“I guess there’s only one way to find out,” I murmur, my eyes lowering in bliss as he rakes his claws lightly against the base of my scalp. “Go on. Spill.”

Kaebl sighs, turning his head toward Malice, bringing attention to the knowing glint in his eye. Malice and I spoke last night. I truly believe we want the same thing. And I’m not asking you to forgive him, but I do want to ask if you’ll give him another chance to prove himself.

“I honestly never thought I’d hear you ask me to trust Malice,” I whisper, my head reeling from his request. “What changed your mind about him?”

Just something he said. It reminded me that beneath his many flaws, there’s still a soul worth preserving. He turns his attention back down to me, a smile crinkling the corners of his eyes. Plus, he’s far more knowledgeable when it comes to halflings. It would be a shame to cast him out without trying to use it to our advantage first.

“Okay…”

Which is why I want you to let him train you.

I whip my head, my mouth falling open in shock at the dead-serious expression pinching his face. “Train me?”

Yes.

“As in⁠—”

“Magic.” Malice’s smile widens as he wades closer toward me through the pool. “I’m going to show you how to harness that lovely power in your veins.”

“Can’t someone else show me?”

Malice clutches his chest, covering up the gaping cavern where his heart should be. “Such cruel words. And after I went through all the trouble of getting you out of that disgusting dungeon.”

“Are we pretending that you weren’t the one who put me there in the first place?”

Malice waves it off with a smirk. “That was such a long time ago. So much has changed—the depths of my obsession with you, for starters. Why, it’s practically endless now.”

I purse my lips as a wave of irritation crests in my veins, though it’s overshadowed by the thrumming warmth traveling down the bond. “Kaebl might be ready to forgive and forget what you did, but I’m not. A few sweet lines won’t win me over.”

“I feared as much.” Malice’s smirk drops, his mask cracking as his chest heaves with a dejected sigh. “I know the last thing you want is to spend time with me right now, but it’s necessary. At least for the first part.”

“The first part?”

He nods. “You have to block the energy you allow into your body. Right now, it comes and goes as it pleases, surging whenever your emotions are out of control. If you take too much too soon, it could shatter your mind.”

“And the others can’t teach me that because…?”