His friend didn’t bat an eye. “And you need to stop being a pussy.”

The fuck? The air grew heavy as Trey waited for him to say something else. Something to explain what on all of Aleron he was doing there. But Jensen said nothing, glaring daggers at him.

Did Jensen truly hear about him being in the infirmary with no knowledge of why or the danger he would be in for coming? It didn’t make sense, and there was certainly no way he’d found him on accident.

“I’m serious, Brex. I don’t know what you’re doing, but you need to fuck off.”

His friend raised a bushy eyebrow, audibly sucking on his front teeth. “If I wanted someone to nag at me, I’d find me a wife.”

May the God of Death take him already. “Eat shit. I’m trying to save your stupid ass. If you’re caught in here, you’ll never so much as even see another woman again, let alone find one desperate enough to marry you.”

Jensen ignored the taunt, unfurling his arms to pick at a hangnail, looking completely at home and unconcerned. “It’s a shame His Highness didn’t remove your tongue instead. You’re even more annoying with one eye than you were with two.”

“Guess he’s not ready to add to his collection yet. He’s probably saving that for our anniversary.”

Jensen’s gaze flicked up to the patch Perry had recently secured over his empty eye socket and grunted, the corner of his lips twitching. “Wouldn’t surprise me if the fucker carried it in his pocket like a good luck charm.”

Trey released a dark chuckle, the act feeling foreign and wrong. “He does seem like the kind to keep his trophies close to him.”

Another grunt. “His obsession with possessing Veralie Arenaris supports that assumption. It wouldn’t surprise me if he chained her to him to prevent her from leaving again.”

Trey jolted, his body screaming in pain when his muscles all seemed to tighten at once. “Tell me she’s not here, Brex.” Fear consumed him all over again as images of Eithan touching her flooded his mind.

Jensen just sniffed, tilting his head and staring at him with a disappointed expression, like he was impatiently waiting for something to happen.

Trey’s anger flared hot. “Tell me!” he demanded, his voice cracking.

Jensen pushed his tongue under his upper lip, shifting his weight back and considering him before he answered. “No, he doesn’t have her yet. At least, not that we know of. But if the fucker keeps sending letters, Lesta says it’s only a matter of time before she shows up.”

His immediate relief at her still being on Bhasura was short lived when the rest of Jensen’s comment landed. Clarity slapped him across the face, and he scoffed. “I should’ve known Lesta was the one to send you.”

A nod.

He rolled his head to stare up at the ceiling. He was so fucking tired. “Why would he even bother? To fucking punish me more?” How did he even know where he was? Eithan trusted no one. There was no way he’d told anyone other than Healer Perry. Trey would bet his life on it.