Chapter 9
The Furious, Savage Bitch … We’ve Got a Major Problem
My revelation was met with a stunned silence as dense as the olandule smoke and the shadows clinging to the parlor.
The Bazrians gaped at me and Baz while the castle—Mauldrene, apparently—played its usual orchestral soundtrack.
The violin, viola, and cello had the chance only to strum a few hurried chords that sounded like danger, danger! before Baz’s group of friends erupted.
Moncho, Edwidge, and Lev spoke over each other, Lev waving a smoking pipe in front of him as he gesticulated.
Night stalked around the room to stand behind Baz and me.
Félix remained where he was, but narrowed his eyes, just barely.
On the otherwise implacable elf, the expression was as noticeable as Lev’s jumping eyebrows.
Aziza slid closer to me on the couch, a mordari clutched in either hand, their blades facing me.
After sizing up the many threats pointing at me, I sidled next to Baz so that the Rillis rope—an ensorcelled object, it seemed—hung limply between us.
That put Baz at my left, Edwidge to my right, with Night behind him more than me now, and Aziza directly in front of me where I could monitor her mordaris.
Given that I was collared by and bound to my mortal enemy, my position was far from a tactical advantage.
Rafaela would want to lock me in the cage for failing so spectacularly.
The assassin princess I’d once been, who had mastered sophisticated subterfuge to complete mission after mission to great, if quiet, success, had been overridden by the furious, savage bitch who’d woken in her underwater tomb to discover her twin brother taken from her.
I should have been more careful to ensure I would succeed in killing Baz.
But the creature inside me had been roused.
It had tasted pleasure. It had felt freedom for the very first time.
For long centuries, since I’d been rebirthed, I’d been so damn careful to remain, as much as any s?nglure could, a woman and not a beast. I’d taken every precaution to avoid bloodlust. Now that the choice had been taken from me, and twice over, my habitual care and precision felt foreign.
Instinct drove me, perhaps even impulse.
I needed action, not forethought; results, not caution.
I stood loose and ready to move. I had no weapon nor access to my fae power, but my body could cause damage. I had killed with my bare hands before, and I would surely do it again.
After Moncho, Lev, Edwidge, and Aziza had barked at Baz: “What the fuck? She’s Soravelle Davana? Are you insane?” Baz didn’t say a word to them.
He faced me. “What happens in four days?”
“Who the fuck cares what happens in four days?” Lev exclaimed. “If she is who she says she is”—Baz glowered at him—“we’ve gotta kill her, like, right this second.”
“No one’s killing anyone,” Baz grit out.
“Yeah? Did you inform her of that?” Lev jabbed his pipe in my direction. “’Cause she looks pretty damn murderous to me, and that was before I knew she was the most dangerous woman to ever walk the Opalese.”
“Nope, that’s me,” Aziza said, sliding along the couch so that she was another few inches closer to me. “I’ll take her out if Baz doesn’t want to.”
“No offense, baby,” Lev told her. “You’re plenty dangerous for me, especially with how you always say you wanna hurt me.
But the princess Soravelle, she’s…” He shook his head and sucked a hit off his pipe, exhaling a curl of smoke.
“She’s one of the most dangerous s?nglures in centuries, if not the most. She’s got hundreds of kills attributed to her.
She can probably kill with just her pinky finger. ”
I snickered. I had never killed anyone solely with my pinky finger, nor had I had reason to kill hundreds, but I wasn’t about to correct him.
“I’ve killed more than hundreds,” Aziza said. “Probably thousands, at this point.”
“Sure, but that was in combat. She did her shit in secret. Killed people right under everyone’s noses.”
I frowned. How did he know about all that?
“Baz, get the fuck away from her!” Lev said.
“Calm the scorch down,” Baz said on a harsh growl that had even me wanting to obey. “All of you. I’ll explain everything in due time.”
His eyes were back on me. “What happens in four days?”
I debated the merits of lying, but I was better off with him knowing.
“My scar—”
Lev gasped. “That’s right! She’s supposed to have a scar slicing down one side of her face.”
I scowled at him.
“By the Ethers,” Baz said. “Will you let her speak?”
Lev didn’t bother with chagrin. Bouncing on his feet, he lit his pipe again.
Feeling like I shouldn’t be sharing anything of substance with any of them, I sighed my annoyance. “A spell is concealing my scar. With the Fuerin Star eclipse, the spell ends.”
