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protect me once. Or had youforgotten? All things considered, I’d certainly believe it if you had.”
    “There were others I owed protection to as well,” he said, speaking carefully. “And I have never failed to shield you from harm.”
    “Didn’t you? Despite all those years of shielding me—despite refusing to let me work alongside the
kyne—
despite working so very hard to keep me safe and protected, you hurt me worse than anyone else ever has.”
    He couldn’t speak. Everything she said was true, and yet he’d had no choice. If faced with the decision again, he would do nothing different. Though it had killed him to do so, he’d saved thousands of lives when he’d sent her away after she’d returned to London as a hybrid. All of the vampires at his court. Hell, he’d saved every creature in London, human and shadower.
    He was a leader, a protector. And that meant he had to make the impossible choices.
    The truly hard choice would have been to kill her. But that was something he’d been unable to do.
    “You’re right, of course,” he said, and his agreement seemed to surprise her. “But I will not relent. And it makes no difference to me if answers come easily or with great difficulty.”
    “No difference? I don’t believe you.”
    There was subtle lightening of her tone, and he matched it. This was a truce they were negotiating, and that at least was familiar territory. “You’re right, again. I’d much prefer the easy route.”
    It took a moment, but she nodded. “Very well. London? I’d hate to deny you the home court advantage. And as at the moment I have no home, it seems the most logical choice.”
    The words surprised him. Tiberius knew that Lihter had banished Gunnolf from Paris, but Tiberius had assumed Caris had traveled with the former weren leader to Scotland.
    Now, however, was not the time for questions. “London,” he agreed.
    “Fine. I’ll meet you there. Before dawn.” She looked at him, her expression unreadable. “You have my word.” And then she was gone, racing into the trees with incredible speed, then rising out of the canopy of leaves as a solid black raven.
    Tiberius stood for a moment watching the sky. Then he heard movement behind him. He turned to see Luke emerging from the trees.
    “You heard?”
    Luke nodded. “But I feel I should have been issued a codebook before that conversation.”
    “There is a lot of history between us.”
    “Do you think it was wise to let her travel on her own?”
    “Did you see the speed at which she left us? I’m not sure I had a choice.” More, he hadn’t wanted her around as he considered how to deal with the fallout from Reinholt’s death. He’d spoken truthfully when he said that she’d seriously inconvenienced him.
    “She’s grown stronger in the last two decades,” Luke said. “You’re not surprised, are you? She has quite the reputation now.”
    Tiberius nodded. He knew about Caris’s fieldwork, knew that her name incited fear. “She’s become a bit like you,” he said to Luke. It was the one thing she’d always wanted, to fight at his side. And at first she had. But thenhe’d almost lost her, and after that, he’d prohibited it. How could he risk her in battle when to lose her would have destroyed him?
    And then he’d been the one to destroy her. The world was full of ironies.
    “Will she come?” Luke asked.
    Tiberius nodded. “She will.”
    Luke looked dubious, but Tiberius was certain. Despite her speed and strength, he wouldn’t have let her go if he hadn’t been certain. But he knew her well, despite everything. She wouldn’t want Tiberius or his men seeking her out. More important, when Caris gave her word, she didn’t break it.
    “We should go,” Luke said.
    Tiberius shook his head. “I’ll go. I need you to stay. Unless Caris merely stumbled upon him and decided to kill a perfect stranger, it’s safe to assume that Reinholt must have told someone of his plans to meet me.”
    “Which