“Do you trust her?” I asked.

“To an extent.”

“And what extent is that?”

“Ana has her own agenda,” Adrian said. “It does not always align with mine.”

“Are you worried she is working with Ravena?”

The thought had crossed my mind in the direct aftermath of Ravena’s attack, but that had only been because I was surprised by Ana’s magic. Since then, I had come to realize that she was only curious. Besides, she had been adamant about not being used as a weapon, and any alliance with Ravena would make her just that.

“No, even if she had betrayed us before, her loyalty would have shifted after Isla’s death.”

“And that does not concern you?”

“Not as long as she remains useful,” he said.

There was that word again—useful.

“You do not like my answer,” he said.

“I cannot easily forgive betrayal no matter how useful someone seems.”

Adrian chuckled and took a step closer, hands coming up to cup my face.

“If it helps you obtain your greatest desire, then you will learn,” he said and bent to kiss my forehead. My face warmed as his lips touched my skin, and when he pulled away, I stared into his eyes.

“Do you have your greatest desire?” I asked.

“Yes,” he said, his thumb shifting to brush over my lips.

“Then what are you looking for now?” I whispered.

“Anything that makes us more powerful,” he said. Then he kissed me, and I opened for him, his tongue plying my mouth as he bent over me before lifting me onto the desk. I reached for his hands as they gathered handfuls of my skirt, stopping him.

“I have more to tell you,” I said.

“Does it involve how you would like me to fuck you?” he asked, kissing along my neck. I let him, allowing my head to fall to one side.

“No,” I breathed.

“Then I do not wish to hear it,” he said.

“I think you will want to hear this,” I said.

Finally, he paused and pulled away, meeting my gaze.

“Ana and I are going to cast a containment spell for the crimson mist,” I said. “We have only a short while to prepare. We must cast tomorrow night.”

He studied me for a moment. “Explain.”

I told him about how Ana and I had arrived at our plan and how we needed to cast beneath the moonlight in the water. I also told him about Lothian and Zann’s theory regarding the mist and how it might have transformed into the blood plague, which unsurprisingly he already seemed to know.

“Where will you cast?” he asked.

I noted how he spoke—as if he already approved.

“Ana says there is a lake fed by a spring.”

“Galat,” he said, pausing, as if he were recalling a memory. “We used to call it Green Lake because of its color. It is near Gal.”