24. Kavian

"So what did you need to talk to me about that was so urgent?"

The weather is scorching, the trees dried and almost barren. Vex and I stand on the grounds just outside the manor.

My eyes peel around the area, looking for traces of Meera. I wanted to make sure I wasn't followed. Thankfully, she seemed to be taking a nap when I left.

But she does tend to find out things she doesn't need to know. So I can't guarantee she isn't behind one of the decaying trees, listening in.

Vex looks uneasily around him.

"Did you really want to talk out here, in the open?" he asks. "We really don't want anybody eavesdropping."

"You made it seem like it was a private matter. If you want to keep this quiet, then this is the best place to have this discussion."

He looks around, chuckles, then nods.

"Right. I just wasn't sure how your human would react if she found out?—"

"She's Meera," I reply. "Her name is Meera. And she'll handle it quite fine when I tell her later."

Vex takes his hands and places them behind his back, then takes two steps forward, starting to pace nervously.

"Can you just tell me what's on your mind?" I ask.

This interaction is somewhat pissing me off. Clearly, there's something Vex doesn't want me to know, but he doesn't think I'm going to handle it well.

Did he mess up somewhere?

Has Gorran recovered more quickly than we thought?

Or did he somehow betray me?

My jaw tightens at the thought, and I feel myself unconsciously starting to scowl.

No. He wouldn't do that.

If this is going to continue to work out, you're going to have to trust him more than that.

"So, it's about Gorran," Vex starts, already trailing off.

"Yes," I clarify. "I figured it was."

Vex sighs.

"There's no easy way to tell you this, but you know that mission that went surprisingly well, that you and your?—"

He stops himself before he addresses Meera as ‘the human' again.

"That you and Meera foiled?"

"Given that it only happened three or four days ago, yeah," I reply. "I'm pretty familiar with it."

I try to ease the severity of my voice. I never saw myself as that kind of leader, strict to the point of being hard to work with.

But Vex sent for me out of the blue, with little warning or ceremony.

Last night, we were in the middle of an intimate moment, and a thud filled the room, as a karasu hit the closed window of our manor.

He didn't even clarify what it was about. The parchment I pulled from the limping karasu simply read ‘We need to talk. Privately.'

The hardest part was keeping it a secret from Meera. I really didn't want to ruin the moment any more than I already had.

But I partly feel like this isn't necessarily her fight either. She's already done her part.

Why she hasn't left yet is beyond me. However, thinking about that inevitability does cause me a handful of unpleasant feelings.

"Well," Vex says, breaking my thoughts. "It didn't go quite as well as we had hoped."

I feel my fists clench at my side but relax them slightly, realizing that it isn't Vex's fault.

"How?"

"Pardon?"

I take a deep breath, my nostrils flaring. I can see Vex cowering slightly. He likes to claim we're both equals, but I still sometimes see the fear in his eyes when he angers me.

"How didn't it go as well as we hoped?" I press. "Our plan seemed pretty foolproof to me."

He nods solemnly, his eyes more drawn to the ground than toward my gaze.

"Well, I thought it was weird when you told me what happened, so I went back and double-checked…"

"You thought it was weird?"

Vex purses his lips.

"Look. The way you described it, there was almost no fight at all," he says. "We were expecting a lot more guards and a lot more resistance…"

"Not if we caught them by surprise," I counter.

He raises his hand for a second, articulating, before letting it fall to his side.

"Even then," he says. "There were three guards there, watching an entire group of humans. It was hardly the fight we were anticipating."

I swallow, dreading the news he still hasn't told me.

"So your point, which I think you're getting to, but I keep interrupting?"

He smiles, glad at my abrupt and unnatural attempt to ease the tension.

He can still see that I'm upset and that he needs to choose his words carefully.

"Right. So I think you didn't confirm the kill. There were a few dead guards at the scene, sure, but one of them must have slipped away. One of them must have survived to tell the tale of what happened."

I close my eyes and meditate silently, ready for him to confirm the news I know is coming.

My nails are still cutting into my palms. Any tighter, and I might draw blood.

"So the slaves you thought you freed…"

I think back on that night—how perfect it seemed that there were no witnesses left alive.

My entire memory of that night is ruined. Every bit of celebration we've enjoyed has been for nothing.

But he still hesitates, as though expecting me to finish his sentence.

"They were all recaptured not long after you left," Vex says.

I didn't expect the news to be this bad.

"All of them?"

Vex shakes his head.

"Well, to my intel, several of them were killed in transit, to set an example," he clarifies.

It feels like ice falls into my lungs.

But there is at least one silver lining to all of this. Upon realizing it, I heave a momentary sigh of relief, though it does little to ease the anger or tension I'm feeling.

"At least there were no witnesses," I say, smiling, realizing that the only people who could have seen us were taken back into captivity.

But Vex vehemently shakes his head.

"No, Kavian," he says. "Are you listening? One of them escaped. Gorran knows you're responsible."

I suppose it makes more sense that Gorran's been wise to my schemes. I haven't exactly made my disdain for him a secret.

Taking two steps away from Vex, I look back at the house.

How do I tell her?

"You should probably be prepared for Gorran," Vex says, offering it more as a casual suggestion than advice, out of fear of provoking my wrath.

I simply nod, still not looking him in the eye.

"It'll take him some time to get here, I think. Last I heard, he was back in New Solas. Meaning you still have time."

I look back at him from over my shoulder.

"I never stopped preparing for him. Even when I thought he was gone for good, I know he's a lazy fuck, but gods, is he petty."

"That's good," Vex says. "As long as you have a plan, that's all we can ask for."

If she's not somewhere watching me on the grounds, Meera is up in her bed, sleeping peacefully.

She already thinks we've won.

How do I tell her all of our efforts were callously undermined, and that somehow, Gorran has stayed two steps ahead of me?

I turn to face Vex, not showing my anger, but instead offering a look of quiet determination.

"We'll get him," I say. "This is only a minor setback."

Vex nods.

"He might have been prepared for us, but I think we riled him."

I feel my brow cock in response.

"And how do you know that?"

Vex hardens his stance, speaking with confidence rather than fear.

He doesn't know how enraged I still am.

He doesn't know how terrified I am.

"Well, since your attack, Gorran has been increasing security, but it's spreading him thin," Vex says.

I smile, taking every bit of affirmation I can get.

"It's only a matter of time before he comes, then," I say, leaning against the tallest tree in my yard, which remains steadfast and healthy despite the seasonal changes.

Vex nods.

"You may go," I say, dismissing him while studying the tree I'm leaning against.

This tree has weathered some of the worst storms in Ikoth, yet it has grown more healthy than any other tree here.

I long for that same vitality and perseverance.

"Keep the faith," he says. "Any update I have, I'll be sending your way. So stay alert."

A wry grin crosses his face.

"And don't have too much fun. I'd hate to interrupt anything again."

He walks away from me, and I shake my head in disbelief.

How the fuck did he know?

I wonder if perhaps he can magically see through his karasu and was watching everything, before realizing he was probably just messing with me.

But the thought of letting down my defenses with Meera, even for a moment, is revolting to me.

That's how Gorran's forces can infiltrate my home, ruining everything.

After all, if they know about what happened in the slave auction in New Solas, then there's a good chance they know about her, too. And if the slaves they reacquired told them anything, they also know the best way to get to me is through her.

But here in Ikoth, she's nobody to most people.

The thought crosses my mind before I shake my head.

I can't be caught unaware.

For every bit of planning I've been doing in anticipation of this, I need to redouble my efforts.

I can't allow myself to be distracted. Not for another moment.