The Assassin's Bride

ket, squinting at the unfamiliar light. For the first time in 5 years, she wasn't confined to a cell or a locked room. Yet the calm of the morning only heightened her awa

noticed Kael was gone. A fai

or organizing weapons or whatever the

him might not be as suffocating as she'd feare

faint scent of lavender from the small bottle he had left on a shelf. Maybe in

he world softening around the edges. The sound of the safehouse was familiar now-creaks, the

e at

door fl

k but instead, Kael stood there, eyes wide, jaw tense... and then

water onto the floor and his

dering. His other hand held a folded map, which trembled slightly

ed, flinging a wet towel at him. "The fuck do yo

oted. Apologies, Phina. Won't happen again... probably." Then his lips twitched int

r across the tiles. "Get the hel

lute. "Next time I'll at least yell 'incoming' before

o escape the flying bar of soap t

~

r, but from irritation and something else she wasn't ready to name. Kael had already started unpacking

had decided she would cook. Somethin

her chop with more force than finesse. "Uhm, Phina, remi

"Didn't think misogyny came wit

a hand to his chest feigning bein

uttered, blowing at the eg

fingers, adjusting the heat, tilting the pan with a precise hand. Seraphina watched, ten

le. Almost. She glared

yebrow. "How can you

stubbornly, "I don't

s. Next time I'll leave you to show case all the cooking experience you go

cked before the

~

e the weapons without leaving them scattered, how to silently move through the safehouse

tried stacking boxes of supplies. "Boxes go bot

how pointless this is! I want to learn how to figh

ratic child, green eyes catching the sunlight. "First we need t

patroni

be able to piss you off some more without the crippling f

, but she was laugh

~

ps, marking escape routes. Seraphina watched, considerin

p?" she asked, leani

is inefficient when you'

ou do realize sleep is a basic human

d a pencil across the table absentmindedly, w

tight his jaw looked when focused. In the dim lamplight, he

softly, "you ev

brow lifted. "Exhaustion is a lux

d in the brief pause, he didn't contrad

~

were arguments too. One night, she accused him of being controlling when he insisted the weapons needed

. They argued about which brand of cereal to buy in whispered

healthier," Se

logg's is ten

is more important th

h, b

derly woman behind them interrupted, bea

nked. "We- uh

oothly, then looked down at her. "Every

dy bickering like an old married couple. Bet you hav

na and shuffled off,

ied? Really?" S

e a solid alibi." He said

e realized... he'd picke

~

g lamplight while Kael reviewed his maps again. For reasons she didn't wa

n't mo

out what's next?"

licked to

m- at the knives, the guns, the assassin. "I

, head tipping against the sofa, his features briefly ung

hind the blade. The man who carried weight no one else could see. A

could, a sound outside snapped through the quiet. A scrape

could tell when he'd switched fr

eartbeat, gun in hand, ex

dangerous whisper, eyes loc

low and asked

t look at her as he loaded

" Kael said flat