“Don’t.”
He stumbled back, raising both hands in surrender. His breath puffed in the brisk morning air. “I … I didn’t mean any of that.”
Right. Sure.
Afraid she might burst into tears, not wanting him anywhere near her when she did, she ran the rest of the way to Lady’s side.
Around them, people stopped what they were doing to stare.
“Please give me a chance to explain. What you heard—”
“What I heard was sickening!” she said, stepping into Lady’s stirrup and pushing herself up and into the saddle. Because she was furious, she added: “Even for someone like you.”
Gideon stepped back. “Someone like me.”
She shook her head. “I was right about you from the beginning. Verity and Alex were right about you. You’re a selfish, horrible brute. You don’t care who you hurt, as long as you get what you want. You repulse me.”
He recoiled at those words. But Rune wasn’t sorry for saying them.
Unable to look at him a moment longer, she gathered Lady’s reins and turned away from the Blood Guard captain. “You and I are done, Gideon. I never want to see you again.”
Rune urged the horse into a canter.
She couldn’t put him behind her fast enough.
FIFTY-ONE
GIDEON
GIDEON SLOWED HIS STEPS, watching her flee.
She didn’t look back. Not once.
He was that forgettable.
Did you really expect this would end happily?
Suspicion had tainted his relationship with Rune from the beginning. Gideon had only agreed to this farce of a courtship because he’d believed her to be the Crimson Moth, a belief proven false last night.
He’d been wrong.
So wrong.
And now that he trusted her fully, now that he knew what it felt like to wake up beside her, to believe a life with her was within reach, he’d gone and ruined everything.
Letting his head fall back, Gideon let out a shuddering breath. He deserved every bit of her wrath. After agreeing to Harrow’s asinine plan, Gideon was all that Rune accused him of and more.
Sickening.
A stupid brute.
He deserved to lose her.
FIFTY-TWO
RUNE
THE NORTH WIND WHIPPED Rune’s hair across her cheeks. Lady’s hooves kicked the dirt of the country laneways. Fields and bogs and forests blurred at the edges of her vision.
I want all of you, Rune. Not just tonight, but every moment from now on.
She felt feverish. Possessed. Unable to stop thinking about what she and Gideon had done. About the possibilities she’d let herself want.
I am such a fool!
Rune couldn’t shake off the memory of his mouth trailing reverently down her body, or the tenderness in his voice as he whispered sweet things in the dark.
I’m scared, too, he’d told her.
We could trust each other, he’d said. As if he’d meant every word.
She let the tears fall as she rode, letting the wind dry them. She pushed Lady harder, wanting to kill the thing inside her that bloomed at Gideon’s touch. Wanting to put him behind her forever.
Rune had known all along that he was hunting her. That he wanted her dead. Gideon was nothing more than a cruel boy who liked to kill witches.
Sweet Mercy, why does this hurt so much?
Suddenly, Lady slowed. Rune palmed the tears from her eyes and looked up. She hadn’t even realized the destination she’d been riding toward until it loomed before her.
Thornwood Hall.
One of the stable hands saw her arrive and met her at the entrance to the house. Rune dismounted and handed him Lady’s reins, quickly taking the steps past the two marble lions and through the doors.
Alex was in the hallway, speaking with a servant. The moment she appeared, he paused and turned toward her.
“Rune?”
At the sight of her tearstained face, his own darkened. Dismissing the servant, he moved toward her and took her shoulders in his hands. “What’s happened?”
She closed her eyes. Alexander Sharpe. The boy she didn’t have to hide from. Gentle Alex who would never hurt or betray her. The person she could tell anything to.
“You were right about Gideon. I’m done with him.”
A series of contradictory emotions chased each other across his face. Shock. Relief. And … something else. Something Rune couldn’t put her finger on.
“Did he hurt you?”
“What? No.” Not physically. “He …” She glanced toward the servant still lingering in this hall. Not wanting to be overheard, Rune took one of Alex’s hands and led him into the conservatory, shutting the door behind them.