My Darkening Ember

Chapter Fifty - Three

I exhaled, "What I want is,-"

His lips and hands on you.

"For him to tell me who sent him. I need to know if,-"

You are the only one going crazy with desire.

"Others like him will come to try and kill me."

"I can give you those answers," he said, playing with my knife, his knife, letting it spin between his fingers as he stalked around me towards the prisoner.

"What?" My stomach filled with panic.

I spun suddenly, reminding myself he hadn't read my thoughts. The subject had not changed.

"Someone from the palace sent him."

"Aleron?" My voice said hoarsely.

"Can't be sure, but no one else could afford this man so it had to be one of them."

"One of them...Did he tell you this?"

"If he did he would look worse than he does. What I mean is, it has to be one of the council members." I furrowed as he continued. "A slaved hunter isn't just someone you find. Unlike my kind, you can't call for one. Their master has to owe you a favour, or you have to be willing to grant them one."

"Like what?"

"It could be anything. Stones, gems, your life, even your firstborn. Nothing is off the table. That's why not many want to deal with them. Only those with enough power to sway, grant them favours."

"So, whoever sent him didn't want me to die, right?" He nodded in response.

"Whoever hired his master wanted to send you a warning," he paused. "Did he injure you?"

My head nudged towards my arm. The wound had since healed but he had cut me that night.

"Not much," I recalled. "He waited until I was there. Until I could see..." I didn't want to continue. With my words came the memory of her.

"He would've used that as proof that he didn't fail."

I furrowed, "You knew someone from the palace would try to hurt me?" I didn't mean for it to sound as accusatory as it had sounded but he noticed, clearing his throat.

"I knew they had tried, but as I said, no pain made him talk." His eyes drifted to the prisoner, gazing over him wildly.

"He looks....not well," I added, trying to move on even though the conversation hadn't changed. "You had him here when I went to find you?" I raised a suspicious brow as the pieces fell into place.

"I feel like I need to add that I had nothing to do with this." He turned quickly, surveying me. "Well this yes, but the attack on you, on....on your maid, had nothing to do with me."

I felt like I needed to correct him, but saying her name in this place and for her killer's ears, didn't seem right.

"A bar is a chatty place, he was there, talking to a woman. I recognized him and figured he must've been sent for you. I didn't know he had already..." His knuckles whitened around the knife as he inhaled sharp. "What he said to you was the first he'd spoken. He is well trained."

Under his blood, I hadn't seen it before but my eyes had stalked over his limp head hanging, and I saw a tattoo run over his left brow from his forehead. He was a slaved hunter, the same kind that had tried to kill me before. I knew it then. He wouldn't talk and he couldn't be set free.

I approached him slowly, letting my shaking hand grab his chin. I lifted his head.

His features were mature, he was older than me. His brows made his dark-lined eyes seem even darker.