Chapter 12
Chapter Twelve
Iclean my cuts and change my clothes, but my skin still crawls with the memory of cold fingers on my jaw.
My private quarters suddenly feel too small, so I grab Jordi’s maps and notes and tell Malachi we’re leaving.
It's what my brother would do, after all.
Hunt for answers instead of hiding from them.
We take the backroads to avoid the flood of visitors, and I focus on the faint sounds of waves crashing against the cliffs and the calming scent of the ocean breeze.
“What happens when the curse is lifted?” I ask after a stretch of silence.
“The rot will stop. The land will grow rich again, the lakes and streams will run pure, and the Shroud …” He pauses, something flickering across his face. “The Shroud will cease to exist. It may take time, but the kingdom will finally begin to heal.”
“And Lunaris will rejoin Tenebris.”
“Yes.”
I frown. “What will happen to the residents here?”
“What do you mean?”
“The people who live in Lunaris came from elsewhere. They wanted peace. A life without pain.” I swallow. “That's why they traded their memories.”
He raises an eyebrow, and the judgment in that single gesture makes my hackles rise, my sigil flares hot against my skin.
“You may not believe that, but it's the truth.”
“I believe that's what you believe.”
The condescension in his voice makes me want to hit him. I bite my tongue and force myself to breathe. “Either way, what will happen to them?”
“I don't know.” He shrugs, and even that gesture feels dismissive. “I don't understand how the memory trade works, and I don't know enough about this place to give you an answer.”
We walk in silence. The night presses close around us, thick with salt air and the distant murmur of revelry from the square. When I speak again, my voice sounds smaller than I intend.
“You already have Draven and Kage. Technically, you don't need me for anything.”
“We are bound together until Mortiana deems your debt paid.”
I nod, conceding that much at least. “Have you ever been bound to anyone before?”
He scoffs. “No.”
“So you don't know what will happen to me if we fail?”
He casts me a sideways glance, sharp and assessing. “You didn't think to ask that before you made the bargain?”
“I was desperate.” The admission scrapes against my throat.
“Nothing good comes from desperate bargains.”
I cast him a bland look. “Trust me, that's becoming clearer by the second.”
His expression doesn't change, but amusement flickers through the bond, warm and unexpected. He clears his throat as if to dismiss it. “Mortiana is the only one who can answer that question.”
“Well, it's not like I can summon the goddess of death for a chat.” I shoot him a look. “How do you even know this is how I'm supposed to pay my debt?”
“Mortiana told me before I left Noktemore.”
My head snaps toward him. “You were in Noktemore? How?”
“I live there.”
I stop walking. Face him fully. “How? You're not even a…” I trail off, realizing how little I actually know about the realm of the dead.
He raises an eyebrow. “I'm not even a what?”
“I don't know. I thought only spirits lived there, and demons, maybe.” I study his face in the lamplight. “You're not a spirit, and I don't think you're a demon. Then again, that would be the least shocking revelation of the day.”
He huffs out a surprised laugh. “I'm not a demon. But I suppose that's better than a yak.”
“Slightly.”
He shakes his head, and we start walking again. “Noktemore is hidden, but it's a kingdom like any other. Many sought refuge there when the curse fell. Others, like me, remain until our bargains are fulfilled.”
“So you're stuck there.”
“For now.”
The answer gives me pause. I don't know if it's his size or his arrogance or the way he carries himself like a man who has never known captivity, but the idea of him being trapped anywhere feels wrong.
“For how long?”
“Until I break the curse.” His jaw tightens.
“Each Reckoning, I'm given an opportunity. Usually I end up in Vindariel, where it all began, or one of the nearby kingdoms. This is the first time I've been sent to Lunaris.” He glances at me. “And the first time Mortiana has given me instructions. Which is why I believe you’re the key to ending this.”
“Right.” I try to resign myself to the fact that there's no escaping this. “Your friend mentioned it's the final Reckoning. I didn't realize there was a time constraint.”
“You might, if you hadn't traded your memories.”
I shoot him a withering look. “What exactly did Mortiana tell you?”
“She told me someone who owed her a debt would help me break the curse.” His golden eyes find mine in the dark. “And then I woke up here, tethered to you.”
“I don't understand why she'd bind you to someone who knows nothing about this curse.”
