me. But all he does is gaze down at me, and then his thumb brushes a few flakes of mud off my chin. “You…”
When he doesn’t continue, I lift my chin. “I what?”
But he doesn’t say anything. He doesn’t move at all. As I watch, he slowly fades out like an undeveloped picture, and then the hand on my throat is gone. The entire man is just…gone. I gasp, sitting up, and as I do, I see Aron. My Aron.
He kneels beside the body of the wizard, a dagger jutting from the man’s throat.
“Oh,” I murmur weakly, putting a hand to my forehead. “Thank god. Aron, I almost screwed that up really badly.”
“I noticed.” Aron gets to his feet and gazes down at the wizard, his thoughts consuming him.
I manage to stagger to my feet, dusting leaves off of my body. “No, no,” I wheeze. “Don’t worry about me. I’m cool. I fall from trees all the time. I’ve got this. No need to help me up.” When he doesn’t respond to my griping, I frown to myself. “Aron? Are you okay? Where are the mercenaries?”
“Some are dead. Some alive.” He nudges the wizard’s body with one boot, then looks at me. He flicks his hand, indicating I should move to his side.
I limp over to him, wincing at the pain that shoots up my ankle. “If they’re alive, where are they?”
Aron gazes down at me. “Faith. I am telling you the truth. Do you understand?”
“Uh, okay? Why would I doubt you?” I rub my hip absently. “I think I landed on a rock, by the way. Never thought I’d wish the woale was here to carry my ass back to the road, but here we are.”
“I am telling you the truth,” he repeats.
I frown at him, confused. “I heard you the first time.”
“You’re not listening to me.” He touches my chin, and for a moment I’m reminded of Bad Aron gazing down at me like he wanted to kiss me. “I’m glad you climbed down the tree. It was a smart thing to do. I’m not mad about it at all. Understand?” He crosses his arms over his chest and glares at me. “Next time we plan things, I don’t want you to listen to me.”
I squint at him. “Are you…are you lying to me?”
“No.”
For a moment, I have a gut-wrenching burst of fear—that the wrong Aron lived. Except…I saw him fade out. I saw him disappear right before my eyes. The wizard’s dead and I’m alive. I look down at the dead guy just to be sure, then back to Aron. My Aron. He blinks, waiting.
“I…are you Lies and Arrogance both now?”
He exhales deeply, as if relieved. “Not at all. That’s not how this works.”
Oh, fuck me.
43
The remaining mercenaries immediately surrender to Aron the moment they realize their leader is dead, replaced by…the same guy. They prostrate themselves on the ground, but not before kissing the pommels of their swords and offering them to him. The concubine emerges from her tent with a swish of her hips and does the same, raising her too-perfect ass into the air.
Aron watches all of this from the center of the encampment, one foot still on the wizard's dead body. Eventually, he looks over at me. "Well?"
"Well what?" I look up from the bags I'm searching for weapons. I see some coin, but it's mostly supplies.
"Do you want them to live or die?"
I stare at Aron in horror. "You're making me pick?"
"No. If it were me, I would let them go, but I'm asking you since you have a hard heart." His tone is curiously playful despite his words, and he crosses his arms over his chest, watching me and waiting.
I swallow hard, deciphering that. Fuck. He is making me pick. He wouldn't let them go, but he thinks I'm soft. Okay. I gaze down at the men (and woman) bowing before Aron. "Um. I'm not used to having people's lives in my hands."
Aron just shrugs and gestures at them again.
I study the mercenaries. They wear piecemeal armor, which makes it impossible to tell how young or old they are, but they remain with their faces down in the dirt, waiting. The woman next to them trembles, her arms outstretched, and I feel a surge of pity. I know I need to be ruthless. I know these people would have killed us without a second thought, but I'm not from this world. I'm not like that.
I look down at the dead wizard