The breath left him in a rush, a white cloud. The wind rose, fingering at the shed’s edges. A low moan, eerie and unmodulated.
“Y-y-you’re n-not the only o-o-one with sc-c-cars.” God, why can’t I just talk?
He stared until she lowered her shirt and sweater. It was too cold, but she didn’t feel it. Her fingers shook even more as she buttoned her coat back up, her gloves making her clumsier.
“They f-f-found m-me in the s-s-snow.” Now it was easier, because she had his attention. He was listening like Nico did, leaning forward, the rest of the world shut out. “I’m not F-f-family. N-not a p-princess. I w-want to know wh-what’s h-h-h-happening t-t-to me.” Because something is. Something terrible.
He stared for a long while. She fidgeted, shivering, wishing she could shake him and make him start telling her things.
Finally, Tor let out a ragged sigh. “Okay.” He nodded, his shoulders slumping. “Okay. But not here, for Chrissake.”
Uneasy relief and fresh nervousness mixed inside her stomach. “Wh-where?”
“Not tonight, either. Let me think, all right? Just let me think.” He actually turned in a full circle, looking at the shed’s walls covered with coils of decaying rope and the black hanging driblets of moss that would green in spring.
Just like a dog settling down for the night. Cami shivered even harder.
When he turned back to her, he was still pale. His hands were fists again, and he thrust them in his jacket pockets. “Fine.” As if they’d been yelling, and the fight was over. “Biel’y. Okay.”
“D-d-do you—”
“I said okay.” Quick as a flash of lightning, and the irritation gone just as fast. “I’ll tell you what I know, but not here. The moon turns tonight. Waxing moon’s much safer for . . . both of us. Can you get out after dark? Two days from now?”
She nodded. Nico’s going to be angry.
But only if he finds out. And besides, she had to know. If she wasn’t Family, this wasn’t his business, was it?
Tor nodded, once, sharply. You could tell he was used to planning things, once he made up his mind. “Here’s what we’ll do, then.”
TWENTY-THREE
QUIET, DARK, AND MUFFLED BY THE SNOW, THE HOUSE on Haven Hill crouched.
She carried her shoes down the stairs, holding her breath whenever one thought of squeaking under her weight. Slowly, softly, a mouse in a dark hole, she kept glancing in every direction, nervously halting whenever a breath of sound brushed her ears.
Nico was out, with some of the Cinghiale boys. Clubbing, or who knew? Family business, and Trig was gone too. They’d left that afternoon, and the house was just like when Papa was gone—absent its breathing, beating heart. The Vultusino was missing, and even the walls knew it.
If Papa had been alive, she never would have dared to do this.
The front door grimaced at her, so she turned aside and crept across the foyer. Trig gone with Nico, Stevens already in bed; Marya was in the kitchen humming, and would be for a long while. The servants were bedded down; precious few of them wanted to trudge home through a New Haven winter. It was best just to stay on the Hill. And security wouldn’t do another circuit until dawn—or unless the protections on the walls woke.
The side door was locked, but it recognized Cami and opened with no fuss. The charms were uneasy, but she was allowed.
At least, this once. If she got caught, things might change.
Did Ruby feel like this when she snuck out? Did Ellie feel the risk breathing on her back, tingling in her fingers, her heart beating so hard she thought she might faint? Or was it just Cami the coward who cringed at every sound?
The cold ran down her body like oil. The leggings were good, the skirt was okay, and her coat was warm—but she was looking at being half-frozen already. She pulled the door shut, heard it click, and heard the charmbolt slide back into place.
Well, I’m outside.
Down the steps, around the corner, the snow wasn’t too bad. Expeller charms kept it mostly whisked away, and the wind drifted it against the north side of the house. She crept to the corner and peered out at the driveway.
“Don’t just stand there.” Tor’s breath touched her ear. She jumped, almost letting out a shriek, and saw the white gleam of his teeth as he grinned. “Sorry.”
She balled up her fist and socked him a good one on the shoulder, as if he was Nico. He stopped short, still grinning. Her clenched fist tingled.
That was probably not a good idea.
“Really, I’m sorry.” He even sounded contrite. “Got carried away.”
With what, dammit? Her heart finally settled, pounding high and hard in her wrists and throat. At least with her pulse going like this she wasn’t cold. “F-fine. Where are w-we g-g-going?”
He was an ink-drawing, from the smudge of his hair to the paleness of his hands. “Someplace I’m sure we won’t be overheard.”
“O-o-over—”
“There’s ears everywhere, princess. Let’s go.”
It wasn’t easy to get off the grounds without using the gate, but Tor climbed a tree near the periphery, put his hand down and braced her as she scrambled up. The protections scented Cami and vibrated a little, but subsided, and she finally let out the breath she’d been holding.
He dropped down on the other side, caught and steadied her as she tried not to fall into a snowdrift. His hands were warm against her waist, even through her coat, and a different heat went through her, along with a curious comfort.
Why did he feel so familiar?
He let go of her, slowly, and they trudged along the wall until they reached a small enclosure, saved from the worst of the snowfall by a huge cedar tree. Under its low-hanging branches, in the fragrant chilly dark, stood a motorcycle.
It was sleek and shining, slung low to the ground, and its front wheel was covered with a shield shaped like a silver horse’s head. Its wheels were alive with silver grabcharms, hissing slightly as they touched the cold air.
“You like?” Tor’s grin was proprietary and uneasy all at once. “He was a junked-out hulk. I dragged him halfway across town, remade him from the inside out.”
“Wow.” Cami touched the horse’s head, her gloved finger scratching behind an ear. As if it was real. Charmlight ran in the silvery metal, and she snatched her hand back. Tor, right behind her, was so close his breath was a cloud over her shoulder.
“He likes you.”
“H-how c-can you t-t-tell?”
A shrug she felt in her own shoulders. “I rebuilt him, I can tell. You know how to ride?”
She had to shake her head. Motorcycles weren’t safe. Nico would have a fit if he knew—but she pushed the thought away. He was out, doing God knew what. It was Cami’s Personal Choice to be here, and if he didn’t like it, well, he could just . . .
Bravery only went so far. It would be much, much better if he just didn’t find out about this. It was private, she decided.
Tor’s fingers, awkward, touched her elbow. “It’s easy. I did the charming myself, all through him, he’s pretty safe. You’ll have to lean with me, and you’ll have to be close. Still want to? You can get back into the house if you—”
“N-no.” She stepped back, blundering into him, and the contact sent a shock through her, even through layers of clothing. “I’m n-not going b-b-back.” I’ve come too far. I have to know.