Allegiance (Causal Enchantment #3)(63)
“No, I don’t, Veronique, but …” What do I say? You’re in love with a psychopath who would slaughter newborn babies if he felt so inclined? I couldn’t say that, and yet, I had to say something … what if she chose him over Mortimer? I swallowed my fear. She had to know. There was no sugar-coating this. “Don’t trust Viggo, Veronique.”
A prickle of wariness tickled my neck. Veronique’s neck. “What? That’s silly!” she exclaimed, a little too loudly. She gasped and looked at the door, waiting. When no one entered, she lowered her voice to a whisper. “Why would you say that?”
Let it out, Evangeline. Tell her … tell her the truth, a part of me screamed. A selfish, spiteful side that longed for the ultimate triumph for all the misery Viggo had inflicted upon me, upon Sofie, upon Mortimer, upon Max … upon mankind.
“Because he murdered my mother, Veronique, for no other reason than he was mad at Sofie.” My voice was low and cool as I delivered my revenge. “Because he murdered Lilly’s mother. Because he has tortured and would have killed your sister a million times. Because he was ready to kill me.”
Her head shook side to side, her brow furrowed so tightly, it pained my facial injuries. “Non … You must be mistaken. Surely.”
“I would not make a mistake like this, Veronique. Please believe me. You must choose Mortimer.” My voice was surprisingly calm and steady—strong even.
“I don’t know who you are or why you are here. You are telling me lies. Maybe you are the reason I am locked up in here with these witches.”
“You know what? You’re right! I am the reason you’re in there. But it’s not for any reason you could guess. I can’t tell you anything else because it’s too risky. What I can say is that you know your sister, Veronique. She will either get herself killed coming to save you or she’ll start a war that will end in ruin. So as appalling as it is, know that for every day she doesn’t know you’re out of your statue, you’re saving lives. Countless lives.”
As the words rolled out, I felt an internal scale tip. I was doing the right thing.
Silence cast an inescapable shadow within the room. Silence, sadness, and doom. And that is exactly how I left Veronique, that hollow ache coming back with me to my own tumultuous life.
I found myself back in my room at the chateau, a presence lying behind me. He stayed! Excited, I rolled over.
“I thought you’d be—” My words ended in a croak.
“Good nap?” Bishop asked, grinning as he reached to brush a strand of hair caught in my lashes.
“I … I …” I couldn’t form two words, so startled, the muscles in my neck tightening into hard balls of tension. What the hell was Bishop doing in my bed? Sofie was supposed to convince Bishop to give me space. This wasn’t space! This was alone in my bedroom! This was as far from space as we could get! Sparks of rage swirled in my gut.
Insecurity in Bishop’s eyes quickly doused them. I forced myself to smile. “You’ve been acting strange since you came back, Evie … is everything all right? You know, between us?”
Still, that fake smile held, even as horrid wrongness twisted and danced inside me. Between us? There is no “between us.”
“Yes. I mean, no. I mean …” I fumbled over my words, swallowing several times.
“Well, then …” His body leaned forward until his arm stretched over me and his giant muscular torso pressed up against my chest. Dipping his head, I felt the softest caress of his lips against my collarbone. It was hesitant and gentle and it stirred feelings that I shouldn’t have.
I slipped my arm in between our chests to break the contact and then, with a forceful push, I rolled away and scampered to a sitting position. Pressing my hands to my belly, I searched for Max who had mastered the art of intrusion. My disappointment swelled. He was nowhere in sight.
What was I supposed to do now? How would I convince Bishop that “we” did not exist without hurting his feelings? That was the last thing I wanted to do! Sliding off the bed, I walked over to the mirror and peered at my face, partly as a stalling tactic, partly because I wondered if my jaw had improved at all. To my pleasant surprise, the swelling had decreased. It hurt like hell, but at least it wasn’t too unsightly. I guess the frozen peas did the trick.
I turned back to find Bishop stretched out on his back across my bed, his intense gaze boring into me. Had it not been for Caden—and Fiona—I had to admit that I may have fallen for Bishop. I mean, there was nothing about him not to swoon over. From his thick mane of blond hair to his wide, full lips, always parted in a grin, no one could argue that he wasn’t appealing. If his looks weren’t enough, his easy charm that lit up rooms, that made people want to tail after him, surely was.
But he wasn’t Caden.
I swallowed. “Bishop,” I began. He bolted upright, flinching as he watched me intently. “Nothing’s wrong. I just … I don’t know what’s happening to me.”
“Tell me how I can fix it. Let me fix it.”
“You can’t fix this …” I interjected softly. “With this Tribe magic coursing through me, I’m feeling weird. Not myself at all.” I was grasping at straws. “Something’s changing inside me …”
Pain flickered in Bishop’s eyes. “For me? Your feelings for me?”