Chapter 64

• “She is an elder. She can see right through anything,” Zane muttered, a trace of exasperation in his voice. He ran a hand through his hair, finally shedding the stiffness he’d carried all morning. “I think this is exactly what my father feared—the elders. How to keep them in line. I still don’t know how he managed it.”
• I cleared my throat, feeling the heat creep up my neck. He might have forgotten, or maybe he was trying to ignore it—but I had to speak. “She said I’m an elder, Zane. Doesn’t that sound… wrong to you?” I repeated it carefully, watching for any flicker of reaction. He didn’t flinch. He never did when it mattered.
• “It doesn’t,” he replied quietly, his dark eyes fixed on the firelight. “What sounds strange is that you seem ashamed of us.” There it was—a tinge of hurt. My chest tightened. That hurt shouldn’t have been mine.