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“Think of it as the nuclear option,” Gun added. “Nobody would really want to do it because of the potential fallout.”
“What’s the fallout?” I asked.
“No one knows for certain because no one’s ever done it,” Cam said. “The catch is you need mages who’ve mastered every single card.”
“Collectively or individually?” I asked.
“Collectively,” Gun said. “No one’s mastered every single card on their own. They’ve tried, naturally—we’re a greedy bunch—but no dice.”
“Have you tried?”
“Absolutely not.” He fluttered his long eyelashes. “I’m too pretty to be a corpse.”
I looked from one mage to the other. “What did it cost you to master these cards?”
A wall slid into place between us. “Doesn’t matter. The important part is that we mastered them,” Gun said.
Camryn’s voice hollowed. “Anything worth having comes at a price.”
I decided to press the issue. If they expected their curiosity about me to be satiated, then I deserved the same. “You’ve mentioned the difficulty of the process, that not all mages with potential make it through.”
“Alive,” Gun added. “They don’t make it through alive.”
“Does anyone make it through unscathed?”
Camryn swept her cards off the table and rose to her feet. “Why are we talking about this when there’s a Wild Hunt to thwart?”
“Because we’re sharing,” I said. “That’s what friends do. We learn about each other.”
Gun snorted. “That’s rich. Now that your secret’s been spilled, you want us to learn about each other?”
“I’m trying to break a bad habit. I’ve been so focused on protecting myself that I only scratch the surface of others.” Over the years, I’d worried that if I made an effort to get to know someone, they’d reciprocate, and then I’d feel guilty for hiding my true self. It seemed better to keep people at arm’s length. Now that Gun and Cam were privy to the knowledge, however, I realized I had a golden opportunity to increase the depth of my connection with them.
Cam shuffled the cards in her hands in an idle gesture. “I have scars.”
“Physical ones?” I asked.
“Those healed a long time ago, but not the other kind. Those scars were built to last.” She plucked the Wheel of Fortune card from the deck. “This one nearly killed me.”
Gun fixated on the card. “It was the Emperor for me.”
“Explain something to me,” I said. “Why would you bring yourself to the edge of death for the purpose of wielding magic that you then use to kill others? What’s the point?”
“Not all La Fortuna mages become assassins,” Camryn answered.
Gun glanced in the direction of the kitchen. “A conversation like this requires alcohol.”
“Not for me,” Cam said. “I’ll make a protein shake.”
We reconvened in the kitchen. Gun started toward the pantry.
“Oh, your secret stash isn’t there,” Cam advised. “I moved it to the laundry room. Check the cabinet above the washing machine, next to the detergent.”
Gun shot me a look. “Don’t ask.” He left the room, returning a few moments later with a bottle of tequila. He eyed the ingredients on the counter that Camryn had selected for her shake.
“I’ll take one of those, too,” he said.
She tilted her head. “I thought you wanted alcohol.”
