“I…I hadn’t known that.” I let out a long breath. “And I really don’t know how to feel about that—about anyone watching me when I had no idea.”
“Yeah.” Ector idly scratched his jaw. “Well, I guess it doesn’t help to know that we had good intentions.”
“It does,” I told him. “And it doesn’t—”
A shout from the other side of the courtyard snapped us around. Another yell was heard. I stilled. “What’s going on?”
“I don’t know, but that’s coming from the southern gate.” Ector started forward and then cursed. “Can I trust you to stay here?”
“Sure.”
His eyes narrowed. “I have a feeling I’m going to regret this, but stay here,” he ordered. “I’ll be right back.”
I nodded dutifully as Reaver craned his neck in the direction of the commotion. “I will be right here.”
With one last look of warning, Ector turned and jogged off, disappearing around one of the palace’s swirling turrets.
Kneeling, I pulled Jadis off Reaver. “Sorry,” I said, extending my other arm toward Reaver as she trilled sharply. “But you two are coming with me.”
Reaver’s head snapped back to mine, and his bright crimson eyes narrowed.
“I have a feeling you listen to orders about as well as I do,” I said. “But I’m hoping you come along with me. I want to be nosy and see what’s going on. Don’t you?”
He glanced toward the southern front and then nodded as Jadis climbed my left arm. I rose, hoping she held on as I turned. Reaver got a bit of a running start and then lifted into the air, flying beside where Jadis had perched herself. With him there, Jadis calmed, stretching her neck to rest her little head beside Reaver’s talons. We rounded the west side of the palace, and I kept close to the walls, passing several guards on the ground, who sent long looks in my direction. This was the first time I’d been around most of them as I’d only ever seen the bulk of them on the Rise. As far as I knew, none of them entered the palace.
Up ahead, the southern gates were closing. A group had gathered before them around a wagon, and I immediately found Ector in the crowd. He leaned into the back of the wagon. Beside him was Rhahar.
“We found her about a mile from Mount Rhee. Orphine spotted her,” Rhahar said while I crept forward, peering between those gathered. A sharp swirl of tingles spread out from my chest, causing my breath to catch. The answering, throbbing warmth caused me to stop. There was a bundled shape in the back of the wagon.
Rhahar ran a hand over his closely cropped hair. “We were closer to her than the Healers. I had Orphine go for help, but…you can see for yourself. It doesn’t look good.”
Ector’s shoulders stiffened as he reached into the wagon. “No. It doesn’t.” He leaned in, gathering the bundle in his arms. He turned, looking past me, and then his gaze shot back. “Of course, you didn’t listen.”
I started to answer, but then I saw the woman wrapped in a blanket—first, the thin, limp arm and then the delicate blood-smeared fingers and broken nails.
Good gods.
Bile climbed up my throat as the warmth in my chest pulsed once more. Her face was a mass of swollen, blood-streaked skin—flesh split open over the cheeks and forehead. The lips were torn, the nose pushed to an angle, obviously broken. “Who…who is that?”
“Gemma,” Ector bit out through a clenched jaw.
I was frozen in sickening horror. Ector strode past me, a muscle flexing in his jaw as he crossed under one of the staircases. I turned to see Aios step out into the courtyard. She jerked to a stop, clasping a hand over her throat. “Is that…?” Her gaze shot to Rhahar. “Was it Shades?”
“Looks like it,” Rhahar answered.
Aios snapped into motion. “I’ll grab some towels and supplies. You’re taking her to the side chamber?”
“Yes.” Ector looked over his shoulder at Rhahar as Aios wheeled around, quickly darting back under another staircase. “Get Nyktos.”
“On it.” The god rushed off.
“Sera,” Ector said as he passed me, heading toward the door two armored men held open. “You need to return to your chambers.”
I should.
I definitely should, especially since that warmth was spreading across my chest, invading my blood much like it had when I spotted the wounded silver hawk, but stronger and more intense. Whatever instinct had been given life inside me along with this gift warned me that Gemma…this Chosen, was dying. I could feel my gift sparking. I needed to be as far away as possible.
But I followed Ector as we entered a narrow hall, Jadis’s talons tightening on my shoulder, Reaver flying ahead. I followed because this wasn’t fair. I didn’t know this woman, but I knew that she had spent her life behind a veil, caged and groomed. And for what? To be handed over to gods who would abuse her? It wasn’t fair.
A door opened, and a light came on, casting a harsh glow over walls where several bundles of herbs hung, drying. Ector laid Gemma on the table, his movements careful, but she groaned.
“Sorry,” he said softly, easing his arm out from under her as he brushed away several strands of blood-soaked hair that could’ve been a strawberry color or lighter when clean. The blanket parted, and I sucked in a sharp breath, seeing that the front of her blouse was drenched with blood—from the ragged wounds along her throat, her chest…
Ector’s head jerked up, his swirling silver eyes fixing on me. “You really shouldn’t be in here.”
