"Just as how you killed Luria."
Nheera's cup froze midway to her lips.
For a heartbeat, the room seemed to still. Slowly, she lowered the cup and placed it back upon the table. Her gaze never left him as she did so.
"And do you mind telling me," she asked calmly, "what led you to that conclusion?"
Her eyes were empty, void of warmth, void of emotion. She stared at him with a soulless intensity, as though she were stripping him bare, peeling back layers until only his truest self remained.
"It's because I know you, Nheera," Laheir said, his fangs flashing briefly as his lips curled. "You kill to get what you want. And the girl had been testing your patience then, poking her fingers into matters that were none of her concern."
A faint noise sounded in the parlor. At that, Nheera's gaze snapped away from him, sharp and sudden, as though she had sensed something amiss.
