Chapter 32
KALLIE
"Drop the blade."
Kallie’s grip unfurled around the hilt, and it slipped from her hand.
The dagger bounced on the ground, then fell flat beside Domitius' knees. She tried to move, tried to snatch the dagger. But she couldn’t.
Her limbs were too heavy, as if dozens of weights were tied to the ends of them, cementing her in place.
Domitius smiled as he stood, the curve of his lips sinister and victorious.
"Kalisan—" Graeson started, but his shout was cut short, as if the words were shoved down his throat.
In the corner of her eye, Kallie saw the masked guard hold out his hands, his stance widening. Before she could see what the guard was doing, Domitius snatched her by the chin.
"We could have been spectacular together," Domitius said, his fingers digging into her cheeks as he forced her head up. His lip curled in disgust, and he shoved her face away. "Now, turn around. I want you to see what happens when you betray me."
As if her legs had a mind of their own, Kallie turned, obeying Domitius' command.
What was happening? Why was she listening to him? Why did she drop that godsforsaken dagger? This was not the plan. Domitius wasn’t her. He couldn’t—
Kallie choked on a gasp as she stared at Graeson, Ellie, and Lysanthia in horror. Her breathing became shallow; her heartbeat stuttered.
It wasn’t possible.
She had to be wrong.
But before she could process the truth staring her in the face, Domitius spoke.
"Take off your helmet," he ordered.
With his right hand, the guard to her right reached for his helmet while keeping his other hand in front of him, as if he was shielding himself. He peeled his helmet off, and the metal clunked to the ground.
Kallie’s brows twisted. She recognized that face. Those brown eyes, those short, tight curls. But where had she seen him?
"Moris?" Graeson choked out the guard’s name as if it was a struggle.
Moris?
Another gasp filled her throat.
The Pontian who had accompanied them the first time to Ardentol, the one who had paralyzed her. He was here. He was one of them.
"Didn’t anyone ever tell you never to leave a man behind?" Domitius questioned, looking at Graeson.
"Y-you were dead," Graeson said. The veins on his neck were prominent, as if he too was straining against the poison lacing the air that prevented them from moving.
"My men got to him just in time before he bled out on the floor in the temple on the day of the wedding," Domitius said.
"I was minutes away from disposing of him, but then he showed me how useful he could be.
I decided to give him another chance at life, a reward for being the first. Paralysis truly is a remarkable gift.
" Domitius looked down at Kallie and smiled.
"I never got to thank the handmaiden before she ran out.
A pity, really. She did a splendid job."
Kallie tried to speak, tried to scream, but her body was still frozen, rock solid, Moris’ power drenching her.
"Chain her," Domitius commanded.
Moris yanked Kallie’s hands behind her back. A cold, heavy weight was dropped onto her wrists, the sound of manacles clicking together, solidifying her fate.
Kallie could barely comprehend anything that was happening as she watched Domitius stroll toward Graeson, two of the guards trailing behind him, their wings fluttering in the wind.
Domitius glanced back at her, curiosity sparkling in his brown eyes. "Is it still true you cannot penetrate his mind, Kalisandre?"
Kallie growled, her voice stuck in her throat. Her bones vibrated with rage as she fought against Moris' power. But no matter how hard she tried, she failed.
Domitius rolled his eyes. "Speak," he commanded.
The words poured from her mouth in a rush. "Let him go!"
But she found that while she could speak, she was still paralyzed. Invisible shackles tethered her to the ground. Her gaze locked onto Graeson. Fear rippled between them as the two guards flanked him, Ellie, and his mother.
"Answer my question," Domitius demanded.
"I will not manipulate him!" she blurted.
"Will not or cannot?" Domitius asked. He was only a few yards away from Graeson and the others now. "The difference matters."
Kallie’s gaze flicked to Ellie. Their gazes connected, a tense exchange passing between them in a matter of seconds. Kallie’s ability stirred within her. The command hung on the tip of her tongue, but she didn’t get a chance to release it.
"Silence, Kalisandre."
Her mouth snapped shut.
"Disappointing," Domitius said, shaking his head. Kallie could almost feel his sigh brush her cheek. He shrugged. "Then again, you’ve always been a disappointment."
He turned his attention to Graeson. "But with you, there is so much more potential, isn’t there? A half-god, I’ve been told. And according to your mother, one that hasn’t touched half of his power."
Kallie’s gaze shot to Lysanthia, who stood beside Graeson. But Kallie couldn’t make out the expression on the seer’s face. Had they been wrong this entire time? Had Lysanthia betrayed them? Was this all some ploy?
"Tell me," Domitius asked, as the two guards unsheathed their swords, "is a god still a god if he bends the knee to a mortal king?"
Graeson’s gaze flicked to Kallie briefly before returning to the king. Vitriol and hate spilled from every bone and muscle in his body. "I will never bow down to you."
"Never say never," Domitius warned, his voice sending a sickening chill skittering down Kallie’s spine. He grabbed Graeson by the jaw, his fingers indenting Graeson’s cheeks. "You will bend the knee."
Graeson’s nose twitched.
Hope fluttered in Kallie’s chest. Even if Domitius had stolen Kallie’s power, Graeson was stronger than Domitius knew. Stronger than them all. He could fight this. His mind could not be—
No. No. No! Kallie screamed internally.
It wasn’t possible, yet the bend in Graeson’s knees was indisputable. They hit the ground with a loud thump, the earth quaking as they did.
A gasp bubbled up in Kallie’s throat as she watched Graeson’s head fall down in penance. His jet-black hair fell in streaks across his face, casting his expression in deep shadows.
It shouldn’t have been possible. Kallie had never been able to manipulate Graeson. His mind was impenetrable. Yet there Domitius stood, victorious.
"Chain him," Domitius called out.
When neither of the guards moved, confusion twisted Kallie’s expression. Then horror consumed her as the last person she suspected shifted.
Lysanthia stepped forward, tears streaming down her sunken cheeks. She dug into her pocket and pulled out a key. With a twist, the chains around her wrists came undone. Graeson didn’t move an inch as his mother approached.
Lysanthia reached out to her son, pulling his hands behind his back with long, nimble fingers. She placed the chains around his wrists, and the iron manacles snapped together with a finality that nearly shattered Kallie’s heart.
Domitius snapped his fingers, and the other guard stepped closer to Ellie. He pressed the tip of his sword into her back, and Ellie blanched in horror.
"I gave you a chance, Kalisandre. Many chances, in fact," Domitius said. "Instead, you planned to best me. Did I not teach you anything when you were under my roof?"
Kallie’s entire body trembled. She no longer knew if she was kneeling because of her own crumbling strength or because of Moris' power.
"Did you truly think I would not see through that flimsy little proposal?
You should have known better. I taught you better.
Although you always were more arrogant than your ability and knowledge deserved.
But you see, you have made a grave miscalculation.
I no longer need you." Domitius bent down behind Graeson. Grabbing him by a chunk of hair, he wrenched Graeson’s head back.
"Now, let us see the true power of a god. "