work through later, but first, he needed to know why she thought the false Ardin were here. He’d known the men might follow her here, but with the number of men he had outside the walls at the moment, he was sure they weren’t close enough to do any harm.
Those men wouldn’t risk their own lives just to get to her. Especially since they thought there was a chance to get their magic back. Not that he expected a foolish attack when they realized that was gone. No, if they decided to try to kill her out of revenge, they’d wait for a vulnerable moment with little risk to them.
He gestured to Linc, who was across the field. That was all it took. Linc left the two men he’d been watching spar and began walking over to join them. Colm waited. Cami needed time to relax. A few moments waiting for Linc wouldn’t hurt.
Is something wrong? She’s back a little sooner than we thought. Linc’s thoughts swept into his mind along with concern.
Tyson said that she thinks the false Ardin were here. Colm kept his eyes on Cami. He didn’t know what to think. She’d been running from those men and had more than enough reason to fear them. He didn’t know how to reassure her without angering her or sounding condescending.
Did he give any reason why she thought that? Linc shot a frown at him as he joined them.
Colm shrugged and lead the way to the Thent. She said that she didn’t see them. Not in the way that I meant.
Fuck. Linc’s mental tone immediately grew a little rougher.
But I have to wonder if it’s really something that will come to pass or if her fear is coloring her thoughts. Colm kept his eyes straight ahead, but felt a little twinge of guilt for even thinking it. The one time she’d seen something here had been true. This was a little different. She hadn’t been asleep. We both know she’s still so afraid of them she has nightmares.
And there’s more than ample reason for those nightmares. Linc moved up beside him and scowled at him, the irritation plain on his face. Let her explain before you start making decisions about what’s real and what she’s imagining. We thought she’d dreamed up the last one and caught two men coming into our Thent because of what she saw.
I remember, but this is a different situation. Colm wasn’t making snap decisions, but he also knew that he was too inclined to believe anything she said simply because she was their Lady.
Sending men out to search won’t hurt anything, even if nothing is found. Personally I’d rather she be aware of the danger than so complacent she didn’t pay attention to what was going on around her. Linc didn’t elaborate, but he didn’t need to go into vivid detail of what could have happened to her if she’d been less diligent before she’d found them.
Those kinds of thoughts gave Colm nightmares. She’d been so vulnerable when she was on the run. He didn’t need the thought of her doing anything overtly reckless added onto the image. Linc had a point about sending out men. It would reassure her that they weren’t simply brushing aside her concerns.
As they climbed the steps, he kept his eyes on her. She was so tense. Didn’t she know that they’d still trust her dreams even if she was wrong this time? Whatever spooked her might not even be about today. It could be sometime in the future. She was just learning about her abilities and hadn’t learned to control or even read it fully yet.
He urged her in front of him as Linc held the door open for her. Tyson waited as they entered and followed them into the entrance hall. Colm almost stopped as he strode in behind her. His eyes rose from studying the sway of her ass as she walked. He saw Vin standing near the end of the hallway. Tension swept over him and his jaw clenched tight, biting back a curse. Seeing the chatar there, he knew something was important, even if he didn’t know what that was.
“I think you need somewhere quiet to talk, right?” Vin smiled and gestured them to walk before him. “You can use my library. Plenty of room for all of you.”
“We do need to talk, and since you’re aware of it, you should probably be part of it.” Colm frowned at the chatar. A little warning