She didn’t add for now. She didn’t have to.
Owen shook his head. “And what about Antonio? Or Katarina? They had nothing to do with your father’s murder or anything else, other than that they were Phillip’s friends—but you still used your water magic to kill them. That was a horrible thing to do. It seems like I’m always talking about the horrible things you do, instead of the good ones.”
Salina twined her arms around Owen’s neck and raised her mouth to his, kissing him for all she was worth. He froze, apparently surprised by the fact that she just kept coming at him no matter what he said. I bit back a curse and scanned the courtyard, looking for the stairs that led up to where they were standing. Every few seconds, though, my eyes flicked up to Owen. I hated being indecisive, but I just couldn’t stop myself from eavesdropping.
“Come on,” Salina murmured against his mouth. “You remember how good it was between us? How alive we always made each other feel? I certainly do. No man I’ve been with has ever held a candle to you. I’ve spent too many nights to count dreaming about you, Owen. Dreaming about coming back to Ashland and being with you again. Can you tell me you haven’t thought the same thing? Haven’t dreamed the same thing? Haven’t wanted the same thing?”
Once again, Owen pried off Salina’s hands and mouth. This time, he pushed her away. “I’ll admit I’ve thought about you over the years. Even dreamed about you and how things might have been.”
Every word he said was like a dagger in my heart. This—this was how he really felt about Salina. This was how much he loved her, how much he’d always loved her.
“But that was before I knew why you really left Ashland all those years ago,” he continued. “That was before I knew you tortured Eva with your water magic. That was before you tried to kill Phillip and then Cooper and Gin. I can’t forget that, any of that—ever. Not even for you.”
Owen took another step away from her.
Anger flashed in Salina’s eyes, and her face tightened. “It’s because of that assassin bitch, isn’t it? That’s why you’re pulling away from me. Because of her.”
“Yes, I met her, and I finally decided to quit thinking about the past, about you, and get on with my life.” He stiffened. “Her name is Gin, and I love her, Salina.”
“Love her? You couldn’t possibly love her,” she snarled. “Not like you loved me. Not like you still love me. I know you still love me. Just give me a chance to remind you what it was like, what we were like—together.”
She reached for Owen again, but he shook his head and stepped even farther away from her.
“No, Salina,” he said. “Whatever we had was over the second you hurt Eva. I’m just sorry I didn’t know what you were really like back then so I could have protected my sister from you and tried to get you the help you need. But know this: our history together is the only reason I’m not killing you myself for what you did back then and everything you’ve done since you came back to town. You can either get yourself some help, or you can leave Ashland and never return. There is no other option.”
Let Salina leave Ashland? That wasn’t what we’d talked about—not at all. Looked like I wasn’t the only one who hadn’t been completely honest about my intentions toward the water elemental.
If it comes down to Owen and Salina in the end, he won’t be able to kill her—and then she’ll murder him.
Eva’s voice whispered in my mind. She’d said those words to me the night she’d told me what Salina had done to her. I hadn’t wanted to believe they were true, but it looked like Eva had been right all along.
I stood there in the courtyard, torn between stepping back out into the hallway to find the stairs that led up to the second floor and staying put. Part of me wanted to continue eavesdropping on their conversation, but I also didn’t want to leave Owen alone with the water elemental. Not now, when he’d just rejected her. If worse came to worst, and she made a move against him, I could blast her with my Ice magic from down here. It wouldn’t be as good as ramming one of my knives into her heart, but it would probably buy me enough time to find the stairs, sprint up them, and get Owen to safety.
Salina looked stunned that Owen was rejecting her, that he didn’t want anything to do with her anymore. The anger that had been simmering in her eyes boiled up into full-on fury, until her gaze was burning as bright as the bulbs in the crystal chandelier over her head.
“I can’t believe you’re taking her side over mine!” she hissed. “Do you know what a hypocrite that makes you? Your whore of an assassin’s hands aren’t any cleaner than mine. In fact, I’d be doing the world a favor by taking her out of it. How many people do you think she’s killed over the years, Owen? And for what—money? How cheap.”
Owen squared his shoulders. “Maybe that’s true, but Gin has a good heart, something you lost a long time ago, Salina. She might have killed people, yes, but she would never hurt a child, and she would never hurt anyone I cared about. I’m sorry, but it’s over. I love Gin, and she’s who I plan on building my future with. Not you.”
My heart lifted at his words, even as Salina’s crashed and burned. She stared at him in shock, still not quite believing that things hadn’t gone exactly how she’d wanted them to, how she’d imagined they would in her head. Then, all of the prettiness suddenly drained out of her face, replaced by something cold, ugly, and slightly unhinged.
“Very well,” she said in a stiff voice. “You’ve made your choice.”
Owen nodded his head, and some of the tension eased out of his shoulders. He didn’t notice the devious smile that curved Salina’s lips—but I did.
“Guards!” she called out.
Heavy footsteps sounded, and a few seconds later, two giants stepped out onto the balcony. They must have been stationed right outside the door, waiting for Salina to summon them. Even though she’d expected the best, expected that Owen would come back to her, she’d still planned for the worst too. There was definitely a method to her madness.
“Salina, what are you doing?” Owen asked in a warning voice.
“Are the others in position?” she asked the giants.
“Yes, ma’am,” one answered.
“Good. Make sure my darling Owen stays here until after I’ve seen to my other guests. Do whatever you have to in order to keep him under control—short of killing him.”
Owen fought back when the two giants surged toward him, his fist connecting with the taller one’s jaw, knocking him back. Owen growled and drew back his fist for another punch, but the other giant threw himself on top of him. All three men went down to the floor in a heap of arms and legs. I couldn’t see exactly what was happening, not from this angle, but I heard Owen’s grunts of pain.
“Don’t struggle so hard, darling. You’re only hurting yourself. It’s most unbecoming,” Salina murmured.
Then the water elemental turned and left the balcony.
“Salina!” Owen yelled. “Salina!”
But she didn’t order the giants to stand down, and she didn’t come back. He kept fighting to get free, even as the other men kept hitting him. They were all tangled together, which meant that I couldn’t risk using my Ice magic. I also abandoned my plan of searching for the stairs. That would take too much time now. Instead, I laid my staff down on the floor, grabbed a chair from against the wall, carried it across the courtyard, and put it right below the balcony where Owen was still struggling. I backed up to the opposite side of the courtyard, calculating the height and angles. Then, I ran forward, jumped up into the seat, leaped onto the very top of the chair, and launched myself into the air.