The relief that flooded me after Helena succumbed was so heavy that I had to steady myself with one hand on the mattress. "Thank you."
"If anything feels wrong, you call me immediately," she added. "And if I do not return your message by tomorrow evening, assume complications."
"I will."
"And Elowen?"
"Yes?"
"Be careful."
The call ended, and the room fell silent again.
For a long moment, I simply sat there, phone resting in my lap, heart still racing. I had just set something in motion. I could feel it, like the first tremor before an earthquake.
"Congratulations," Nyla said lightly. "You just knocked on the devil's door."
"He's not the devil."
"No," she agreed thoughtfully. "He's honest about being dangerous. That's different."
I stood and crossed to the mirror again. My face was blotchy, my eyes swollen, but there was something else there now.
Zeal.
