Page 182 of Stormvein

Sacha’s jaw tightens. I glance around, searching for any sign we’ve been seen, but find nothing.

How does Sereven know we’re here?

Sacha turns to face me, eyes searching mine. For a moment, the battle-hardened Vareth’el recedes, replaced by something that seems more vulnerable.

“Stay here. Let him believe I came alone.” His fingers brush over my jaw, sending warmth through me despite the danger surrounding us.

“No!” The word comes out sharp. “I didn’t come all this way to hide while you face him alone.”

“Ellie—”

I reach up to touch his face. “You promised me. You promised you wouldn’t sacrifice yourself to save everyone else.”

His eyes close briefly, and when they open again, my breath is caught by the conflicted expression in them. “This isn’t about sacrifice. This is about keeping you safe. If I lose you …”

He doesn’t finish the sentence, but I can see it. The truth he’s never spoken aloud. That somewhere between the tower and here, between his imprisonment and his healing, I’ve become the thing he’s most afraid to lose.

“You won’t.” I let my fingers trace along his cheekbone, memorizing the sharp angles of his face. “ButIwill loseyouif you try to do this alone. Whatever is going to happen, whatever trap he’s set, we face it together.”

His sigh is soft, almost defeated. “Very well.” His fingers cover mine, pressing my hand against his face. “But let me enter first. Your presence may be the only advantage we still possess. And if things go wrong … if he tries to use that crystal …”

“Where shadow leads, storm will follow.” I rise up on my toes to press a kiss to his lips.

When I draw back, his mouth curves into the smallest smile. “Mel’shira.”

He steps away from me, and walks around the corner. The guards tense immediately, hands moving to weapons, but makeno move to stop him as he pushes the doors wide and strides through.

I follow two steps behind, entering a large chamber that might have once hosted grand feasts, but now serves as some kind of war room. A dozen Authority officers stand at attention, hands moving to weapons as our presence registers. Every eye fixes on us as we cross the polished stone floor, the sound of our footsteps echoing in the sudden silence.

At the center of the room stands Sereven, dressed in robes of deep crimson traced with gold symbols. My eyes move to his face, taking in the sharp angles and aristocratic features. But it’s what he holds that stills the breath in my lungs. The blue crystal rests in his palm, pulsing with the same terrible light I remember from River Crossing, from Blackstone Ridge, from the night I thought Sacha was destroyed.

Even at this distance, I can feel its wrongness. The way it seems to drink in the natural light around it, the way my silver power recoils instinctively. The crystal that nearly destroyed the man I’m falling for, held casually in the palm of his enemy’s hand.

“Well … well … The Shadowvein Lord returns.” His voice carries the cultured tones of someone accustomed to command. “I would pretend to be surprised, but you’re very predictable in your behavior. When will you learn, br?—”

His words cut off abruptly as I step fully into view. The smugness drains from his face, replaced by genuine shock. The crystal in his hand pulses brighter.

“Elowen.”

Chapter Thirty-Nine

SACHA

Every ending carries the seed of what comes after. Not all seeds grow in familiar soil.

The Nature of Veinblood Rebirth

“Well.This is a little more unexpected than I thought it would be.” Sereven’s gaze sweeps over the room. “Leave us. All of you.”

The order sends a ripple of confusion through his men. One of the officers steps forward. “High Commander, is that wise? These are dangerous?—”

“I said leave.” Sereven cuts him off, his tone leaving no room for argument. “Now!”

The officers hesitate, exchanging uncertain glances. Fear and training war in their expressions. Fear of leaving their commander alone with me, versus the bone-deep conditioning to follow orders without question. Years of obedience win. One by one, they file out. The guards leave last, closing the heavy doors behind them.

When we are alone—just Sereven, Ellie, and me—he smiles with that same confident tilt of his lips I remember. The sameone he gave me seconds before betraying me at Thornreave Pass. A smile that says he knows something I don’t.

“Shadow and storm. Together at last, despite all my efforts to keep you apart.” His eyes linger on where Ellie stands near me, lips pursing. Then he walks to a side table bearing a crystal decanter and several goblets, moving with the unhurried grace of a man who believes the world will wait for him.