Chapter 26 · The Auditor They Erased

"Give me the name."

Calder didn't move. His claws stayed curled against the desk edge, blood still tacky on the stone. The rune-blades had carved deep into his wings back in the tower, and he hadn't bothered cleaning up. He just sat there, breathing shallow, staring at the folder like it might bite.

"Calder."

"I heard you."

"Then answer."

He turned his head, slow, and the look he gave me was empty in a way that made my stomach drop. Not angry. Not smug. Just gone.

"You don't want that name," he said.

"I want the route. The page said bring the gargoyle, leave my daughter behind. That means someone knows we're coming. Someone who knew my father." I slammed my palm on the desk. The cuff rattled between us. "So yeah, I want the name. Now."

He stood. The chair scraped back, loud in the tiny room Finn had rented us above the courier depot. Too close. We were always too close now, the cuff keeping us within arm's reach, and I could feel the heat rolling off him even through the cracked stone of his skin.

"You think I'm stalling because I enjoy watching you twist," he said.