Chapter 20
CHAPTER TWENTY
JAX
The noise in the auditorium is muted. My heart pounds in my chest and ears.
The sight of silk-clad nobles blurs. I sway on my feet, my face aching.
I swallow, my throat dry.
It’s painful as fuck.
Those damn Caligos dogs really did a number on me yesterday.
If I wasn’t so distracted by the thrill of winning the card game, I would have noticed my Ezkai guards missing…
A lovely nap would be welcome right about now.
Hard hands gripping my shoulders snap me out of my daze.
I blink.
Another pair of hands grab the chains binding my wrists and tug on them not so gently.
We’re on the move.
It’s silent. Suspiciously so.
It takes me a moment to register it. The Ezkai yank on my restraints so hard I stumble. Before I know it, they shove me down on my knees.
I raise my head a little. Phoenix’s leather shoes are in front of me. My eyes rise to take in her calves, knees, and torso as she sits on her iron throne, radiating power and control.
When I meet her eyes, they’re cold and distant.
As if the wild girl I know is not even there.
I kneel in front of her. It hits me then. It’s supposed to be a forced act of submission. Something that’s shameful, humiliating.
Ha. Joke’s on them.
I would gladly get on my knees for her any day.
One of the Ezkai grabs the chains binding me.
The iron falls away from my wrists.
It should feel like freedom.
Instead, my skin prickles. Exposed, raw.
Like the chains were the last thing keeping me grounded.
Four monks dressed in blood-colored ceremonial robes approach us. They make a loose circle around me and Nix. One of them holds a bronze bowl. He carries it so…gentle.
When he sets it down between me and Nix, I understand why.
My heart picks up the pace at the sight of the oddest, ethereal-looking blue-as-the-sky liquid inside the bowl. It’s…moving.
What the actual fuck?
There’s no time to dwell on that. A monk on my right pulls out the fanciest blade carved from black onyx. The very sharp tip is dipped in gold that catches the light with each movement.
It’s mesmerizing.
Somehow, I manage to peel my gaze away from the weapon. I steal a glance around the room.
The nobles are awfully quiet. Concentrated.
No hushed whispers are exchanged. No gossiping or endless chatter.
My stomach swirls with unease. The sensation only worsens when my gaze catches on the blond noble, the last one to cast the vote in my favor.
Nobleman…Yoni? One of the Caligos bastards.
He lounges in his seat as regal as if he were the Ezkai General himself. And the smug look he wears on his face…His eyes sparkle as he watches Nix on her throne as if he’s a predator and she’s his prey.
I might not be the smartest nor the most strategic mind in Ekios, but my gut tells me it’s a bad sign.
“A life was taken beyond pardon,” the monk with the blade speaks, drawing my attention back to the ritual. “The debt stands. Let blood speak where words have failed.”
The monk extends his hand to Nix. Right then, Nix meets my gaze. Without hesitation, she puts her hand in his, palm facing upwards.
I’m locked, unable to look anywhere but at her. From the corner of my eye, I can see the monk bring the gold-tipped point of the blade to the middle of her palm.
She doesn’t even flinch when the blade pierces her skin. It’s a deep cut. Blood pours down her palm, right into the bowl between us.
“The throne acknowledges the cost,” all four monks say.
Then, it’s my turn.
One of the monks offers Nix a clean white cloth and she wraps it around her wound. The monk with the blade turns to me.
I offer him my palm before he even asks for it.
The monks recite cold words. “What was taken will be answered.”
It stings when the blade cuts the middle of my palm, but I remain still as stone. The monk guides my bleeding hand over the bronze bowl and I look down as my blood drips.
I’m startled at the sight.
The sky blue water swirls with Nix’s blood, and when my blood hits the mixture, it whooshes in the same way the dark ocean waves do right before they break on the shore and then turns a color I’ve never witnessed in my life.
The feelings it evokes surprise me.
It’s the color of heavy grief that winds tight around one’s heart when one loses someone they love. When one can hear and feel the good memories, the warmth of a loved one’s laugh, the sparkle of happiness in their eyes, but can never have it again.
I inhale sharply when Cecile’s face appears at the front of my mind. Her kind blue eyes and blond curls, the pretty mouth growing into a wide grin.
Frowning, I shake my head to try rid myself of the image.
One monk lifts the bronze bowl just as carefully as he had set it down and pours the odd liquid into a goblet that another monk holds.
It hits me then.
The next step.
My stomach churns only at the thought.
The monks offer the goblet to Nix first. She takes it and brings it to her lips with cold, ruthless confidence.
“This bond is sealed,” the monks say.
My gaze is locked on Nix’s throat as she swallows.
Then, it’s my turn.
I reach for the goblet with trembling hands. A chill runs down my spine when I look down at the liquid.
I don’t hesitate, though.
I must do it.
I want to do it.
This is my path.
The only way forward.
Something Nix fought with nails and teeth for.
I would never betray her by refusing.
So, I take a generous gulp and down it in a blink of an eye.
“Should the General fall, the Blood Sentineal shall answer,” monks chant.
The odd liquid tastes like clouds. And it goes down my throat smoothly.
Before the goblet is out of my damn hand, I feel it.
The invisible tether extending between me and Nix, snapping into place.
It’s the weirdest feeling.
My chest warms, heart beating rapidly—
Not only mine, though.
Nix’s heartbeat overlaps with mine inside my rib cage.
When she inhales a sharp breath, I don’t see it.
I feel it in my own lungs.
An alien presence awakens inside my mind, too. It fills my thoughts and senses.
I can’t navigate it. It’s too complex.
When our gazes meet again, I’m as certain as ever.
She’s mine to protect.
And I’ll stop at nothing to carry out my duty.
The iron throne she occupies is not a seat of power.
It is a blade aimed directly at her heart.
And now I am standing in its path.
Even as the ritual concludes, the ringing silence remains in the auditorium.
“You may rise,” one of the monks tells me with a pleasant smile.
I do as he says.
Anxiety swirls in my chest, and I look around the room again. Nobleman Yoni traces a finger over his jawline, looking victorious.
Nothing good can come from Caligos casting a supporting vote in Nix’s favor.
Payment will be due.
I’m sure of it.
What? Nix’s voice inside my mind startles me.