Counting Shadows (Duplicity)

smiling. I wait for his posture to grow defensive, but he remains calm, not at all worried about Jackal’s presence. And the way Jackal talks to Slaike almost reminds me of the way he talks to me and Jolik, and his other trainees. Slaike couldn’t be another one of Jackal’s students, could he?
    Before I can ask, Lor turns to Jackal and demands, “How does this Dragon know so much?”
    “That’s not your place to ask,” Jackal replies.
    “I’m a prince. It’s always my place to ask.”
    Jackal scoffs. “Maybe in your lands. But here you’re a prisoner, not a prince. Start getting used to it.”
    Lor bristles and clenches his fists tighter, and I grab the back of his tunic, ready to hold him back if he lunges at Jackal. I don’t care how big Lor is; Jackal will beat him to pulp, if he tries anything.
    I straighten my shoulders, trying to look as intimidating as possible. It’s probably not my brightest idea, since I’m surrounded by a Dragon, an Angel, and a Vampire, but I shake away that thought and focus on looking confident.
    “He may not be royalty here,” I say to Jackal, “but I am. And I want to know how this Dragon knows so much.”
    “Because I told him,” Jackal replies calmly. He crosses his arms over his chest and raises an eyebrow, daring me to argue further.
    He really should know by now that I take that kind of dare as an invitation. I stand as tall as I can and say, “You’re endangering both Lor and me by handing out that kind of information. Why?”
    Slaike scoffs. “Endangering? Surely you don’t think Jackal would purposely but you in harm’s way.”
    Of course I don’t. But this Dragon doesn’t need to know how much I trust Jackal, so I just calmly meet his gaze and say, “You don’t know me, Dragon. Don’t try to pretend you do.”
    He smiles viciously, lifting his lips to expose long, sharp canines. “I know more about you than you do, Faye. Pretending otherwise would be a joke.”
    “Slaike,” Jackal says sharply. I wait for him to tell the Dragon how wrong he is, but Jackal doesn’t say anything else. He just gives Slaike a harsh look that makes my stomach churn. Could Slaike actually be telling the truth? And if he is, what could he possibly know about me that I don’t?
    A rustling interrupts my thoughts, and we all whirl toward the sound. Slaike draws a long dagger from a sheath at his side, and the rest of us clench our fists. A minute passes, and there’s no sound but chirping birds, and the distant crashing waves. Then the rustling comes again, closer this time.
    “Expecting someone else?” I murmur to Jackal. He shakes his head, and I clench my fist tighter, taking a single step toward the sound.
    I think my lungs are about to burst from holding my breath. But, just then, a deer bounds out from behind the oak tree. It freezes as it sees us, its eyes wide and startled.
    Slaike curses and shoves his dagger back into its sheath, while Jackal and Lor instantly relax their postures. But I’m frozen as I stare into the deer’s eyes. It has red irises, so vibrant that it reminds me of fire. I point to it, but just as I’m about to tell the others what I see, the deer bounds off.
    “This is what we get for meeting in an unsafe spot,” Slaike growls at Jackal.
    “It was just a deer,” Jackal replies. “Nothing to worry about.”
    “And if it had been someone?” Slaike asks, his lip turning up in a sneer.
    Jackal doesn’t reply, and instead turns to me. “You need to leave now, Faye. Slaike and I have things to discuss in private.”
    “Things about me?” I challenge.
    “Perhaps. Perhaps not. That doesn’t matter. What does matter is that you leave right now and tell no one that there is a Dragon on castle grounds.”
    “And why should I listen to you?”
    “Because you always have, and I’ve never failed you.”
    I sigh, knowing there’s no way I can argue with that. “Whatever you say, Jackal.” I grab Lor’s arm and tug at him, leading him toward the back of the gardens.
    “No,” Jackal says, stopping me. “You need to go back to your chambers.”
    “What? Why?”
    “Why do you think, Faye? Practically everyone in this city knows you Chose an Angel. If they see you with him, they’ll know who you are.”
    “I’ve already thought of that,” I say.
    Jackal raises a skeptical eyebrow. “Really?”
    “Yes, really. If someone sees us, I’ll tell them I’m Lor’s servant.”
    Lor chokes on a laugh, and I elbow him in the side.