The next breath I took got stuck.

“I know you’re not going to lose your eyesight tomorrow and maybe not even next year, but why wait and take that chance?”

I was struck silent.

He glanced at the sky. “Since we’ll run out of daylight in a couple of hours, let’s grab something to eat and do an early patrol, so we don’t get back too late. Tomorrow I’ll show you all that I know. Make a whole day of it.”

A wild mess of emotions buffeted me from every side. “But...but we need to be out there as long as we can tonight. The Harbinger—”

“—isn’t as important as you.”

I gaped at him. “It’s extremely more important than me, and you, and my eyeballs and everything. It’s killing Wardens and demons. We need to find it and stop it before it moves on to killing humans.” I kept my voice low. “That’s the only thing that’s important.”

“Nah.” He shook his head. “It’s not. You, and you getting to see the city, is a Hell of a lot more important.”

My heart stuttered as the mess of emotion swirled even more. I stared at him, realizing that no one had ever put me before my duty. Yes, my life was valued and constantly placed above others, but no one ever put me before what I was designed to do, and that always made me feel like I wasn’t a person but a thing. A weapon. I knew that no one meant to do that, especially not Thierry, Matthew or my mom, but training had always come first. Knowing that I’d one day be called upon by my father had always been the future—the only future. But not to Zayne.

It was so strange to hear a Warden say what he was saying. Wardens were born to fight evil and to mate so that they could procreate. Sure, they had more of a life than me, but they were also strictly duty-bond.

I wanted to hug him. I wanted to kiss him. I also wanted to punch him, because he wasn’t being remotely helpful in keeping the ZAYNE file cabinet door closed. It was almost like he was yanking on it! And he knew better than to do that.

“You make this so hard,” I muttered.

“Make what so hard?”

Irritated and charmed, and annoyed because I was charmed, I glared at him. “Not liking you,” I admitted.

Zayne’s lips tipped up and a wide, beautiful smile appeared, stealing my breath again.

My eyes narrowed as I crossed my arms. “I don’t know why you’re smiling.”

“Maybe because...” He rose, extending his hand toward me. “Maybe because I’m not trying to make it easy, Trin.”

18