Chapter 12
Chapter
Twelve
EVIE
T he warriors took the sun with them as they’d marched out of the Capital, leaving behind a cold, cloudy night. The army melted into the sunset in a choir of drums, prayers, and cries for victory, as I sat on my roof and watched, heart sinking.
An uneasy, funeral silence had overtaken the city since.
The same city I was now responsible for.
What in Xamor’s name was I thinking, promising to protect Phoenix Peak and the Capital?
Simple.
I hadn’t been thinking, overtaken by anger and lust.
Remember one thing, menace. You are mine and I will always be yours.
No amount of bathing had managed to scrub the memory from my mind or the fire it had stocked in my veins.
I closed my eyes as the night breeze stole my sigh away.
He was far away now, heading up North toward the Obsidian River and the legendary Crimson Dam, both so renowned even I had read about it in Erosion of Empires, one of the books that someone had opened in my parents’ library for me to access. They said the dam had been created through powers unlike any we still possessed, long before the Clans of Malhaven had been formed, magicked so that it could never be destroyed through human means.
That hadn’t stopped the Serpents from trying, according to the spies. They’d set up camp right next to it, with only the Obsidian River stopping their advance.
It was a wonder the civilians from outside the Capital had been evacuated in time.
Civilians I had to guard.
Through the bond, I felt the distance between him and I stretching, as clear as I’d sensed him watching my window from afar these past weeks. The beckoning pressure had been slowly ebbing for hours.
An illogical longing replaced it. The bond wailed that we were too far apart, rattling my skull and pressing against my lungs until my breaths came out stiff and shallow.
I shook my head, trying to dislodge the hum, as I sat hidden between the roof’s dormers, like I had before the wedding. With him gone, I could finally crawl on top of my house without worrying he’d see me; even from a distance, I hadn’t wanted to give him the satisfaction.
Between the clouds, the moon bathed me in a cold glow just like it had then, chasing away the shadows. The same stars winked at me, like they’d done for so many other disoriented souls throughout the ages. They didn’t care about my struggles. They were cold, unfeeling witnesses to the chaos below them.
As the breeze picked up, bringing chilled, salty air from the ocean, I stood, gaze travelling over the city. Thousands of vigil candles still flickered in the solemn silence.
I needed a plan.
I hoped Banu and Valuta were still too overjoyed with their daughter’s wedding to bother with me until I came up with one.
As if to taunt me, the moon abandoned its own vigil and hid behind the clouds. With my body still rejecting food, the coldness seeped into my bones. I shivered my way back into the room, tucked my bracelet underneath my pillow, ready for another restless night.
The other pillow, which he had used, had remained untouched. The indent of his head still dimpled the silk. I didn’t know why I hadn’t let Leesa throw it out yet.
I crawled into bed and turned my back to the other side of the bed.
I sighed.
I struggled to relax my body.
I changed my position enough times to shake the bed.
The more I struggled to fall asleep and ignore the memory of his lips on mine, the angrier I got.
At him, at me, at this entire mess.
The gall of him kissing me.
The nerve of me kissing him back.
With a growl, I yanked his pillow off the bed and hurled it against the farthest wall. As if that would solve any of my problems.
These furious, violent urges scared me.
I wanted to cause as much hurt as I had to suffer through.
The unfairness of this world was trying to worm itself into me–I was scared I’d already let it in.
His betrayal had managed to do what the assassins and Fabrian hadn’t–crack the dome of kindness Grandpa Constantine had tried so hard to encourage in me.
He had cracked it.
He.
He.
He…
I jostled in my bed, fingers digging underneath my pillow for my switchblade. My hand met only air and a hard surface.
What in Xamor’s name…?
My eyes flew open.
I wasn’t in my bedroom anymore.
I rolled to the side, jumping into an offensive crouch, my senses blaring.
A cavernous room surrounded me. Maybe it was a cavern.
Light cascaded from a crack up above, but I couldn’t see the ceiling. No walls, either. Only mist and murmuring shadows.
The bed wasn’t a bed at all. I’d been laying on a golden slab, positioned right underneath the lone ray of light. A piece of red silk was draped over it. It looked so much like a sacrificial altar–
Harsh whispers erupted from behind.
Yelling.
Unintelligible words.
A whip cracked the cold air.
Again and again.
Had the assassins stolen me? Were they about to fill this cavern with their savage howls and try to drain my blood?
No , a part of me whispered. Listen. Feel. Look.
At what? There was nothing here.
LOOK.
There was a curious shimmer to the mist. It felt both familiar and unknown.
As I reached my hand out to touch it, my feet slid against the damp stone.
The small sound hissed into the darkness.
The yells stilled instantly–only to be replaced with harsh steps.
Coming toward me.
I swallowed my fear and turned.
“Who’s there?” I flicked my wrists. I wasn’t about to wait for assassins to stalk and attack me from the darkness.
No blue tendrils burst from my hands.
Panic took over.
I’d just revealed my position.
I had no weapon and no power.
I didn’t know who–or what–was prowling toward me.
My gaze raced around the barren space, desperately seeking something–anything–to protect myself with. Maybe I could use the silk to strangle whoever attacked me.
The steps got closer.
A figure began to form from beyond the darkness, like the shadows didn’t want to let it go. Maybe it should stay there and leave me–
My fists slackened at my side as the figure finally stepped into the light.
What in the–
“What are you doing here?”