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"No," I hissed, any happiness I felt disappearing in a blink. "Absolutely not. It's too —"

"Let's get going," Tye said, voice a low rumble in the dark. "If we move fast, we can make it by midnight."

I sent Liam one more irritated glare, then grabbed my pack and followed Tye down the path once more, reviewing what I was going to say to convince Frexin this had been my plan all along.

Liam was wrong. This was the right decision.It has to be.

Chapter 31

Kaiya

"I'm sorry, Lieutenant, but Lady Frexin has ordered that she's not to be disturbed." The tall guard stared straight ahead as he spoke, and his partners made no move to step aside from the entrance to Frexin's manor house.

The monstrous black metal building stood out like a sore thumb amidst all the moonlit stone cliffs. Three stories tall, walled and roofed with iron slabs and thick metal bars, the manor loomed over us from behind the guards.

Perhaps Frexin had done what I wishedIcould do, and gone to sleep.

Lights flickered from a window on the top floor, though …

Someonewas awake in there.

I shifted uncomfortably on my sore feet and debatedour options. If these soldiers wouldn't let us in, perhaps I could sneak up?

My body ached at the thought — it was midnight and walking that many hours after six months of captivity was brutal … even with the extra strength funneling from Tye through our bond.

"She will want to see us," Tye said, voice hard. "We have information she wants."

The guard just stood there, silent and stiff as a statue.

"Do you know who we are?" Tye tried again, tone biting.

Again, the man didn't respond.

A low rumble sounded in Tye's chest, and the guard's Adam's apple bobbed as he swallowed.Gods. Why couldn't he be cold and detached like he'd been that morning?!

One of the guards behind him stepped forward, hand on his hilt, while the other three closed ranks.

Fuck — I needed to keep this from escalating. We could figure out our next steps once we were out of earshot.

I grabbed Tye's arm, trying to project feelings of confident reassurance through our bond. "Let's just go," I hissed. "We'll talk to her tomorrow."

His muscles bunched beneath my fingers, but he didn't move, the growl deepening in his chest.

I couldfeelthe anger and irritation bubbling inside him — as well as an underlying need to protect … something.

"You should listen to your mate, Agent Fordyth," a familiar voice drawled.

My skin crawled as Korym stepped from the shadows concealing an alcove to our right, those thin lips curled in an empty smile.

Tye's fists balled as he glared daggers at Korym.

Damnit. We were so fucking close!! Tye needed to keep it under control just a few minutes longer.

I tried to send as many calming emotions through our bond as possible, but he didn't respond.

"Down boy," Korym said, eyes glinting. "Frexin will deal with you in the morning. I'm curious, though." He tilted his head to the side, beady eyes focused on me. "What is it that you wanted to tell her?"

No. Absolutely not.I pinched my lips closed. The last thing we needed was for him to learn what the intel was. Who knew what he'd say or how he'd twist it.