"You read memories," Conall said, as though it would sound more believable if he heard it from his own mouth.

"Yes. So, for example, when I first saw Austin, I saw his memories of Julie, and the instances they – well, rest assured the nature of their relationship was very clear to me from the start."

Julie's cheeks flamed bright red and Ryleigh chuckled.

"Well damn," Conall said. "That's a breach of our privacy."

"Definitely. I can't help myself. It's not like I can turn it off. When I look at someone, I see memories. Like yours, for example."

His lips tightened. She smiled – a smile that said both 'don't worry, I won't tell anyone' and 'but someday I might'.

Ellis, too, was looking particularly concerned with this development. "All our memories?"

"Yes. Well, I only see the ones you think about when you're in my vicinity, but I can dig for others. But I'm discreet." She paused. "Usually."

"Okay, but hold up," Sky said. "You say you read memories. That sounds pretty passive. What you did to those Golden Dawn soldiers wasn't passive."

"Very well observed, Sky," Ryleigh said, nodding. "I do read memories, but I also manipulate them. If I want to, I can create entirely new ones. That's what I did to those patrol guards. The first thing I did was do some quick digging to uncover their worst fears, stemming from their most traumatic experiences. Then for each one of them, I took that memory and made it worse. Unbearable. My gift seems passive because it's psychological, not physical, but mental agony makes a cruel enemy."

"I would almost sympathise with them," Julie said.

"Well, before you got there, they were going to take me to their alpha so he could rape me, so I wouldn't sympathise too much if I were you. But yes, it's a cruel thing to do. I don't enjoy it, but it had to be done. So, after I had created those memories, I hid and created a memory in which they saw me run away." She shrugged. "That's all there was to it." Her gaze flitted around. "I hope you're satisfied now. You're the only outsiders privy to this information."

She had gripped the backrest of her chair a little while ago to keep her standing, but now let go. Her legs complained about the weight added to them and threatened to take her down. Ignoring her body, like always, she took a few steps anyway. Her limbs teamed up with her head and everything started spinning. Next thing she knew, Austin had caught her. She hadn't even seen him get up and move towards her.

She was pressed against his chest, his scent sending her in overdrive. She would have pushed him away if her legs had been even a little sturdier than apple sauce, but alas.

"Are you alright?" he asked, his deep voice reverberating through her entire body.

"Fine, fine," she said, wriggling her hands between herself and him, pressing against his chest to make him release her. She could feel his muscles underneath his shirt and sucked in a sharp breath.

"I was just about to go see Ridge," Julie said. "Shall I walk with you?" She popped up beside Ryleigh and offered her arm. Ryleigh took it, and – grudgingly – Austin released her.

"As soon as you're up for it, I'd like a word," Ellis said.

"I assume you want to talk about the letter on your desk, waiting to be sent to Alder?" she said. "I would suggest you burn it and keep my secret, but I know you don't consider that an option. I'll drop by later this afternoon, how's that?"

He blinked. "Yes. That's fine."

*****

Ryleigh didn't wait for Ellis to answer her knock before slipping into his office. He was sitting behind his desk and looked up when she came in.

"Here I am, as promised," she said. Her eyes fixated on him and her features tightened. "You sent the letter."

He gestured to the chair in front of his desk. "Sit."

"You just signed my death warrant."

"Don't be dramatic."

"Dramatic? I should have erased all your memories when I still had the chance. You do realise there's still a clause in Andiorian werewolf law stipulating every Shadow Walker is fair game? He can execute me on the spot if he wishes."

"He doesn't."

"Ah, you received a response already?" Ryleigh settled on a chair, a smile on her lips that didn't reach her eyes. "Funny how we perceive the same man so differently. When you think of him, you remember his kindness; you remember how he has supported you and your pack throughout the years; you remember how much he loves his family. When I think of him, however, I remember his army arriving at my pack to slaughter us all. Your king might spare my life. Mine will kill me."

"He had reasons for everything he's done."

"All criminals have reasons for their crimes; that doesn't make it pardonable. But let's not dwell on that right now. I'm sure it is not a topic we will ever agree on. Your love for that man has made you blind to his actions."

"And your hatred has made you blind to his redeeming qualities."

"Perhaps. Pray, tell me what his response was."

"Don't you already know?"

"O, yes, I do. I tend to pretend ignorance. I find it confuses people when I skip parts of the conversation because I already know what they're going to say. So, go ahead."

He looked at her unblinkingly. "You're a very strange woman."

"This might come as a surprise, but you're not the first to tell me that. Now, anytime today would be great."

"He wants to meet you."

Ryleigh sat back in her chair, nodding slowly. "He has some nerve, that man. I have to give him that much."

"It's a kind offer, Ryleigh. He just wants to speak to you, to determine whether –"

"Whether I am a threat?"

"Essentially. You haven't exactly shown best behaviour while in his care, so it's understandable he should want to get to know you better before making any decisions on how to proceed."

"I haven't exactly shown best behaviour? O, I'm sorry. How is one supposed to behave when silver is festering inside of them? Was I supposed to thank him every time they injected me?"

"You could have talked to him."

She opened her mouth, then shut it again. Her eyes flashed golden. "How easy to blame the victim. This conversation that he wants to have, then, is for me to show him that I'm nothing to worry about?"

"Yes."

"What if I am?"