“And then everyone will know who you are,” Edwidge said. “Even if we don’t tell them.”
“Right. Assuming they’re willing to suspend their disbelief and guess I’m back from the dead after three hundred and thirty-three years.”
Edwidge whistled. “That long, huh?”
“All the more reason to kill her now, Baz,” Moncho said.
“Yep,” Night said.
“Dammit, no one’s killing anyone,” Baz repeated.
As one, his friends pinned their disapproval on him.
“I mean it. Sheathe your mordaris, Zi.”
She barked a dark laugh. “No way, Baz. We’ve all read the books about her. She’s bad news.”
“That’s an order.”
Aziza scowled at Baz so intently there was no way he’d miss her discontent, then slid as far away from me on the couch as she could get, and only then holstered her blades.
“Did you figure out who she was before or after you fucked her?” Moncho asked.
“It doesn’t matter one way or another,” Baz said.
Moncho laughed in disbelief. “You know it does matter. So?”
Baz’s jaw clenched until his jawline looked like it had been carved from stone.
“I see,” Moncho said.
“You see what, exactly?”
“I see we’ve got a major problem.”
“That’s not for you to decide. I’m—”
“Yeah, Baz, we know who and what you are. No need for all the reminders as of late. Since she showed up, actually. Never needed to remind us you’re our commander all that much before her, did you?”
Baz’s stone jaw would have been answer enough, even if his neck hadn’t flushed.
“What about Cal?”
“What about him?” Baz said.
“This is the whole Shen situation all over again,” Moncho said.
Baz’s jaw pulsed like it might shatter. “No, it’s fucking not.”
“This cunt puts Shen’s efforts to shame. She’s a thousand times worse than Shen. You just met her—oh, and she tried to kill you—and she still has you all wrapped up in her.”
Who the fuck was Shen?
Baz shuffled nearer to me, and I unintentionally leaned toward him. None of the others missed the subtle attempt at closeness.
“See?” Moncho demanded.
“See what?” Baz snarled. “You know what? Never mind. I don’t want to hear it.”
“I’m sure you don’t.”
“I mean it, Monch. You’re not just soldiers at my command, but my closest friends. I owe you an explanation, definitely, but within reason. I know what I’m doing here.”
I knew, without a doubt, that he didn’t, no more than I did. He and I had been very plainly out of control with each other in the dungeon. Based on their dubious expressions, everyone else knew it too, even if they didn’t insist on it.
“I’m all too aware that Soravelle’s presence here complicates things.”
Lev snorted obnoxiously. “Complicates things…”
“Yeah, Lev, okay? She’s the heir to my family’s forever enemy. I get it. How could you think I wouldn’t?”
“Your actions.”
“My actions?”
When Lev looked away instead of answering, Moncho said, “Yeah, Baz, your actions. We don’t blur lines and fuck our enemies. We keep things nice and simple, remember? It’s why we screw whores instead of s?nglures. It’s your rule.”
“I don’t need to be reminded of my own rules, and I sure as shit don’t need to get a talking to by my own friends and fellow soldiers.
You all listen to me now. Soravelle is a complication that I, and I alone, will work out.
She’s bound to me so that she can’t get away.
She’s collared so she can’t access her power. ”
“If the stories are true, that won’t stop her,” Aziza argued.
Baz pinned her with a glare and she silenced.
“She believes I murdered her brother. She set out to fulfill a righteous vendetta. Any of us would have done the same.”
“Why did she believe that?” Félix asked. Unlike everyone else, the elf’s features remained calm.
They all, even Baz, looked at me. After a reluctant sigh, I said, “That’s what I was told.”
“By whom?” Félix asked.
“By someone I trust beyond reproach, someone who’s never wrong.”
“And who’s that?”
When I didn’t reply, Baz said, “We’ll get into everything later. Right now, we have bigger issues.”
“Bro … she’s the D’Arco princess we all believed to be super dead, longtime dead,” Lev said.
“Yes, and Mauldrene may have eaten the emperor.”
Lev frowned. “Fair enough.”
“And Terencia’s here, with a bunch of her busybody nobles. She might not have cared when Mauldrene ate the parvnit, but I’m pretty sure she’ll care when she finds out Mauldrene ate her husband.”
“Fuck,” Night said. “This is bad.”
“Big time bad,” Baz said. “Terencia’s tricky to deal with under normal circumstances.”
