Page 16

“You cannot keep doing this.”

“I have to keep doing this.” She didn’t lift her head. “The resistance is getting stronger. If I hold back, the poison will gain more ground.”

“And if you kill yourself in the process?”

“I won’t.”

“You don’t know that.”

“I know my limits.”

“You clearly don’t.”

Her head snapped up at that. “You want to know what my limits are? I’ve been healing people since I was nineteen. I’ve treated wounds that would make the most senior doctors and season healers pass out. I have trained under a goddess who does not tolerate weakness. I just need to recharge.”

“Then rest.”

“That’s not how it works.” She pushed herself up to sitting on the stool Korinnae had vacated. “My magic is touch-based. The more I use, the more I need physical contact to replenish. It’s called touch affinity.”

“Can’t you just heal yourself?”

“That’s not how it works. No healer can heal themselves.”

He remained silent, gawking at her.

I need someone to hold me,” she said flatly. “I need skin contact for a few minutes.”

He continued staring.

“It’s like handing someone a glass of water after they’ve run a long distance. And there’s definitely nothing romantic about it.” She rubbed the back of her neck. “I usually just hug someone. Usually a friend, or Hecate will have one of her servants on standby for me. But I don’t have anyone here.”

The silence stretched between them. Asterion’s arms stayed folded against his chest.

Ria let out a short breath through her nose. “Fine. I’ll go find Elian. He seems nice. And he’s single, so I don’t have to worry about a mate getting jealous.”

The reaction hit before he could stop it. A flare in his gut, hot and immediate, that had nothing to do with magic or distrust. His fists tightened at his sides.

“No,” he said.

Ria froze.

He uncrossed his arms, held them stiffly at his sides, and said, “Just. Get on with it.”

The corner of her mouth twitched, then she stood, stepped forward, and placed both hands flat against his chest. Her palms were cool and her fingers were still trembling from the session.

He stood there, spine rigid, as if he were about to be devoured by a terrifying monster. She leaned her forehead against his sternum and exhaled, and he felt a current pass between them, drawing from his warmth and energy. It lasted maybe two minutes, but to him, it felt like an eternity.

When she stepped back, the color had returned to her face and her hands were steady. “Thank you,” she said quietly, not meeting his stare.

He grunted and turned toward the window. His pulse hammered against his ribs and thankfully, before he could examine why, a knock at the workshop door interrupted him.

Maldenis stuck his head through the doorway. “Meeting in the conference room. Now, if you can.”

“What’s going on?” Ria asked.

“New lead. I’ll explain inside.”

They followed him down the corridor to the conference room where a map was spread out across the table. Elian quickly explained that a contact had flagged possible demigods among the Naiads and now he, Liora, Maldenis, Zara, and Hektor would leave the next morning.