"How did you - " "Fool your guards? They're not very good. They forgot to check the ceiling for spiders." Valek grinned. His angular face softened.

It’s your fault. I was defending you!” I blurted. He paused. “In protecting my honor, you exposed months of work. I should be flattered?

You had me tied in knots. You saved Belen's life, and I wanted to kill and thank you all at the same time. And during those nights when we didn't know if you'd live or die, I went from being angry, to worried to frustrated to scared all within a single heartbeat. If you had die, I would have killed you.

I stepped closer to him and lowered my voice. 'If you could change one thing, what would it be?' He pulled the sheep pendant from his pocket. A question filled his eyes. I held out my hand. Riley placed it in my palm and I curled my finger around the necklace, pressing the metal into my skin.

Yelena.” I halted in the doorway, looking back over my shoulder. “You once said I wasn’t ready to believe your reason for killing Reyad. I’ll believe you now.” “But I’m not ready to tell you,” I said and left the room.

Trusting is hard. Knowing who to trust, even harder.

What have I earned from you, Valek? Loyalty? Respect? Trust?" "You have my attention. But give me what I want, and you can have everything.