I stepped back and Jadis chirped softly. I opened my mouth, but I couldn’t find words as I stared at her. A keening sense of…purpose filled me as Reaver stood in the corner of the chamber, tucking his wings back.
“Good gods,” a hoarse voice interrupted. I looked over to see the goddess Lailah entering through a different door, her black braids swept back in a knot. She took a step back, a grayish pallor settling into her rich brown skin. “Fucking Shades.”
“Yeah,” Ector growled as Lailah’s brother appeared.
Theon stopped, his nostrils flaring as his features hardened, locking down…and the center of my chest exploded with heat, much like it did when—
I sucked in a sharp breath as my gaze swiveled back to Gemma. “She…she’s dead.”
“You don’t know that,” Ector shot back. “There is no—” His words cut off sharply as he looked down at her. His arms fell to the sides.
I was right. Even though nothing about her appeared to have changed, I knew in my bones that she had passed, just as I’d known that the hawk had only been injured. The warmth in my chest was a powerful hum, invading my blood. Jadis trilled, louder this time, her wings lifting and brushing the back of my neck and head. Reaver lifted his head, calling from his corner and drawing the twins’ attention.
“What is going on with them?” Theon asked.
“I…I don’t know.” Slowly, Ector pulled his gaze from the draken to where Jadis did the same from my shoulder. “I’ve never seen them do this.”
Rhain was the first to arrive from court, his curse lost in the draken’s sound. The vibrating heat…it was striking against an…an instinct. One I’d never felt this powerfully before. My stomach dipped with unease as Jadis nudged her head against the back of mine. Reaver called to the female draken, and in the back of my mind, I wondered if they’d somehow sensed whatever was building inside me. If they could feel it.
Jadis started to climb down, and I had enough presence to stop her from jumping. I caught hold of her squirming body, lowering her to the floor. She rushed over to Reaver, pressing against his side and under one wing.
I had to do something. It would expose my gift, and I didn’t know what kind of consequences that would bring. But I’d stood by and let her die when I could have stopped that. I could’ve healed her. I couldn’t stand by now.
Rhain was speaking, saying something about Ash and Saion seemingly appeared out of nowhere, going to the table. He stared down at Gemma, shaking his head as I walked forward. I went to the table,
feeling my senses opening and stretching. Closer to the woman, I could now see through the blood and mangled skin that she couldn’t be much older than me.
“You…you’re glowing,” Ector rasped, and Saion’s head jerked up. The twins turned to me.
A faint, silvery-white glow had seeped out from the sleeves of my gown to lap at my hands.
“What in the actual fuck?” Theon whispered.
I inhaled deeply—taking in the scent of lilacs. Freshly bloomed lilacs. And that smell…it was coming from me. Someone spoke, but I didn’t know who or what they said. Couldn’t hear them over the humming in my ears and the urge…this calling that sank deep into my muscles, overriding any thought. I was aware of Lailah and Theon stepping back, of Saion and Ector staring in stunned silence.
“Sera,” Ash’s voice cracked through the hum.
I looked up. He stood in the doorway, Rhahar behind him. The Primal’s eyes were wide, a brilliant shade of silver, and the tendrils of eather swirling through the irises were bright—as luminous as the glow radiating from my hands.
He appeared frozen in disbelief like the others, rooted to where he stood as the humming warmth continued spreading through me.
My heart started to trip over itself. I couldn’t pull it back—push it down or turn away as I’d been able to do in the past. “I can’t stand by and do nothing,” I whispered, even though he had no idea what I was talking about. He didn’t know about this. I’d never told him. And maybe I should’ve, but it was too late now.
Reaver cried again, the sound staggered in the otherwise silent room. Ector swore under his breath as the silvery-white eather swirled around my fingers. Throat dry and pulse racing, I placed my trembling hand on Gemma’s arm.
“Holy shit,” Saion whispered as he bumped into the wall. Herbs swayed above him. “You feel that, right? We all feel this.”
I didn’t know what Saion was talking about. And I also didn’t wish for anything. I didn’t have the clarity to do so in the whirling storm that was my thoughts.
The shimmering light flowed from my fingers and settled over Gemma in a bright, intense wave. My breath caught as the eather seeped into her skin, filling her veins until they became visible, a spidery network coming alive along her too-pale flesh and across the bruised, torn skin.
“What the…?” Aios entered the room, holding a basin of water to her chest. She jerked to a halt, slowly lowering the bowl.
The silvery light flared as intensely as sunlight on a summer’s day all along Gemma’s skin. Her chest rose with a deep, shuddering breath that seemed to roll through her entire body. I lifted my hand. The glow throbbed and then softened, slowly fading until…
Underneath the blood, her skin had smoothed and stitched itself back together across cheeks now pink with color. The tear along her forehead had healed, leaving only a rosy line behind. The wound at her throat had sealed, leaving only a ridged scar of puncture marks. Gemma’s eyes fluttered open. Brown. She looked straight at me, and then her eyes closed. Her chest now rose and fell slowly, her breathing deep as she slept, healed lips parted with another steady exhale.
