He resisted me the last time, at the rave, and maybe I should be suspicious of his offer—or maybe he’s hoping I’ll call his bluff. But I turn right back around and follow the thread of that kiss, the memory still lingering in the air, straight into his mind.

It’s even easier than it was last night, with Adriana. His happy moments come up first—a night of shared stories, the girl I thought was my math tutor laughing so hard she fell off her chair; a time Viviane said, “Here, you take the key,” and how it proved she valued him, and how it made his heart swell; a guy he flirted with, the first one after Jude, and how nervous he was.

Viviane pops up again and again, telling jokes, talking about the future, and I realize that he feels about her the way I felt about Daphne Banks—and my heart hurts for the long-lost older sister I recently lost all over again. But I see enough to know that he’s telling me the truth. Many nights spent talking about what the Ascension will mean, how they’ll have to be audacious and smart if they want to change the status quo and maintain peace. Whatever lies I’ve been told, the League of the Dark Star does not wish to exploit the gift of true immortality to subjugate humanity and raise hell on Earth.

More of his memories call to me, his past a deep well filled with treasures I’m curious about … but I resist the urge to snoop. Instead, I turn the other way and push forward; while I have him, while he’s willing, I want to know more about our shared future. I need to know if I’m going to swear an oath to the League, because I have no idea what to do right now, and I’m running out of what it takes to make impartial decisions.

The future is harder to reach than the past, however, the images shifting and unstable. I find that moment with the bowl and candle again, but this time it’s different somehow—a shadow behind him that wasn’t there before. And then I jolt forward again, the light lower, brick walls painted cinnamon by the warm glow. The air is heavy and sweet, and Gunnar’s shirt is gone. His body is amazing, and I’ve got my hands on it, our lips an inch apart as he murmurs, The choice is yours—just say the word.

I jerk back, suddenly released from his memories, from the future we’re going to share, and my heart races. Breathing hard, I adjust myself without thinking, my underwear in a Gordian knot. Gunnar’s eyebrows go up. “What did you see?”