Chapter 54 · The Truth He Owed Me

"You don't get to order me into that core and call it a choice."

I slapped Dorian's hand off my arm.

His fingers had locked around my wrist, hot and hard, keeping me from stepping through the broken gate. Behind him, the council chamber shook. Dust poured from the ceiling. Three warning bells screamed over one another.

Dorian didn't even blink.

"If you stay here, the shield takes you with it."

"And if I go in there?"

"It eats your memories."

"Great." I yanked my wrist free. "So I either die, or I forget why I hate you."

His jaw tightened. "Mara."

"Don't use that voice on me."

"What voice?"

"The one you use when you think standing there with blood on your collar makes you noble." I stepped closer. "You rejected me in front of half the city. You cut the bond, called me an enemy, and handed my evidence to the council."

My coat brushed his chest.

"You don't get to grab me now and pretend you're saving me."

His breath touched my mouth. Too close. Too warm.