CARLYLE

I headed straight for Dair’s room, where he was already packing a bag. I knew he planned to leave this afternoon to hunt down Toro. I didn’t have much time if I really wanted to do this.

“Hello, Cariño,” he said, glancing up as he folded a pair of slacks into his sleek suitcase.

“So, I was thinking you need to teach me how to siphon,” I blurted, sitting on the bed. Maybe blunt would be good. “I think I can do it. I mean, what if we’re in a position like the other night again? What if you’re gone and we get found here? I want to be able to fucking help.” I hoped I had enough power behind my words to sound convincing.

I wasn’t lying at all - I hated feeling helpless.

I just had an ulterior motive.

“Are you sure? It’s dangerous.” Dair watched me, his gaze unreadable. I didn’t think he would stop me like Sol might try to. He was just gauging my fear level.

“Danger’s my middle name,” I drawled, knowing the joke wouldn’t hide the fact that I really was afraid.

He shifted closer, losing interest in packing. “You certainly do walk a fine line of propriety, Cariño,” he murmured.

“Fuck propriety.” I grinned. “Especially if it looks like that.” I gestured at his crisp slacks and the slick vest that was buttoned tightly over his light blue dress shirt.

His eyes heated, and a low hum rumbled in his chest. “Such a demanding girl.”

“You wouldn’t want me any other way,” I guessed, my nerves lighting up like a summer storm. His lips lifted in a half-smile. “Now, about that siphoning?” I prompted.

He leaned against the bed frame, somehow walking his own line straight down the middle of proper and careless. I tried to focus on his explanation of how siphoning worked, but really, I was imagining what he might look like when all his control finally broke.

“Did you get any of that?” he asked, his smile wider.

“Ah.” I felt my cheeks heat.

“I thought so. Let’s get more comfortable.” He moved his open case to the floor, clearing the broad bed. I swallowed hard, my skin prickling with anticipation. He raised an eyebrow in challenge, and I met it, stretching myself diagonally across the bed. I propped my elbow up and rested my head in my palm.

“Good girl,” he whispered, and my body thrilled at the memories those simple words brought up.

He remained standing at the edge of the bed, towering above me. “Now, it’s a bit like procuring something, only exactly the opposite. You’re not pulling something to you - you’re pushing yourself to it.”

“Do you have to know where you’re going?”

He nodded, his hands coming to rest on his hips. “The short answer is yes. It’s possible for advanced mages to siphon places they’ve only seen in photographs.”

“That’s what you did to get here?” I asked.

“Precisely.” His grin was proud, and I liked the look on him as he stood over me. He was fucking powerful, and I loved it. “What is it?” he asked, noticing my smile.

“Your magic makes me kinda hot,” I confessed. “And I want some for myself.”

“Some of what?” His navy eyes glinted beneath their thick lashes. He wanted me to say it.

“Some of you. And your power. I want to suck your magic right out of you,” I added, well aware of my double meaning. Last time I’d been in his bed, I was the only one who got naked. It was time to know exactly what was under all that expensive fabric - I wanted to reveal what was growing large in his pants even now.

I wanted to taste his velvety skin and see if it was as good as its sweet tobacco and champagne scent.

“Champagne?” he asked, fighting a grin.

“Ah, fuck. Out loud?” My skin flared with heat as he smirked. Oh, yeah. I’d said that out loud. “Sorry. I’m focused. Super focused.”

Dair’s dark eyes did a lazy drag down my body, challenging that statement, but I was determined, dammit. After a few seconds of good behavior on my part, he nodded.

“Repeat after me,” he commanded, saying the words slowly. This was more than a word or two - it was a whole fucking spell.

“Partes totum, agrum totum. Siphon in terra,” I said, over and over. He corrected my pronunciation until I had it memorized perfectly.

“The hand movements are fairly simple,” he said, splaying his fingers and steepling them together, matching the fingertips of one hand to the fingertips of another. “One hand represents where you are, and the other represents where you’re going.”

“Why can’t you just siphon home to Haret?” I asked, sitting up to face him. Obviously, there was a reason, or they would have done it.

He shrugged. “The magic only works within worlds, not between. Qilin are simply the only method to cross.”

I swallowed hard, the anxiety of so much pressure on my shoulders returning in full force.

“Relax, Carlyle. You aren’t alone in this. You have all of us.” His smile was kind when I looked up.

I nodded, forcing myself to focus on the task at hand. I copied his hand position. He rotated his hands, sliding each fingertip over the others, until his opposing pinkies and thumbs were touching, the rest of his fingers forming more of a sphere than a temple shape.

I did the same, and he watched as I practiced the movement several more times. Then we reversed it, moving back to the original shape.

“You have to be careful to complete the motion,” he warned. “Siphoning is two separate actions, really. Moving your body into space, then back out.”

I murmured the words and internalized the hand movements, trying not to focus on the idea too much - it was fucking frightening to think I would soon be responsible for shoving my body into the cosmos and fishing it back out.

“Good,” Dair said, interrupting my thoughts. I’d been doing the motion on auto-pilot. “I believe that with the right amount of magic and proper, focused intent, you’d easily be able to siphon yourself short distances. From room to room, perhaps. As your power and strength grow, you could learn longer distances, and possibly even to carry items with you. But there’s hardly time for that before I go.”

“Just once?” I asked, trying to keep the note of desperation out of my voice. Surely, he wouldn’t leave me without testing it out at least once. “What if something happens while you’re gone?”

Still, he hesitated. “It’s very risky, Cariño. What if you try to siphon and become trapped?”

I gulped. That was a thing?

Then I shook my head. “I need to learn this at some point. Why not now?” He frowned, unwilling to give in. Well, fucking fine. I pulled out the big guns. “Unless...unless your magic needs more time to recover.”

He smirked, and I knew I’d hit a nerve of pride. God, I didn’t want to goad him, but I needed to test myself.

“My magic is just fine, Cariño. It’s you I’m worried about.”

“I can handle it,” I insisted, sitting up on my knees to look him straight in the eyes. “I’ll take what you give me, Dair, but I’m not going to just sit around and wait for the fucking Ringmaster to find me again.”

His lips pulled into a grin. “My little Qilin mage wants it all,” he murmured.

My skin flushed. Hell yes, I did want it all. I wasn’t certain I was ready for it, but I wanted it.

Several seconds ticked by as he deliberated how far to go.