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“And now?” Mitri asks. “Would you be able to fight it, given your current condition?”

Current condition? As in, maybe immune to it now? I lean back to see King better with a frown on my lips. Panic begins to build as I take in the full scope of Mitri’s meaning.

King leans back as well, eyes meeting mine with one eyebrow raised. The faint wrinkles around his eyes are gone. He appears youthful and vibrant, and I swallow hard as my breathing accelerates.

I sit back up straight and stare at Mal. Does he have more red scales than before? He definitely looks bigger and more muscled now that he has my undivided attention. Even if he had been hitting the gym since I healed him, he couldn’t achieve that kind of bulk increase. I look at Mitri but can’t tell any difference in his age.

My eyes meet Ben’s from across the table, blood draining from my face. He sits up fully and turns to keep Mal and King within sight. It doesn’t escape my notice that his eyes also stray to Mitri.

I gently place my spoon beside the barely eaten yogurt and hide my trembling hands under the table. I never grabbed a weapon when I dressed, and I curse myself internally for the oversight.

“I’m not sure. We could test the theory with the ring,” King replies smoothly.

“If you couldn’t do it before, why would you be able to do it now,” Mal’s lips curl back to reveal his teeth as he stares accusingly at King.

I don’t take my eyes off of Ben. He’ll know when to attack or flee, and I’ll take my cue from his posture. Sometimes, I think the time we spent together in the prison was worth all the pain just to be able to read him so well.

Mitri has finished eating and leans back against his chair. Why would he draw attention to this? He doesn’t know about my life before all of this nonsense, but I did ask him not to tell anyone about me.

I shouldn’t be surprised that he noticed it first. He’s brilliant, a fact that I’m beginning to not like very much, so what is the purpose of drawing attention to the fact that King is obviously younger?

“Beatrice has returned my youth to me,” King is frowning now as if he’s angry Mal didn’t realize he cut his hair in a new style.

“What!?” He rears back in surprise and studies King closely. He really didn’t notice? I figured theywould have a happy reunion and all that romantic crap. Well, they were kidnapped for torture, which may factor into it. Did they spend all night tied up?

After a lengthy perusal, Mal slowly lowers his attention to his hands, holding them out to inspect his black claws. He swallows and looks towards me with a level six scowl. “You didn’t think to mention this before?”

Why would I? Before this, I had been firmly restricted from healing anyone, for good reason. I could have kept the Old Man as a youth forever if he had allowed it. He refused, saying it was unnatural and a waste of time. That he would die when it was his time with no regrets. While I envied him and his convictions, it didn’t stop the pain of being something ‘unnatural’ to him from taking root.

Ben’s shoulders tense, and I tilt backward in my seat. I nudge the spark sharply to force it awake, but it’s still not very strong. I won’t be much help if he attacks.

My eyes meet his, and I barely shake my head, letting him know. He tilts his chin in acknowledgment and returns his stare to everyone else.

I’ve placed buttons in several different locations, including the Pub. It would be easy to get out of here, and I know Ben could track me down. But I refuse to leave him behind, facing the odds without backup. I guess I should have told Scilla we were in trouble after all.

Mitri reaches towards me, and I shy away from the touch, putting my weight on my foot in case I need to jerk away.

His hand stops in midair as he looks at me. “I did not call attention to this for nefarious purposes.”

I don’t take my eyes off of Ben. It comes down to who would be faster. Mitri grabbing, Ben lunging, or me running.

“You don’t have to be afraid,” Kimi watches me intently, making me feel like prey and spinning my anxiety to the next level.

I don’t have to be afraid. From the guy who said as soon as I showed powers he’d kill me. What a laugh.

Anger begins to build as uncontrollably as the panic, making a caustic mix that tenses my body up. I shouldn’thaveto be afraid. I should be able to have one damn non-anxiety-ridden day, but no. The see-saw wobbles.

“Wait,” the soft voice surprisingly comes from Mal. He sets both hands flat on the table and leans back in a relaxed posture. “No one here wants to hurt you or anything. We’re just surprised, that’s all. You’re ok,kinz, you’re safe here.”

Since when didhebecome a diplomat?

King mimics his posture, Kimi and Mitri slowly following suit as they watch me.

Do I believe it? No, I don’t. They’ve all proven to me that I can’t trust anything they have to say. The exception would have been Mitri up until two minutes ago. The only person here who has consistently had my back is Ben, and he hasn’t relaxed at all, so I don’t either.

“Why did you bring it up, Mitri?” Mal asks so calmly it doesn’t even sound like him. I’m half convinced now that pod people are real.

“I wanted them to understand exactly what we now guard.” He may be answering Mal’s question, but he is speaking only to me. “If they do not understand, they cannot protect you adequately.”