He released a slow breath. "Ryleigh –"

"If I'm ever to find myself in the same room as King Alder, I'll do whatever is in my power to kill him."

Ellis's jaw ticked. "You can't speak like that."

"O, how much you sound like Austin right now. I am speaking like that. Look at me and judge whether I'm uttering empty threats. That man murdered my pack, my family. You heard my story. You know what he did."

"Vengeance is not going to undo anything. You're never going to get close enough to him to kill him. It's suicide."

"Better to forgive and forget, is that what you're saying? Have you forgiven Alpha Braxton for going to battle against you? Have you forgotten your fated mate?"

"Of course not."

"Should you ever see Braxton, will you tell him it's all right as rain? After all, I'm sure he had reasons, and that seems to justify mass murder to you."

"It's not the same."

"Isn't it? As far as I can tell, the only difference is that my enemy is more powerful than yours, and that my enemy killed more people than yours. Therefore, I'm entitled to hating him more than you hate yours. Yet here you are, telling me to meet him and show him I'm no threat. I'm a Shadow Walker, Ellis. Being a threat is our default occupation. That's why he murdered us."

"Look," Ellis said. "Clearly we're not going to see eye to eye on this. Let's not even try. He wants to meet you, and you're not to leave until you have."

She chuckled. "Who's going to stop me? The only reason you've been able to detain me this long is because I was refusing to use my magic. Now that my secret's out, there's no need for discretion. You'll need an army to stop me, and then only in death will you overpower me. I don't know if Austin will appreciate that."

"You're a fool." He shook his head, studying her. "If you try to do anything to King Alder, you'll lose your life. You won't succeed. You're a smart woman, so you know that. You know it's a fool's errand. If you want to live, you'll make him feel at ease about you."

"How am I supposed to do that? How am I supposed to be civil to someone I despise so passionately?"

"If there's one thing you have proven over the course of the past month, it's that you're a phenomenal liar. So lie if you must, but you're going to meet him and you're going to be amiable when you do."

She rose from her seat. "We'll see about that."

She made sure to slam the door hard as she could as she left, and was so focused on perfecting that aggressive action, she didn't notice Austin until she was standing right in front of him. A glance over her shoulder told her there wasn't anywhere to run. She managed to smooth out her features before turning back to face him.

"Ellis linked me you were here," Austin said. "We need to talk."

His tone allowed no arguing, and Goddess was she attracted to that. He was standing with his hands stuffed into his pockets, broad shoulders filling the hallway and cutting off her escape. "Alright."

For a second, he was too surprised to act. "Let's go to the library."

She inclined her head and followed him, eyes glued to his back. She valued character over looks, but fact remained leaving him would be easier had he been ugly.

He held the door open for her and she entered the library, finding it deserted. He slipped in after her and closed the door.

"Let's not beat around the bush," she said. "I know you marked me to save my life, but I still don't like it."

"I understand, but it was the only way."

"I said no."

"You were dying. I didn't trust you really preferred to die."

She crossed her arms, her shoulder emitting a dull ache. "Well, I did."

"Is being mated to me really so awful you'd rather die?"

Compassion filtered through the marble of her face. "No," she said, allowing her arms to slip down again. "It's not. It just complicates things. You know my story now. You know who's looking for me."

"We'll protect you."

"It's not me I'm worried about. I'm irreplaceable to him. You and your pack are the ones that need protection."

"We have an army."

"You have an army that he can mind-control and turn against you. Besides, I'm not worth shedding blood over. This is my war, and I'll be damned if I'm going to let anyone else fight it for me."

"Surely there's something we can do." There was something infinitely stubborn in his gaze right then, and it both impressed and annoyed Ryleigh.

"Don't you get it? We're talking about the most powerful werewolf out there. He's going to find me – don't doubt for a second that he will, or that he hasn't already, for that matter – and when he does, he's not going to be pleased with me. You should know I inherited my temper from him."

"What if he hurts you?"

She shook her head. "He won't. Not if I repent. And even if he would, it doesn't matter anymore. I need to go home. Running is no longer an option."

"So what? You're going to reject me the moment you can, and then you'll willingly return to that man?"

"I have to."

"No, you don't. You can stay here –"

"I can't." She took a deep breath. "You didn't fix me, Austin. You just postponed my death. As soon as your mark fades, the silver is going to play up again. And when I reject you..."

"You'll die?" He drew his brows down from under his unruly hair.

"Yes. Unless I get home. There's a device that my father owns that can get the silver out of my body. That's the only chance I have."

"Except if you mate me back."

Her lips parted and closed. "Technically, yes. But don't you see that we'll never work? I've done nothing but lie to you. You don't know who I am. If you did, you wouldn't want anything to do with me."

"I know you're a Shadow Walker, and I'm still here. Do I like that you lied to me? Of course not. And I hate that I fell for it. But I'm drawn to you and I don't want to lose you."

She had no idea how to get through to him. There was a point where stubbornness turned into recklessness, and he was approaching it fast. "Staying is not an option."

"So what – you'd rather go back home to a father who will mate you off to someone you don't want than stay here with me?"

"It's not about 'want', Austin," she said, her volume increasing despite her best efforts to sound unaffected. "If he finds me here, he might kill you. It's not because I don't care about you that I have to go. It's because I do." 

______

A/N: If you were thinking you might get a break now, you're wrong. There's still more drama ahead (which should hardly come as a surprise at this point), so be ready! ;)

Thanks for reading!