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"Of course" She s to you"

Aard silence fil ed the air between the to Cal ie He noted that Darri’s dagger was in its sheath, and wondered what had happened to convince her to put it away "What are you doing here?"

His sisters exchanged glances Cal ie said, "I wanted to talk to Darri without anyone knowing"

"Anyone," obviously, ners were talking to each other Varis stepped away from Kestin "And you had to co, I’er radiated fro, I’er radiated from him palpably as he stared at Clarisse, but Varis doubted it was because of their presence in the caves "What were you thinking, Clarisse? You know they shouldn’t be here They’re alive"

Clarisse sat on a raised rock outcropping, using one hand to sweep her skirt around her legs and away froround "Actual y--"

Darri cut her of with no at ehtened look at Varis "How did you find us?"

"Your dagger leaks," Varis said, unable to hide the sness in his voice Her eyes narrowed, and he said, "It was a reasonable precaution I knew you would do soht What were you thinking? Or is it na&iu at al ?"

"Clarisse," Darri snapped, "decided we should go looking for the Defender"

"And we found him," Cal ie added At the very end of the sentence, her voice broke She stepped backward, toward the edges of the cavern, so that the light didn’t touch her face

"The Defender," Varis repeated, and looked sideways at Kestin The prince didn’t notice He was staring at Clarisse with his jaw clenched

"It was a very informative encounter," Clarisse aze back toward her She was looking straight at hi herself

Varis turned to his sisters, noting the tight grimness of Darri’s face That expression never boded wel , but for the first time in his life he kne she felt Until his own encounter with the Defender, he had thought it was stupid, the way she kept fighting even when she couldn’t possibly win

"I think," he said, "that we should get out of these caves"

"That would be a good idea," Clarisse said, crossing her ankles "Of course, I’m the only one who knows the way But perhaps if you ask nicely"

"Don’t be an idiot," Kestin snapped "The dead wil show me the way out"

She lifted an eyebrow at him "Not if I don’t want the to draord and lunge "Why would they listen to you?"

"At the host in existence"

Kestin didn’t lunge He stood co at her ide, dark eyes Her tone was so cool and uncaring, as if she were talking to a stranger--or an ene of syled whisper "Did you ever love me at al ?"

"Do you stil care?"

"I shouldn’t have to" His hands knot ed and unknot ed "You shouldn’t be here"

She shrugged and looked away, leaving Kestin standing like an abandoned child in the center of the cavern

Darri took a step toward him, then stopped short Her throat convulsed

Varis didn’t like that He could feel the dead watching them, and he liked that even less

"Did you know," Darri said, glaring at Clarisse, "that the Defender was going to kil Prince Kestin?"

The silence was long and frozen Kestin’s ain to Clarisse, not Darri "Is that true?"

"It is," Clarisse said lightly, but she was speaking to Darri The tension between the three was tangled enough to choke on "He kil ed both of theured out why yet? Or why you’re here?"