Lucian's Pov
I led the strange man into the main building, my boots echoing sharply against the polished stone floors. Each step deepened the irritation burning in my gut.
I didn't trust him. That much was certain. And I didn't like that I had to find out about him this way, entering back into the fortress only to be greeted by some rogue in the process of throwing himself at my feet with a ridiculous story about betrayal and sudden redemption. What I liked even less was that Ignatius—of all the elders—was the one who let him in. That man never made a decision unless it served some interest I couldn't see until it was too late.
It was also too late to assign blame. I could chew the elder out later. The stranger was already here. All I could do now was hear him out and see which pieces of it could be salvaged as useful information and which were cleverly disguised traps.
