2. Astraea #2
Kyros comes to a stop at my other side. His presence overtakes my attention, and the memory of the first time I saw Diemos flashes to mind.
Not the castle, obviously, but the part that was special to him and he shared with me.
While I know the tarn Kyros took me to didn’t reveal the kingdom in whole, the feel here—with the city below us—is nothing like the serene escape we were looking at then.
My heart flutters as I recall the words Kyros spoke before returning us to what I recognize was reality.
“I am a falling man, and it’s only you that I want to be there when I finally hit the ground. ”
I blink, turning just enough to the center so I can catch a glimpse of him out of the corner of my eye.
His jaw ticks as though he can sense where my mind has gone, and he looks between me and Shayd.
Lightning strikes in the distance, momentarily painting Kyros’ face in a flash of fury, and I shudder.
He warned me not to look for good in him.
He’s kept so much from me; even so, my heart still aches for him.
Why does it hurt so bad if this was him from the very start?
Because you saw through that lie. There was good in him despite it all.
“Eathian’s sun is dangerous, but here in Diemos—the shadows are just as deadly.” Kyros says grimly, looking over my head at Shayd.
“You’re right. We should keep moving.” Shayd agrees. As I turn to follow him, Kyros abruptly stops me by wrapping his hand around my wrist. When I turn to face him, the fury that was on his features a moment ago shifts to deep concern.
“Stay close to me, Shu—” Kyros starts to say his nickname for me but chooses to refrain, then purses his lips with a grunt of frustration.
“Just stay close. Please.” He swallows hard with the plea, something resembling pain entering his eyes.
I don’t like seeing Kyros like this. Seeing him openly displaying his discomfort, his pain makes being angry with him harder to manage.
I am angry. I have to remind myself that it’s him who caused the rift between us and whatever it was we were possibly building.
Pulling my arm from his grip, I nod, and my brows cinch together even tighter.
I am angry with him, furious even. But why does the anger hurt?
Doesn’t he deserve to feel every ounce of what is reflected in his actions?
I force myself to relive the memories of when I learned it was all a lie again, but then I look back at him.
A desperate sort of longing stabs into me.
When he looks at me like that… Every bit of those emotions wants to melt away.
I won’t allow that to happen.
Kyros shakes his head, squeezing his eyes shut for a moment before he ushers me to follow after Shayd, and we walk the narrow path down the hillside toward the city.
Tall grasses on each side mostly hide us from view if anyone were to be looking.
Even so, I feel like I am once again trying to sneak around the palace grounds; only this time, it’s an unknown landscape, with even more unknown danger.
It doesn’t take long to reach the huddled and stacked dwellings.
I’m in awe at the layout of the city. From the hillside, I couldn’t tell just how big the structures were.
Homes built on top of homes, with stairs on the outside and between the buildings.
They are at least four levels high. Awnings on the lower levels are pulled taut and stretched between some areas of the towers, creating covered paths in a winding maze of homes and shops.
The city smells of wet clay, pine, spices, and baked goods.
Although night has fully encroached on the city, there are people still milling about.
It makes me curious about what Kyros said and the shadows being just as dangerous as the Eathian sun.
I wonder what shadows he speaks of because the people don’t seem fazed by the darkness that has settled over the kingdom, the clouds that hang heavily, or the scent of the coming storm that has filled the air.
“Pull your hood lower.” Kyros says in a hushed tone just before a man steps from a door in front of us.
The man eyes us, his weathered skin as rough as bark scrunches tight around his eyes as he narrows them on us.
Perhaps just trying to see us through the dark.
Eyes still lingering, he stretches and spits on the ground a moment before he strikes a match.
The flame dances in front of his face as he lights a pipe with a cloud of smoke as we pass.
The aromatic scent of the dried leaves fills my nose, and I pull my hood a little lower.
I notice how he stands a little straighter just before we pass.
Continuing to peek from my lowered hood, I see the man bend at the hip in a low bow.
Bowing to Kyros. After nodding to the man, Kyros lifts his gaze.
His eyes burrow into mine. The truth of our situation staring at both of us through the other’s gaze.
I force myself to look away.
Did he bow because the people here know he’s king?
Or is it because they know he is the appointed heir of Diemos?
It makes me wonder if Queen Phaedra, too, knows that he is the true King of Eathian…
Do they plan to merge kingdoms? So many questions cloud my mind, and that, along with all the new sights and smells, makes me lost within my own head.
My foot snags on the uneven cobblestone path, and I lurch forward, but before I can fall, Kyros is there.
He catches me by the arm and pulls me into his chest. My breath hitches as my front presses to his.
His arm wraps around my back, and my hood falls away from my face entirely in the sudden movement.
The world seems to stop as we are both frozen within each other’s embrace.
“Careful,” he pauses, looking down at my parted lips.
Our breaths merge as one as he helps me stand up straight.
He adjusts the hood of the cloak, pulling it up over my head to once again conceal my face in shadows.
Whether or not it was intentional, his thumb trails along the side of my face, leaving a searing heat in the wake of the caress.
“Astraea.” He finishes, and though I told him not to use the nickname he has had for me since we met, my skin runs cold hearing him use my true name instead.
A throat clearing in front of us pulls both of us back into the present.
“Just around this corner. We should hurry; the guards’ rounds are going to be pressing in on us any minute.” Shayd says. Kyros grunts out something that could have been an acceptance or just an annoyance of our interrupted moment; either way, I can’t help the way my eyes linger on him.
“He’s right. Plus, I’m sure you want to get cleaned up and get some rest. It’s been a long day and an even longer night.” He says, and I pull my bottom lip into my mouth as I think about everything this birthday has been, and I finally realize just how exhausted I truly am.
Turns out “just around this corner” was actually around the corner…
and walking a long, dark alleyway for about ten minutes before we finally came to a stop in the pathway.
The door is a worn wood that looks as though it may have been painted red at one point, and when Shayd knocks in a series that sounds a lot like the rhythm of a song, a woman cracks the door open an inch.
He steps closer to the opening and whispers with the woman for a moment before she finally opens the door wide. He turns around, pallid eyes roaming over me before flicking to Kyros with a faint smile.
“Kensa will take her to a room while you and I have a conversation.” Shayd says to Kyros behind me.
His eyes drop to mine as I glare at him for once again talking about me like I am not right here.
“If that is okay with you, of course, love.” He smirks, and the urge to slap it from his face warms my skin.
I feel Kyros step closer to me, and his hand hovers at my low back. Looking over my shoulder, I nod.
“I’ll be fine.” I quietly tell Kyros, and I sense, reluctantly, he agrees.
I know my words sound confident, but in reality, I’m terrified, and I really only have the false security of Kyros now.
Lies or not, I do believe he would keep me safe.
At least, the fragments of my heart that hold onto hope feel that way.
All three of us walk past the scantily dressed woman as she shuts the door and locks it with a long piece of wood across the frame. A prickle at the nape of my neck sends my heart into a gallop at the thought of being locked in, but I push it down. I’m sure Diemos has its dangers, just as Eathian.