Chapter 71 · The Last Choice

"Look at me," he said.

"I am."

"No. Really look."

Cassian stepped closer.

The space between us shrank to a few feet. Heat rolled off him, tangled with the stink of metal, blood, and engine water. His sword stayed angled at my chest.

Even now, he didn't trust me not to choose the impossible.

He was right.

I locked my eyes on his.

His pupils were blown wide. His breath came too fast. Beneath the open collar of his uniform, the tide mark cracked another fraction.

"If you break that seal," he said, "it'll pull my life-tide through the bond. Once it starts, you won't be able to stop it."

"Then cut the bond."

His expression cracked.

"You know I can't."

"You rejected me. You said the bond meant nothing."

"I lied."

The words hit harder than the engine blast.

Evelyn's smile vanished.

Cassian lowered his sword by an inch and took another step. His boots scraped over the wet platform.

"I lied because the council was listening," he said. "If they knew you were mine, they'd have opened your veins before you reached the harbor.