Chapter Forty-Four
TALIK
Talik stared at Lucien, careful to keep his expression neutral.
Emerging from the shadows, Lucien’s desert-colored blond hair caught the sunlight, casting him in a halo that did not suit him. His pale-blue eyes, almost white, stared straight through Talik.
Talik forced himself to smile the playboy smile that everyone, except for Khalida, seemed to love.
A few inches taller than him, there was something about Lucien that put him at unease.
Perhaps it was because it was one of the few times in his life when he was in the presence of a true predator.
Someone who wasn’t quite Atlantean, nor human.
White teeth flashed, a bright contrast to his light brown skin, a shade darker than his niece Rieka’s. And Talik thought Khalida and Dante had a complicated family history.
“I prefer you in a suit.”
Talik glanced down at his attire. The black matte uniform had become second nature in the last couple of days, but it wasn’t him. “So do I.”
In the distance, the sound of tourist buses arriving punctuated the silence. A dozen or so human languages echoed through the site, all merging into one, until he couldn’t distinguish the words or dialects. He had hoped it would be a quiet day but should have known better.
Lucien sauntered over to him. Talik peered over his shoulder, noting the browning of the bright green grass as he walked toward him.
The grass quickly shriveled into nubs and then disappeared, leaving no trace behind.
It looked like a small personal trail of destruction.
If Lucien kept it up, he would be far easier to follow.
It must be a new trick—Talik hadn’t noticed it earlier.
Perhaps it was a side effect of Lucien’s power.
Everything in their world came with consequences, especially to those who had unimaginable power and abilities.
And as annoying as Lucien was, gifted was putting it mildly.
“How can I help you?” Talik asked with a slight bow. Sarcasm dripped from his every word.
“You don’t appear the kneeling type.” Lucien chuckled.
He stopped just out of reach and took another bite of the apple before he threw the core behind him.
Suspended for a moment in time and space, the core slowly rotated before picking up speed until it was just a stream of light and disappeared.
“Perhaps why I can scent Ninhursag within you? She loves a challenge.”
Talik stiffened. “What do you want?”
“The artifact you are searching for, the O’hurani’s ?a,” Lucien began in a thoughtful tone, “it will be wasted on Ninhursag.”
Talik straightened, his senses on high alert as he surveyed the area. No one else was near them—perhaps Lucien’s doing. He had witnessed firsthand the other being’s ability to stop time with a click of a finger. And all Lucien had to show for the immense use of power had been a bloody tear.
“That isn’t a reason to give it to you.”
Lucien sighed dramatically. “It is better than the alternative. You dying for nothing.”
“I don’t plan on dying.”
“No one does. But that is the price of Ninhursag. Only in death do you get to escape her,” Lucien casually added. “It is a pity. I think I could like you.”
“I don’t take that as a compliment.”
Lucien ignored him. “You could help me find Atlantis.”
Talik snorted. Finding their ancient ancestral home had never been a burning desire of his, let alone something he had ever actively looked for. “Wrong Atlantean. That is more Dante’s ambition, and we both know who he chose.”
Rieka.
Lucien rolled his eyes. “Ungrateful family. You should be glad that all your blood relations are gone.”
A tic started on Talik’s jaw. He flexed his hand, careful not to give too much away. “And why should I give you the artifact? You already have Vandana’s amulet. Are you getting greedy?”
“Turns out mother dearest was very meticulous and not trusting of anyone.” Lucien took a step closer, forcing Talik to look up. “Unfortunately, I have not inherited her patience. Atlantis belongs to me.”
“I don’t care who owns Atlantis. I have no ambition to rule or have unlimited power—you can have Atlantis. There will be others who will not be as accommodating as me.”
“Don’t make any promises you can’t deliver.” Lucien chuckled.
There was nothing pure about the sound. Instead, it reminded Talik of the sermons of his childhood, where the Catholic priests would preach about demons and hell and eternal damnation.
“You will have to pick a side. Saving the world is not your style.” Lucien shrugged.
Talik couldn’t disagree, but if it was what Khalida wanted and would do, then he was going to do everything in his power to ensure that she could save the world. What he wanted was secondary. It was the least he could give her—a little bit of the salvation she had been looking for.
“We both know you aren’t a hero. You are not the type who will sacrifice yourself for the greater good. Ninhursag will force you to kill Khalida. It will be your final act before she disposes of you. But you will live long enough to watch the last breath leave Khalida’s body,” Lucien coldly stated.
Each word was like a knife in his flesh, twisting deeper into him.
Lucien’s pale-blue eyes were icy, but Talik could taste the emotion coming from him. The words were not a hypothetical, but something Lucien had experienced. Talik could feel it deep within him, a fracturing that was eternal.
Talik blinked and Lucien smiled at him, a vacant expression on his face for a moment. Had he imagined it, or worse, projected his emotions onto Lucien? No. It had come deep from Lucien, the scent of a memory that couldn’t be hidden.
“Pick your side wisely. You won’t live long enough to watch the aftermath.”
***
TALIK
“Talik.”
He winced as he unmuted the earpiece. “Connection issue.”
Unsure if either of them believed him, he turned around, trying to get sight of Lucien.
But like last time, he seemed to have vanished.
Talik blinked and surveyed the area. Maybe he had hallucinated the entire conversation.
He glanced at the patch of dead grass surrounding him. No, it had been reality.
Moving to the other side of the building, he cautiously glanced around him, stopping only when he caught sight of Khalida’s silver hair.
He touched his racing heart. At least she was safe.
Lucien’s words continued to haunt him.
You will live long enough to watch the last breath leave her body.
“The hunters have located wayfarers,” Khalida continued without missing a beat. “Eastern side. Two of them. Their scent is tinged with the sickly scent that is reminiscent of Idris, and their eyes have a black sheen to them.”
Talik clenched his fists, his short nails digging into his palms as he stared at Khalida, taking in everything he could—memorizing every single strand of hair, every curve, until it was imprinted on his mind and in his blood.
There was only one solution, and he hoped Khalida was going to forgive him.
The only way to get close enough to Ninhursag was to convince the god he was on her side and would help her find the artifact.
He could give the others the opening they needed and keep the god distracted.
Then Kade and Khalida could trap her. Ninhursag knew what they were planning, was letting it unfold because it suited her—for now.
Lucien was right—he wasn’t a hero. Had never been one and wasn’t going to start now.
Talik didn’t care that the world was going to be damned, he just wanted to make sure Khalida survived.
She was his world and had always been. And in the quiet moment, he could finally be honest with himself.
He’d lied about not wanting to be her ruin, it was all he’d ever wanted—for her to be marked the way he had been by her.
He took one last look at Khalida. His plan was only going to work if he acted quickly, or he would risk Ninhursag finding out that he was going to double-cross her.
There was a small part of his mind that she hadn’t accessed yet, but it wouldn’t be long before she dismantled the careful walls he had built.
Opening his mind as he leaned against the building, he searched for the tendrils that belonged to Ninhursag. And he tugged. The laughter surrounded him. It grew louder until he couldn’t distinguish what was in his mind and what was reality.
I have a bargain for you.