Faelan nodded and clenched his jaw, gazing out the window into the dusk. This was some kind of test, he knew it, but he couldn't find the right answer. He didn't want Padma to get hurt, and if Macnair was finding her, he did want her as far away from the man as possible. But what he wanted was not for her to leave, but for Macnair to get what he deserved. And he should have been able to do that, he should have gotten rid of the threat for Padma's benefit, so the numb sense of anger and betrayal coursing through his blood wasn't really directed at her. It was directed at himself, and at fate.
But Faelan had already shut off his emotions, so he could not realize any of that. All he could feel was the door in his heart swinging shut and closing him in.