“With Junot out of the picture, it won’t be long before she comes after your dick,” Lev said. “You know she will.”
I bristled. I couldn’t stop my reaction before it happened. Baz’s attention flickered over me as if he’d noticed, dammit.
“Unfortunately, it seems likely,” Baz said. “I’ll deal with that when I have to. She’ll at least have the decorum to wait a while, and by then, with some good fortune on our side, we’ll have found him.”
“’Cause good fortune is so often on our side,” Aziza muttered bitterly.
“I gotta get to her right away, then,” Lev said. “Distract her. The feeder I sent her was a meek, mumbling, reed of a man. She’ll break him if I don’t hurry.”
“You sent her someone unwilling?” Baz asked stiffly.
“Nah, man. I know you better than that. He was willing. Nervous as if I’d asked him to pop in to the Igneuslands, but still willing. Brave guy, really.” He fiddled with his pipe. “I hope she doesn’t break him. Shit, I gotta go.”
“No,” Aziza said. “Baz, tell him. He can’t go. Terencia is…” She looked at me and trailed off.
Baz huffed a burdened sigh, ran a hand through his hair before noticing, then flicked it to the side.
The Rillis rope swung between us. “Zi’s right.
You can’t, Lev. I’ll figure something else out.
Maybe we just send her a female. It’s not like she can get pissed we don’t have what she wants when she and Junot are the ones who stationed us at this…
” He pursed his lips, seeming to swallow a series of insults. “…place.”
“She’ll throw a fit,” Aziza said. “But you still can’t send Lev.”
“I’d never choose to send Lev, or any of you, for that matter.”
“Aw, Zi … how sweet. You want my dick all for yourself, is that it, baby?” Lev said.
Aziza groaned and rolled her eyes. “Right now, I want to snap off your dick.”
He gasped, drawing his pipe to his chest in affront that I thought was playful at first, but then wasn’t so sure. “That’s … don’t threaten my dick. Not ever. That’s going too far.”
She plunked her head back against the couch in possible defeat, exhaustion, or annoyance.
“Take it back,” Lev said.
She jerked her head up, eyes fiery. “I don’t take it back. You say stupid shit, I will too.”
“What stupid shit did I say?”
“You mean, most recently? That you’re going to go feed Terencia! She’ll demand to have sex with you.”
“I’m sure she will. So … you’re jealous?” His anger melted, mischief dancing in his eyes.
“No, I’m not fucking jealous, you moronic man. You screw whores all the time. Do you see me jealous then?”
Lev tipped his head as if considering this new fascinating perspective.
She groaned louder still. “Terencia is a man-eater.”
“She truly is,” Baz said. “You can’t go, Lev.”
“It’s me or you.”
“He can’t go,” I heard myself say before I could think it through. On the spot, I lifted the length of black silk between us. “He’s bound to me, remember?”
“That leaves me,” Lev said, sounding regretful and trying to hide it.
“I’ll go with,” Moncho said.
“No, Monch—” Baz said.
“I’ll look out for him, he’ll look out for me, and she’ll be extra happy, extra distracted. Buys us time to find Junot.”
I heard Baz swallow. “I can’t ask you guys to do that.”
“You ain’t asking, bro,” Lev said. “You’d do it for us in a heartbeat.”
“I would.”
I gave the rope binding us a yank that I couldn’t explain. When Baz eyed me curiously, I pretended it had been an accident, that I’d tangled with the rope. My beast was too close to the surface—and disturbingly possessive of my enemy. For dragon’s sake, this was getting absurd.
“Me and Monch’ll be just fine,” Lev said, sharing a quick look with the larger man.
“You’re sure?” Baz asked.
“Born sure.”
Baz snorted. “You’re so full of shit, Lev.”
Lev winked. “You know it.”
“Okay. If you and Moncho go, then the rest of us work on finding Junot before we have to fess up to Terencia.”
“And how do you figure we’re gonna do that?” Edwidge asked.
Baz lifted the hand that was linked to the rope until mine rose too.
“You want to use her as bait?” Ed said, a smile burgeoning across her broad face.
“So that’s why you didn’t want us to kill her,” Lev said with evident relief.
Baz ignored him. “Not bait. Advantage. Mauldrene likes her well enough not to snack on her, even when she’s pressed up against her shadows. Maybe we can figure out how to talk to her … or something. Convince her to release Junot.”
In this case, I didn’t see the distinction between bait and advantage. And bait very often got eaten…