“Right,” I repeated, hope sparking.
Delano smiled. “That wasn’t even remotely convincing.”
“It really wasn’t,” Naill agreed. “Not that I can blame her. If that was me, I would be thinking this is a good chance for escape.”
Hope fizzled.
Delano’s smile faded. “You need to understand something, Maiden. I’m a wolven.”
“I figured that out already.”
“Then you have to know that the only reason you outran Kieran the day before is because he didn’t want to catch you. I will want to catch you.”
A shiver shimmied over my skin.
“I have impeccable tracking skills. There is nowhere you can run that I would not find you,” he continued.
“Truth is,” Niall said, drawing my gaze to his high, sharp cheekbones, “I’m even faster than he is, and neither of us wants to harm you. That will unfortunately happen if you run because I have a feeling you will somehow turn empty air into a weapon, and we’d have to defend ourselves. I doubt he will make a distinction between us wanting to hurt you and us being forced to by trying to defend ourselves.”
My nostrils flared on the ragged breath I exhaled. I didn’t care what he wanted, did, or thought.
“He’d have us pinned to the walls in the Hall, and both of us enjoy breathing and having all our body parts. So, please, be nice,” Delano said, unlocking the door. “Because even though losing my hand or certain death would be terrible, I abhor the idea of having to strike a female.” He stepped into the cell. “Even someone as apparently dangerous as you.”
I smiled at him, and it wasn’t exactly a nice expression. It came because I was glad that they knew I was dangerous.
But I also wasn’t stupid. I wouldn’t be able to run from them. I knew that. There was no point in me getting myself hurt just to make things difficult. Even I could recognize that.
I lifted my wrists, rattling the chains.
Delano eyed me as he fished out a key from his tunic pocket and unhooked the shackles. They slipped, clanging off the hard-packed ground.
Naill turned away first, his head cranking toward the entrance, and then Delano followed suit. And there I was, my eyes fastened to the sword attached to Delano’s waist, and my hands unbound.
“Shit,” Naill said, and that drew my attention.
Delano let out a low rumble of warning that made my skin crawl. “What the fuck are you doing down here, Jericho?”
My breath caught as I saw the tall form drift out of the shadows.
“Taking a stroll,” he said.
“Bullshit,” Naill spat. “You’re down here by yourself. You’re here for her.”
I tensed as Jericho looked over at me. “You’re wrong,” he said. “And you’re right.”
Footsteps came from the entrance, and I heard Delano curse again.
“I am here for her,” Jericho said. “But I’m not alone.”
No, he wasn’t. There were six men with him, all staying close to the shadows.
“You’re being incredibly stupid,” Naill pointed out, blocking the door.
Jericho stared at me through the bars. “Perhaps.”
“I know you think you’re owed your pound of flesh. She cut you.”
“Twice,” I chimed in.
Delano sent me a look that said I wasn’t helping.
Jericho sneered. “Don’t forget the hand.” He lifted his left arm. “There’s that.”
“That’s on you,” Delano answered. “Not her.”
“Yeah, well, can’t take it out on the Prince, now can I?” Jericho said, and I frowned, having thought it had been Hawke who’d taken his hand.
“Do you understand he will have your head if you harm her? All of your heads?” Delano said. “He said no one is to hurt her. You try to do what you want to do, all of you will die. Is that what you want, Rolf? Ivan?” He rattled off the names of those who were hidden. “He will see this as a betrayal, but you still have a chance to walk away from this with your lives. You won’t if any of you take a step forward.”
None of them moved to leave.
One advanced, an older man with brown eyes. “She’s the fucking Maiden, Delano. She was raised as an Ascended, by the damn Queen herself, practically. The Ascended took my son in the middle of the godsdamn night.”
“But she did not take your son,” Naill replied.
“I get that the Prince wants to use her to free his brother, but you and I both know, Malik is most likely dead,” Jericho tossed out. “And if he’s not, it probably isn’t a good thing. He’s got to be so fucked up by now that he has no idea who he is.”