Page 33 of Cinder's Trial
“What do you think it means?”
My lips pursed before I blurted out, “I think it’s not real.”
He arched a brow. “It’s real. I touched it. So did you.”
“Sorry, that’s not the right word. More like it exists but isn’t an actual fish.”
“Then what is it? A dog?” his sarcasm clear.
“I think it’s a golem.”
“A giant mud monster?” This time his query shone with incredulity.
“A golem is a magical construct that mimics a living thing. Traditionally, it’s a giant, but technically, it could be anything.”
“So the curse is now making fake living things?”
I shrugged. “I don’t know. What I do know is if it starts making something out of nothing, we’re going to have problems. Big ones.”
“As if we don’t already.”
“You’re not seeing the bigger picture. Right now, when people are transformed, they still retain some of their humanity, along with whatever morality they followed in their pre-curse life. For example, just because someone becomes a wolf doesn’t mean they’ll automatically start killing.” Aidan, Hood’s boyfriend, was a good example of a wolf with a moral code. “A human, even transformed, is afraid of pain and tries to avoid death. But imagine something like that fish, no compassion, no emotions whatsoever. That kind of blank slate would be capable of anything, even the most depraved act, because it would feel nothing.”
His lips stretched into a thin line. “You’re talking about sociopath golems.”
“Yes. If the curse were to start creating them and setting them loose, can you imagine the havoc they’d cause?”
“Assuming the Grimm Effect can do something large-scale, it would be bad,” he agreed. “However, given it’s always used magic to create elements for its curses, this isn’t really new. I mean look at places like Regent Park and the trees that sprouted overnight. Trees are living things.”
He raised a valid point. I chewed my lower lip. “I don’t know why, but this feels different.”
“I agree, and this is why you and I will be joined at the hip until the danger passes.”
“What of the prince?”
“The other knights can handle him.”
“And just how long do you plan to remain glued to me?”
“As long as it takes.”
I arched a brow. “Why, Levi, are you proposing ’til death do us part?” I teased, but his face… Oh my goodness, his face. It turned red, bright red, and he stammered.
“I won’t let you die. And as for the length of time, most likely, once the ball is over, things will go back to normal.”
I snorted. “As if there’s such a thing anymore.” Mind you, I’d hardly lived in a world pre-Grimm. I was very young when it hit and so never knew that other time before we had to worry about magic.
“I will keep you safe, princess.”
“I know you will.”
But while he guarded my wellbeing, who would protect my heart?
10
Awkward. The only word to use when getting ready to sleep alongside the man who made my pulse thump something fierce.
Actually, it might be better described as frustrating. I lay in the bed staring at the ceiling because I couldn’t help but think of Levi. Dumb, I know. With all the things I should be worrying about, whether he liked me or not shouldn’t be one of them. As a grown woman, why did I care? Not to mention, we were completely mismatched. Me, gentle and nonviolent, versus his brusque, let’s-kill-things-first attitude.