Threshold of Annihilation (The Firebird Chronicles #3) - T.A. White Page 0,71

an even more reclusive mentality were trapped on a planet and told they couldn't leave.

To say nothing of how such an act smacked of something their ancient masters would have done.

Neither Graydon nor the emperor wanted to become anything like those monsters.

"And me?" Kira asked.

Graydon quirked an eyebrow. "I believe you've already made your deal."

An introspective look entered Kira's gaze as she considered.

She nodded. "That's fair."

Graydon felt a pulse of fierce pleasure. Whether Kira knew it or not, she'd already accepted her place among the Tuann. If she hadn't, she would have fought tooth and nail against that statement.

Progress. Slow and frustrating, but there, nonetheless.

Graydon could be patient.

He had a feeling Kira was worth the wait. Her layers seemed endless. A protection she'd needed to survive what she had. But Graydon had a feeling when they were finally pulled back, they would expose a woman with a soul like no other. Beautiful and pure.

Already, she'd given him brief glimpses of that woman when she interacted with her niece and Jin. Those all too brief moments where she forgot to guard herself. The taste was addictive and he found himself utterly enthralled.

Kira rolled her lips between her teeth as she looked like she was debating something. "There's something you should know."

Graydon waited.

Kira's gaze met his. "I think Elise is somewhere on this planet."

TWELVE

KIRA PRESSED HER lips together as her words hovered in the air. What she wouldn't give to take those words back.

But she couldn't.

They were already out, waiting for the universe to bestow a blessing or a curse. Hard to tell which.

Graydon wasn't the easiest of individuals to predict. He used a veneer of sarcasm and wit that was as likely to draw blood as his sword.

He could very easily use her confession against Kira.

It'd been a long time since Kira had let herself be so vulnerable. She was beginning to remember why she'd stopped.

This feeling sucked.

Handing someone the power to hurt you took bravery. Guts. Both things Kira hadn't felt she possessed in a long time. At least emotionally. Physically, she was just as likely to throw herself into the fire.

Graydon held the ability to crush her and her objective.

Would he though?

That was the question she was hoping to get the answer to.

"You hope to go after her," Graydon stated.

The look he sent her was reflective, as if she'd handed him a piece to some invisible puzzle he was assembling.

"I'm not leaving this planet without her."

Graydon might as well know the truth. She'd sacrifice everything if she had to—even the Tuann.

Of course, she was hoping it wouldn't come to that. If she ever had to fight Graydon for real, she wasn't entirely sure who'd come out the victor.

"It's very convenient for her to appear now. Are you sure it's her?" he asked.

"No, but that doesn't change what I'm going to do."

Graydon stirred, his gaze thoughtful. "The Tsavitee had her for a long time. She might not be the person you remember."

"I've considered that, and if that's the case, I'll do what has to be done."

Kira let herself feel the raw devastation of that thought. She didn't try to hide or pretend. She put it all out there for him to see.

She was going into this with her eyes wide open, knowing she couldn't control the outcome.

All this time she'd been holding onto the slimmest of hopes that when she found Elise, there would be something of the woman she knew remaining. It was her light in the dark, the thing that forced her to pull herself together in the early days after the coma. After all this time, it had become habit to cling to that hope.

But in the back of her mind, she'd always known what she might have to do if Elise had been twisted beyond repair by the torture and brainwashing she might have endured.

It was the nightmare that kept her up nights.

It would be easier not to go looking. To hold onto the memory of who Elise was.

Kira couldn't force herself to do that. It wasn't in her nature to let things go. Even if the hope was small and the chances of failure were great, she'd give everything she was to see this through. Even if it destroyed her in the end.

Graydon could accept that and help her—or he could get out of her way.

"All right," Graydon said.

The sudden absence of tension made Kira almost lightheaded. For a second, she questioned what she'd heard.

Had Graydon, Mr. You'll-Do-It-My-Way, just agreed to her demand? Had the