Chapter 42 #2
His rich laughter was light, and I couldn’t help but soften further into his arms. I cursed my weak backbone, no better than a limp, overcooked noodle when it came to him.
“Alright, alright,” he said, his voice deep, pulled from the lowest part of his chest. “She’d be smart, so smart. Courageous and brave and kind. She’d stand for what’s right. Stand up for those who couldn’t. And she’d do it unapologetically. Just like you.”
I reached up, my fingers sounding against his stubble. “And what would she get from you?”
“I think that should be obvious,” he spoke seriously, despite the curve teasing the corner of his mouth. “My handsome good looks, of course. ”
I rolled my eyes, chuckling as I said, “You are something else.”
“Indeed, Kitten, I am,” he purred confidently, his attention drifting to my lips. The way he looked at them, accompanied by the sensual cadence of his voice, had my thoughts spinning.
My lips parted, opening in invitation for him.
Knock. Knock.
Von growled at the door, “Go away.”
I shoved my hands over his mouth, whispering and giggling, “You are going to get us kicked out of here.” I threw my voice. “Who is it?”
Playfully, Von nipped at my fingers. I gave him a warning look.
“It’s me,” Kaleb’s muffled voice spoke from the other side.
I pulled away from Von, opened the door, and swiftly ushered Kaleb inside. I peeked out into the hallway, ensuring Kaleb wasn’t seen walking on his own, before I swiftly closed it.
Kaleb pulled the scarf from his face. “Can I talk to you?”
“Yes, of course,” I replied, concern drawing my eyebrows together. “What’s going on?”
Von sat on the windowsill, the breeze pulling his long, black hair to the side. Loosely, he threaded his heavily inked arms over his chest.
Kaleb plopped down on the bed, lying back on it. “Fallon and Ryker had sex,” he groaned as he stared up at the ceiling.
I nearly fell over.
They what?
Swiftly, I hurried to the bed and sat beside him. I looked down at him, his arm tossed over his face. Gently, I clasped his arm and lifted it. “I’m sorry. Come again?”
Knock. Knock. Knock. Knock. Knock.
Knuckled rasped against the other side of the door, the sounds fast and hard. Whoever was on the other side sounded incredibly impatient.
“Hold that thought,” I said, blowing air through my lips as I returned to the door and cracked it open.
“You would not believe what the asshole said to me,” Artemesia growled, her eyes filled with fire. “Can I come in?”
“Yeah,” I answered, taking a step back so she could enter.
“Von, your brother is a real piece of work,” Artemesia snarled, her mouth snapping shut as she saw Kaleb. “Oh . . . hey, Kaleb.”
He raised a hand, waving at her as he remained laid out on the bed.
“Am I interrupting something?” Artemesia asked.
Kaleb sat up. “No, it’s fine. Everyone else knows, so you might as well know too. Fallon and I were together. Actually, I had planned to propose to her, but she cheated on me with Ryker.”
“Oh shit,” Artemesia said, sitting beside him. “Do you need me to go kick her ass? ”
Von cracked a grin. Kaleb did too. Their gazes connected—an unspoken message shared between the two.
“What’s that about?” I asked, my finger flicking between them.
Kaleb chuckled. “That’s what Von said you would say when I told you about Fallon and Ryker, so it’s funny that’s what Artemesia said. You two are definitely sisters.”
“I mean . . . I will,” Artemesia said with a shrug. “I haven’t known you for a long time, but I can tell you are a good person. That Fallon girl has no idea what she’s missing out on.”
“Thank you,” Kaleb sighed.
“Of course,” she replied.
“When did this happen?” I asked, sitting on the other side of him.
“Shortly after we arrived here. When we emerged from the river, we were split up from them. They said they ate some berries, and the next thing they knew, it just happened—as if the berries had convinced them to do it. Can you believe that? Blaming it on berries ?” Kaleb scoffed as he shook his head.
“Actually . . .” Artemesia gave him an apologetic look. “I hate to tell you this, but if they were surrenderberries, which are known to grow at the foot of mountains, then I can believe it.”
“Surrenderberries?” Kaleb asked, curiously tilting his head to the side.
Artemesia nodded. “As the name implies, they weaken inhibitions and make one surrender to their desires. They are so powerful that one alone can do the job. However, the more one eats, the more powerful they become. Castalia, the ancient Goddess of Trickery and one of Empress Avena’s sisters, was said to be the creator of them.
As the story goes, Avena went to her sister and asked for her aid in helping her advance her relations with the emperor.
And so, Castalia made them and instructed her sister to have the emperor eat them.
It wasn’t too long after that their nuptials were announced and she became empress.
They say up until the day the emperor died, she always had some put in his wine, unbeknownst to him. ”
I thought back to the memory I had recently recovered, of when I’d sat with the emperor and the empress in the great amphitheater, known as the Crest of Salvation.
We had drunk wine—wine I had found all too easy to toss into Von’s face.
Had he deserved it at the time? Perhaps.
Although I didn’t fully understand the context of my actions, I could remember how freely they came to me.
How easy it had been to surrender to my wants.
It made me wonder . . . had the empress drugged both the emperor and I with her surrenderberry wine?
Granite filled my stomach—she wasn’t the only one who had done that to me.
Aurelius had done the same, but instead of wine, he’d used his ichor.
This is how things will be for you now, Moonbeam , his ghost whispered in my ear. I could taste his ichor on my tongue, feel it pouring down my throat into my belly. The bed dipped under his weight as he crawled over the top of me.
No!
My body tensed, knowing what was going to happen next.
He’s not here, I reminded myself, chanting the words like a mantra until I broke free from the memory.
I glanced down at my shaking hands. Swiftly, I tucked them beneath my legs. I didn’t dare look at Von, but I could feel his eyes boring into me.
“I haven’t spoken to Fallon since it happened,” Kaleb said with a sigh.
“Perhaps that might be a good place to start,” Artemesia replied, giving him a sympathetic smile.
Kaleb blew out a breath of air, tipping his head from side to side as he weighed her suggestion. Finally, he said, “Yeah, I suppose maybe I should.”
Artemesia gave him a pat on the back.
“Now, since we’ve hashed my problem out. What happened with you and Folkoln?” he asked.
A small smile touched my lips. I was happy to see the two getting along so well and offering one another support. It was sweet. Heartwarming.
“You aren’t going to believe this one. He said we are bonded. Bonded !” Artemesia rolled her eyes. “No offense, Von, but your brother is absolutely ruthless. I’m well aware he wants to get into my pants, but to use something as sacred as the bond as a ploy is atrocious.”
“Artemesia . . .” I took a breath, knowing I was going to need it .
“Yes?” she asked, eyes meeting mine.
Now, it was my turn to offer her an apologetic look as I delivered the news she clearly was not ready to hear. “I actually think he might be telling the truth.”
“Fuck off,” she said, staring at me in disbelief.
When I didn’t budge, her gaze shot toward Von.
“I believe you two might be mates as well,” Von said.
Artemesia’s mouth fell open. She snapped it shut, then opened it again, like a fish out of water trying to survive the uprooting of its entire world.
Finally, she said, “I need a drink. A really stiff one.”
“Me too,” Kaleb agreed as the two of them looked to the small liquor cabinet across the room.