The two exchanged lightning fast looks before Xavier gave me an elaborate bow.
“For our dearest childhood friend—“
“—and the woman who holds our brother’s heart—”
“—we will do our best in all things,” Xavier finished.
I sighed. It was the closest to an agreement I was going to get.
Something over my shoulder caught Xander’s attention, and the two disappeared as quickly as they’d materialized in the first place.
“We have to warn them that their supposed new friend is Esai!” Navid whispered urgently. “They could be in danger.”
CHAPTER24
“They’ll definitely be in danger if we tell them anything of the sort,” I said grimly. “They’ll insist on trying to arrest him on the spot, and they definitely wouldn’t do anything sensible like wait for guards to arrive first. Esai has someone with him, so it would be two against two, and…” I shook my head. “We can’t risk it. We’ll just have to keep Esai in sight the whole time. Maybe we can finally work out where he’s hiding in the city.”
“Who is that with him?” Navid asked. “I don’t recognize him from the cave, but I didn’t get a good look at all the thieves.”
“He wasn’t there, I’m sure of it.” I examined the man as best I could without approaching closer. “He’s older than any of the current members of the gang. But his face is extremely familiar. I must have seen him somewhere before, if I could only remember where.” I didn’t usually have trouble when it came to faces.
After I’d studied him for another moment, Esai turned to say something to his companion, and I realized why the older man looked familiar.
“Actually, I don’t think I’ve ever seen that man before,” I said. “That explains why I couldn’t place him at first. It’s the family resemblance that makes him look so familiar. He must be Esai’s father.”
“The one even Esai’s own men are afraid of?” Navid asked, and I nodded.
He immediately whisked me to the far side of the corridor, placing my back against the wall. Bracing his arm above my head, he loomed over me with an affectionate smile.
I stared up at him in shock, and he chuckled.
“At least try to look like you’re enjoying my close proximity,” he whispered.
I dutifully pasted a smile on my face, looking up at him before glancing back into the refreshment room.
“I suppose we need some excuse for loitering,” I said reluctantly.
He chuckled. “For all your cleverness, I can’t see you with a career as an intelligencer ahead of you. You need to embrace the acting a little more wholeheartedly.”
I gave him an apologetic smile and added a giggle on the end.
“Better,” he said, approvingly, and the giggle turned real.
“They’re leaving,” I said suddenly, having thrown another glance into the refreshment room.
“Stay calm,” he said. “Keep up the act as they come by, and we’ll follow them as soon as they’re out of sight.”
I checked over his shoulder again, but my vision was blocked by a tall figure standing in the center of the corridor and staring at us. My heart seized, and for a second, shock robbed me of breath.
But the hard line of Rek’s jaw, and the way the pulse jumped in his neck, sent feeling rushing back through me. I pushed Navid away, sending him staggering as I rushed to Rek’s side.
“Rek! What are you doing here? I didn’t know you were invited!”
“I wasn’t.” His eyes didn’t leave Navid, who had recovered his balance and turned to stare at us. “But apparently it’s a good thing I decided to come anyway.”
He took a stride forward, and I jumped after him, grabbing at his arm. For an unthinking moment, I thought he meant to throttle poor Navid, but he was in complete control of himself as he grabbed Navid’s arm.
“When Adara confessed she’d sent you here, I thought it worth coming as back up.” His voice dipped lower, the words almost a growl. “What I did not expect was to find you’d been foolish enough to bring Zaria with you. My beloved sister left that part out.”