Chapter 14 · The Memory That Bled

"Give me the fragment, Cade."

Ivy drove her palm into his chest before he could reach the broken black Eye.

The seal beneath his coat flared against her hand. Cade's breath caught. A heartbeat later, his fingers closed around her wrist and slammed it into the stone wall.

"Take your hand off me."

"Not until you tell me why Elias was in there."

"Because the Eye stole his memory."

"That's not what I asked."

His grip tightened. Not enough to break her. Just enough to remind her who had the strength advantage.

The market tunnel shuddered around them. Black-glass shards skittered across the floor, each one whispering with a stolen voice.

A child laughed.

A woman begged.

Someone screamed Cade's name like it was a death sentence.

Cade leaned closer, his breath warm against Ivy's cheek. "You want the fragment? Stop reaching for it."

"You want me to stop? Let go."

His gaze dropped to her mouth for half a second.

That tiny pause made her angrier than the wall pressing into her back.

"What?" she snapped. "The great Warden got distracted?"

His eyes hardened. "You're bleeding."

"And you're dodging the question."

"The fragment's unstable."

"So am I. Move.