The Pain in Our Veins (Maven Time Travel)

Chapter Six

"How did I die?" The words are a whisper, a confession in the wind. "The first time, I mean."

Jon hesitates, lingering on the edge of the path. The gardens are contained within shallow brick walls, the walkways scrubbed of dirt. The roses have died and left only thorns, chrysanthemums blooming in their wake. "There are many ways you could've gone. Many ways you could've dug your own grave."

I sigh as I sit atop the brick wall. "I tire of your insults. They lack originality."

"Shall I sear them onto your collarbone?"

Pause. "Is that how I die?" It grows hard to breathe. "Does she carve an initial on my neck and leave me to rot?"

"In Echo's future? No." Jon shakes his head. "Yours might encourage it."

"You're so helpful."

"Sarcasm will get you nowhere, Calore. Least of all with me."

"That's what the knife is for." I crow. "You walk on a fine edge, traitor."

Jon goes silent.

I sigh. "Mare was my end. She must've been."

"She would chase you to the ends of the earth. You would haunt her nightmares if she didn't." He slams a stick into the ground. "But you would be too crafty to face her on the battlefield."

"I'm well aware of my genius."

"And I'm well aware of your failures." Dirt kicks up as he lifts it. "You assumed you could beat her if you cornered her with silent stone. And you would. For a time. But you could never bring yourself to fell the final blow."

The wind blows without mercy, bending the chrysanthemums in the breeze. "I let her kill me."

"You did."

"I almost killed her."

Jon laughs. "Wasn't the first time. But it would be the last." He raises a brow. "Unless you plan to rectify that?"

"Not if I can help it."

"You always can. You choose not to."

"I'm being lectured by a fellow murderer." I turn away. "Never forget, Jon. Never forget."

Training comes far too swiftly, a blur of laps and steel traps. Cal and I are the last ones standing, and I bristle as he outpaces me. Endurance is my strength, and still I fall behind. It's the way of our kind. Always ranked, never equal.

I catch Mare watching from above, the glint of brown in the window of Blonos's office. I can't see her expression, but she must be impressed. What did she think we did, when she lived in her village? Were we always faceless monsters?

I can ask once we're friends again. In the meantime, I must prove myself docile.

Cal corners me once we're finished, brow furrowed. "What was that stuff about me seducing Mare yesterday? That was . . . uncalled for."

Shrug. "I've seen the way you look at her. I don't want her getting the wrong impression."

"You seem to be creating it yourself." He frowns. "And I don't remember telling you about her."

"I know everything, Cal. Just assume I'm God."

He whacks me upside the head.

I count down the days until she joins us. The hours until I am not the worst in the room, until I can guide her through the process without Cal's interference. No lies. Not here.