LOGINThe cold light from the phone screen glowed in the dim bedroom for a few seconds before Asher flipped it face down on the nightstand.
The wood gave a soft, muffled tap.
Darcy pushed herself halfway up, the collar of her nightgown slipping open a little, her dark wavy hair spilling across her collarbone.
The red ink stamp in Darcy's hand slammed down hard on the third transfer order."That old bastard Garrick."Darcy ripped the glasses off her nose and tossed them onto the desk. Her fingertip slashed hard across the yellowed carbon paper."He's not even in the ground yet, and before he goes, he dumped seven million in bad debt from the Far North Border Defense Fund onto an old account of mine. He thinks revoking the exile order means I'll carry his garbage?"
The cold light from the phone screen glowed in the dim bedroom for a few seconds before Asher flipped it face down on the nightstand.The wood gave a soft, muffled tap.Darcy pushed herself halfway up, the collar of her nightgown slipping open a little, her dark wavy hair spilling across her collarbone.Her gaze landed on the face-down phone. Her palm on the comforter moved instinctively to push herself up. "What did Hyde say? Is something—""It's fine. Don't worry. Lie back down and sleep."Asher didn't even open his eyes. He reached for her waist, pulled her whole body back into the covers, and pinned her there.
The wheels rolled over the speed bump on the cross-border bridge, and the car bounced with a heavy thud.Darcy woke from the jolt, the thick wool blanket sliding down to her waist. She rubbed a hand over her face and realized the snow plains outside the window were long gone. In their place were the rolling red maple forests and gentle hills that belonged only to Kingston territory.The setting sun painted the whole two-lane asphalt road a warm gold. The air carried none of the biting cold of the North. Only damp earth just beginning to thaw and the clean scent of fir needles."Awake?" Asher glanced at her from the driver's seat and handed her a half-empty bottle of water with the cap already loosened. "We just got off the highway."
The lead car had already flicked on its right turn signal, ready to merge onto the southbound highway. Darcy sat in the passenger seat, the window half down, the dry cold wind hitting her face straight on.To the left at the fork was the dirt road that ran behind the old Thorne estate.She had planned to leave the moment the signatures were done. Not waste another second.The gray-white main house, the moldy attic, the long table Garrick had sat at for half his life. Just looking
The Council clerks' office needed to redraft and print the formal memoranda and cross-check the old files in the archives. That would take at least two hours.When Darcy stepped out the side door of the council hall, the snow outside had stopped.Cold air filled her lungs, clearing away the stale smell of limestone and old sheepskin that clung to the hall.Asher didn't bring Hyde along. He left the guards waiting by the cars.
At seven thirty in the morning, breakfast was already laid out on the long table in the suite's outer room.A plate of thick-cut bacon fried crisp at the edges, two soft-yolked eggs, and a small pot of hot oatmeal kept warm over a charcoal burner.Asher had already changed into a black shirt. His tie hung loose over the back of the chair.He was reading through the morning perimeter report Hyde had just brought in, a cup of black coffee in his other hand. When he heard the inner door open, he rapped two knuckles against the edge of the wooden table."Sit down. Finish what's on your plate."Darcy had just pulled on a gray wool







