but her compassion had been genuine. “Cas.”

I halted, the nape of my neck tightening. Not once since we’d been in the Kingdom of Solis had Kieran used that name. Not even in these woods or at the Red Pearl.

“The fact that you’re being all cagey about who you were with has me worried.”

I slowly faced the wolven I’d known since birth. He had a right to be worried. We were bonded, but our connection ran deeper than that. Always had. I kept nothing from Kieran. He shared everything with me, but I found myself in a strange position of being unwilling to tell him what had occurred in that room in the Red Pearl and with whom. I didn’t know why. I trusted no one more than him, but this was…

This was the fucking Maiden.

Another ripple of lingering shock went through me. If I weren’t still able to taste her sweetness on my lips, I would’ve believed I’d hallucinated her unexpected arrival.

I looked away, my shoulders stiffening. If I didn’t tell him, he wouldn’t let it go. This meeting with those who’d just arrived would take longer than necessary, and knowing Kieran, he’d follow my ass back to the Red Pearl. “I was with the Maiden.”

Silence.

Absolute, dead silence.

And Kieran always had a response, no matter what came out of my mouth.

My gaze flicked back to him. He stared at me as if I’d spoken garbled ancient Atlantian while drunk off my ass. I arched a brow. “You okay? Or did I just fry your brain?”

Kieran blinked. “What. In. The. Actual. Fuck?”

A low laugh left me. “Yeah. Pretty much my thoughts.”

“You’re not bullshitting me, are you?” Kieran’s head tilted. “You were with the actual Maiden—” He stopped, inhaling deeply. His eyes narrowed. “You were really close with the actual Maiden?”

“I wouldn’t go so far as to say I was that close,” I lied, and fuck if I knew why. “But, yeah, it was her.”