Maddox leaned forward and placed his first bottle cap on the table with the calm of a husband whose day had included catching a falling star followed by an STD disclosure.
"That's when I caught her falling from the sky. Unconscious. Brought her back to Lunaris where Kael had destroyed her room."
Kael did not dignify that with a response.
"She woke up after a few minutes," Maddox continued. "Mentioned accidental property damage and a run-in with the law. Then she warned me that Kael caught the runes and I should consider myself exposed."
Kael flicked a bottle cap at Maddox's face. Maddox snatched it one-handed before it landed and grinned like the devil had just paid him a compliment.
"What?"
"Rephrase that. Immediately."
"Fine. The runes on her skin were contagious through contact and Kael was already infected. Better?"
"You just told a room full of people I caught something from your wife through skin contact. There is no phrasing that fixes that."
