Page 122 of Exiled Heir

“It doesn’t matter.” Cade looked up toward the light source at the top of the cave, then down at his hand. Tattoos wriggled up his fingers and down his hand. “They’re right. Soon I’ll be mad, anyway.”

ChapterThirty-Eight

Ilet my eyes roam over Cade, lingering on the creases in the corners of his eyes. “How close are you? Are you nearing the edge, or have you already tipped over?”

Cade stared at the complicated labyrinth on the ground, his shoulders slumping. “Some days, I have no idea myself.”

“Everyone is so surprised at the amount of magic you can do. Is that because of the quantity? You said that few mages are born with the increasing magic anymore.” I stepped forward, yearning to touch him, even though I knew I shouldn’t.

Cade shook his head. “Enough story time for today.”

He turned away from me, and I saw more tattoos crawl over the collar of his shirt. I did the math quickly. The tattoos were, as far as I could tell, his actual magic in visual form. They covered his skin, leaving almost nothing bare.

What would happen when no more of his skin was visible, when the tattoos crawled over his face and hands? Was that the only way I’d be able to tell that he had tipped over the edge?

I reached out, giving Cade time to pull away, then traced my finger over a complicated swirl of tattoo on his throat. It looked like a stylized wave that spun into a long blade when my fingertip pressed against it.

“Why do you always wear such high collars? Why do all mages wear them?” I asked, my voice low.

Cade’s flesh jumped, goose bumps appearing on his skin. “For most, it’s fashion. Habit from long-dead traditions. Before werewolves, mages put spellwork in their clothes. They designed the spells to contain their magic, keep it from exploding outward. It gave them as much time as possible before they lost their minds.”

I ran my hand down his arm and saw one of Cade’s tattoos flicker over the back of my hand, burying itself back in his clothing. “Is that why you wear it?”

Cade nodded. His shoulders slumped, and I stepped forward, wrapping my arms around him, drawing him against me.

He leaned back, tipping his head against my shoulder, extending his throat. His eyes were closed, and I gripped him tighter.

“You haven’t slept,” I observed.

“I couldn’t.” Cade’s chest rose and fell under my arm, his breath uneven.

“When you sleep, you lose control.” I thought about the shades around his bed that he still drew tight, even when I slept next to him. The magic that had leaked out from them the first night I had been in his room.

“With all the people in the house, there was too much of a chance that I might think them a… threat.” Cade’s knees locked, and he tried to take some of his own weight.

He swallowed, and I watched as his eyes closed, moisture in the corners of his eyes.

“Don’t leave,” he said.

“You aren’t paying me to leave,” I said, drawing my thumb over the corner of his eyes, lingering on his skin.

“We need to go,” he said, voice low. “I’m sorry, Miles.”

Then he pushed himself up, drawing his hands in circles until I could see the strange distance-distorting portal again. He shook his head, sniffing once before striding through. I had no choice but to follow.

When we reemerged, we were in front of the king’s house. The dryads stood next to four sleek SUVs. Isaac and Jay were coming out of the forest, whispering to each other, but my focus was on Tyson and Sonja where they stood to the side.

I examined him again, the broad shoulders, the confidence. Nothing about him spoke of the wolf he had been, only the wolf he was now. But now that I knew how he’d gained his size and his strength, his aggression seemed like a purse dog snapping at a Doberman. He was aggressive because he had never been taken seriously. Jay and Theo infuriated him because they were who he had been.

Isaac walked quickly over to Cade. “Where are they?”

“Don’t worry.” Cade’s expression was neutral. “I have them.”

I raised my eyebrow when I caught Cade’s eye, and he shook his head once. If someone on the property was actively working against him, they hadn’t gone after the werewolves. Cade’s trap was still unsprung.

“Were you able to help us with the disease?” Cade asked the elder dryad.

“We created fungus barriers around the affected trees. But there are more than you know in your forest that are infected.” She turned to watch Leon lead two servants out the door carrying luggage.