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I felt a flush rise and opened ift so poorly, but he spoke first

"While I was on the balcony after leaving you in the workrooun considerations for the restructuring of our agree, ran my thu?" I asked, stomach suddenly knotted with tension

He turned fully to me "I would ask you to trust ether It is a li factor"

The tension dropped away so cohtless "I’d like that," Irelief Mzatal enfolded me in his ar breath,in deratitude are not needed," he replied "I cannot give you what is already yours But I accept them and offer h to take the ring from my hand "I will have the stone replaced"

I shook my head "No Leave it I want the reht hand up, pal onto the er

I tilted my head back to look up at him "We kicked Rhyzkahl’s ass, didn’t we?"

His eyes crinkled as his smile widened "Yes And well" But his sriot out of control," I said quietly "I couldn’t stop it I almost--"

"Yes, but you did not," he interrupted "It is not typical for a suies and was too ht about that for asiaze went to the distant sea "My car went into a river, and I couldn’t get out Thought I was going to drown Then I felt the river and so power saved my ass there, too, but I never actually had control over it to lose"

A thoughtful look caavesrove flows," he said "It will be a powerful tool in our arsenal against Rhyzkahl and those who stand with hiet the daain to that last time on the beach The discordance I hadn’t trusted h and set the resonance properly "I know I can do it now"

"Yes, of this I have no doubt," he replied, expression showing nothing but utter faith inwhether or not to continue, then drew a deep breath "When I had you stand before the statue of Elinor," Mzatal said quietly, "when you sank so deeply into heryou" He paused while ht at the reht had I slain you?" His expression briefly shadowed "And ould have happened later hadyour potential?"

"A world withoutyour ass," I said with a touch of heat, but then shook " I looked up and ht to do all the shit you did to h, and hoe are now, I’m ready to live for this moment and the future"

Mzatal exhaled, and his shoulders dropped a s has consequences," he echoed, and I had the feeling the words touched far beyond the current topic He shook his head as though to rid hiavehis face for signs of anything he wasn’t speaking

"With the Elinor memories, it was that you had the presence and will to extract yourself from them Beyond that, I cannot tell you the precise instant, nor the trigger," Mzatal said, closing his eyes and tipping his head back as though trying to recapture a distant moment When he looked back to me, his expression held a measure of respect "In a very short tireat love of life and possessed adhly desirable for a summoner, as well as useful for the retrieval of Vsuhl But there was so words for the rest

"I get it," I said with a straight face "You needed so skills and e Idris to move beyond the paltry efforts he’s shown thus far"

Mzatal sic," he said, eyes crinkling, "your ability to truly lift ift And there was--is--a sense of potential beyond my known parameters I did not, and do not, choose to lose it Or you"

I aze "Mzatal, I promise you now that I will always be the person you can count on to bug the crap out of you and call you on your bullshit"

"And I will hold you to that promise, Kara Gillian," he said Then, to h "In reconsideration, perhaps I do know of twoabout you"

I cocked an eyebrow at hi, he lifted his hand to his throat, er extended "When ere last at Szerain’s palace, after your injury, you touched the collar thus and said that you knew your place I had no choice but to leave the roo rinned "And the other?"

"After I told you of Elinor’s energy signature When you referred to it as," his sain it was all I could do not to laugh"<ins class="adsbygoogle" style="display:block" data-ad-client="ca-pub-7451196230453695" data-ad-slot="9930101810" data-ad-format="auto" data-full-width-responsive="true"></ins>