“Mortiana is fair, but she's still a goddess.” His voice turns bitter. “To them, we're pawns in a game that never ends. If she wanted to make this easy, she would have bound me to a mercenary or a scholar. Instead, she gave me you.”
The words land strangely. Not quite an insult. Not quite anything else.
“A mercenary,” I repeat dryly. “Does lifting the curse require you to kill people?”
He frowns like he's never even considered that and I breathe out a tired laugh. Of course, he wouldn't. He named his godsdamn sword Vida.
“What can I possibly help you with?” I ask after a moment.
“You've lived here your entire life. You know the streets, the people, the secrets this place keeps.” He ticks off points on his fingers.
“You'll help me find the artifact I need.
You'll teach me everything about Lunaris: the Council, the Sages, the residents, the visitors who come and go.” His eyes meet mine. “Everything. I want to know all of it.”
I snort. “That's a tall order.”
“And one you will fulfill.”
My brows shoot up. “Do I need to remind you that I don't take orders from you?”
“Do I need to remind you that a goddess bound you to me?”
“She bound you to me as well.” I hold his gaze. “Does that mean you'll let me order you around?”
Something shifts in his expression. His eyes gleam under the streetlamp, golden and dangerous. “That depends.” His voice drops lower. “What would you have me do?”
Warmth pools low in my stomach, unbidden and unwelcome.
I tear my gaze away, disturbed by my own reaction.
We're headed to Siren's Call, where the air is thick with compulsions designed to awaken every vice and hunger.
If this bond is truly anything like the raffin's, I'm walking into a trap of my own making. It's going to be a very long night.
“My brother would be better suited for this,” I say after a moment, the ache of his absence sharp in my chest. “He knows more about the curse than anyone.”
“The goddess bound me to you, Ada.”
I look up at him. “Only because I was the one who made the bargain.”
“That's not how it works.” His voice is quieter now.
Almost gentle. “When you enter a bargain with a god, you give them access to your entire life. Everyone in it. If Mortiana wanted your brother to repay your debt, she would have bound me to him instead.” He holds my gaze. “She chose you, Ada. Specifically.”
My stomach drops.
The Sages warned us against bargains, but they never told us this. I think of the people who refuse to use their gifts, who wear their amulets every moment of every day, and wonder if they somehow know. Goddess strike me. How many people have endangered everyone they love without realizing it?
“You don't know me,” he says after a moment. “I don't expect you to trust me. But we're bound whether we like it or not, and honesty is one of the few weapons we have.”
“Weapons against what?”
“The bond itself.” He runs a hand through his hair, and for the first time, he looks almost uncertain. “If we can be honest with each other, we might be able to trick it into thinking we've accepted it. That would prevent … complications.”
“The furia.”
“Exactly.” His eyes find mine. “I'm not saying it will be easy. But I think we can survive this if we start with honesty.”
I bite my lip, turning his words over in my mind. I wasn't exaggerating when I called it a tall order. The Veritas Order thrives on secrecy. It's how we've survived while other organizations crumbled to dust.
Mother forced me to end things with Cas the moment he became a dueler, terrified the Council would notice him and, by extension, notice me. At the time, it seemed paranoid. Excessive.
Now, standing here soul-bound to an outsider, I'm beginning to think she wasn't paranoid enough. Gods, I don't want to think about what Mother would do if she discovered this debt before I can repay it. Banishment is rare, but I wouldn't put it past her. Not for this.
Still, I can't deny that his suggestion makes a certain kind of sense. The music from Veneficia Alley grows louder as we approach, fiddles and drums and raucous laughter spilling into the night. Despite everything, I feel some of the tension in my shoulders ease.
"Fine," I say as we near the entrance.
"Fine, you agree to honesty?"
"To honesty." I stop a few paces from the door and extend my hand. "But it goes both ways."
"Of course." His fingers wrap around mine, warm and rough, swallowing my hand entirely. "Honesty."
We hold there a moment too long. The bond hums between us, quiet but undeniable, before we finally let go.
He pulls open the door, and Siren's Call rushes to greet us. Lively music and laughter, the clink of glasses raised in celebration, dominoes striking polished wood, the warm haze of pipe smoke and candlelight. For the first time in days, I take a breath that actually fills my lungs.