Re: No. 26: Damian W & 'Leena B' Where else was a place of nightmares and mist, and it was only the escape that held any real answer, but that came only in flashes, brief furrows of time that she could see into.
It was not a place she was going to discuss here.
Nor with him, not until she knew for sure that the bond held by iron and DNA was true. Otherwise it was only a place to be spoken of with no one that could connect her face to her name and thus never create a chink in the armor she'd created against a world of unknowns.
In a town such as this, it was perhaps unreasonable to be so defensive but her own skin was priority one.
His? Perhaps priority two, a distant thing made of possibilities unbelieved before a few days ago.
As for Egypt, she filed that away under things she'd ask about later, far from this tower that didn't belong. Never give up details to someone you didn't trust or in a place you didn't trust. Never trust until verification. Always verify. Trust was earned by the same iron bond spilling.
In the dark, her eyebrow perked at his command, but she went anyway, slow and steady, quiet. If they left the light on, they wanted a visitor, didn't they? That didn't mean they were to be trusted and when she saw the shadow interrupting the light from within, she dropped down on the stairs, belly flat to ridge and overhang to see if she could peer beneath the breach between door and floor. Nothing more than shoes. Shined. Large enough to be a man's. She remained on her belly and lifted her leg like a frog crawling to slide the dagger Claire had given her out of her boot. It didn't feel like a demon, didn't give her that feeling like ants on fire were crawling all over her skin as it did when demons were near, didn't ping pong off her senses until that was the only thing she knew. That didn't mean that a blessed weapon wouldn't be helpful though, and she twisted her wrist so the body-warm blade was flat against her forearm - ready.