Chapter 34 · The Death Clause

"Put the knife down, Dax."

He kept walking.

The oath blade dragged across the stone floor, throwing sparks between his boots. His eyes had gone silver. Not the pale gray they turned when he was angry. This was brighter. Colder. The silver rings locked around his pupils spun like tiny gears.

The burned ledger lay behind him, smoking on the floor. Its pages had curled into black strips. One line still glowed across the cover.

MARA VENN WILL DIE BEFORE DAWN.

EXECUTOR: DAX ROURKE.

"You heard me," I said.

Dax stopped three steps away.

His hand tightened around the knife. The blade pointed at my chest.

"Move left," he said.

His voice sounded like him. That was the worst part.

"No."

"Mara. Move."

"You don't get to order me around because a book gave you a shiny pair of eyes."

His jaw flexed. The silver rings jerked faster.

"Left. Now."

"Make me."

The words barely left my mouth before he crossed the space between us.

I twisted aside. The oath blade cut through my coat and bit into the stone wall behind me. Heat flashed over my ribs.