“You,” Ash whispered, his deep voice hoarse. I looked over at him, and I…I’d never seen him so stunned, so exposed. “You carry an ember of life.”
Chapter 34
Ember of life.
You carry the ember of life in you, Sir Holland’s voice whispered through me. You carry hope within you. You carry the possibility of a future.
Reaver called out again, making that strange, staggered sound, echoed by Jadis. From outside the palace, a deeper call answered in a chorus that rattled the herbs hanging from the walls.
The only one who appeared able to move was Aios. She came to the table, placing the basin on the surface. Glancing over at me, she checked Gemma’s pulse. “She’s definitely alive.”
“That’s it,” Ash spoke, the shadows spinning dizzily under his skin. I looked over at him and saw only him. Saw the disbelief give way to wonder—wonder that turned into something powerful and bright, something like hope. My chest tightened until I wasn’t sure how I breathed. “That’s what he did.”
“Fuck,” Saion uttered, and I thought he might need to sit down.
“Did what?” Theon asked as I pressed a hand to my chest. “Who did what?”
Ash straightened to his full height. His gaze remained fixed on me. “No one speaks about what they saw in this room. No one. Gemma wasn’t as wounded as previously believed. She will be told the same. Cross me on this, and I will spend an eternity ensuring that you regret that choice. Does everyone understand?”
His words lifted the shock from the room. One by one, each god showed that they clearly understood.
“Good.” Ash still hadn’t taken his eyes off me. “Theon? Lailah? Please take Gemma to one of the rooms on the second floor.”
The twins moved forward to obey the Primal’s request. Both sent cautious looks in my direction—looks tinged with wariness and marvel. I watched Theon carefully lift the sleeping Gemma into his arms.
Lailah grabbed the basin. “To clean her up,” she said. “She’s going to need it.”
“Thank you,” Ash said, his gaze still boring into me. A wave of tiny bumps spread across my skin. “Ector?”
The god cleared his throat. “Y-Yes?”
“Make sure the guards on the Rise are at all four corners and at the bay. Then make sure those at the Crossroads know to alert us at once if anyone arrives from another Court. Go now,” Ash ordered, his focus still on me. “And go fast.”
Alarm raced through me as Ector left at once. “Why…why are you doing that?”
Shadows continued gathering under Ash’s skin as he kept staring at me. “I felt what you just did. All of us did.”
“We all did, too,” Nektas’s voice startled me. I looked up to see him entering through the hall I’d come through. He was shirtless, his long crimson-streaked hair windblown. His flesh appeared…harder than before, the ridges of scales more defined. Had he just shifted?
I watched Jadis peel away from Reaver’s side and rush toward her father. He bent and picked her up. “I don’t understand.”
“That was a ripple of power,” Ash said, and my attention shifted back to him. I stepped back from the table, from where Gemma’s blood pooled. “One hell of a ripple of power, liessa. One that will most likely be felt through all of Iliseeum by many gods and Primals. There is no doubt in my mind that others will come searching for the source.”
My stomach twisted. “I…I didn’t know it caused a ripple of power. I assume that’s a bad thing?”
“Depends on who felt it.” A predatory edge had settled into Ash’s features. “It could be a very bad thing.”
I opened my mouth and reached for my dagger. Through the gown, I pressed my hand against the hilt. “When will we know if it is a very bad thing?”
Ash had tracked my movements, and his smile held a cold savageness. “Soon.” He took a step toward me. “That wasn’t the first time you did that, was it?”
I locked up.
“Liessa,” Ash all but purred, his chin dropping as he slowly rounded the table. I glanced quickly at the other gods and draken, but I doubted any of them would intervene. “I’ve felt that before. Over the years. Never that strongly, and I didn’t know what it was. Couldn’t even exactly pinpoint where it was coming from.”
I stiffened. He…he’d felt it before?
“And I know for a damn fact that I wasn’t the only one who felt it before,” he said, shadows starting to gather and move under the table, drifting toward him. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Nektas motion for Reaver to come to him. “The night at the lake, liessa. I felt it earlier that day. I felt it the night before I came for you.” The area behind him began to thicken enough that I could no longer see Nektas. “And I felt it recently, the day you went into the Red Woods and the entombed gods broke ground.”
My heart pounded fast.
“The Hunters…they came
for you twice that I know of,” Ash said, and I jolted. “Yes.” He nodded. “That is what they must be searching for. And I bet that is what Cressa and the other two gods are also looking for.”
“What?” My chest twisted. “You said it was—”
“That was what I thought until now.” Ash was only a few feet from me, the shadows behind him taking the shape of wings. “Now, I know they were searching for the source of the ripple of power, and somehow the mortals got mixed up in it.”
“Why? Why would they care? Why would they hurt them if they believed it had been them?”
“Because that kind of ripple should not be felt in the mortal realm.” His swirling eyes met mine. “Or even in Iliseeum. If I had felt it in any other part of Iliseeum, any part that was closer to the mortal realm, it would’ve drawn me out, too. Because the kind of power I just felt now? Many would take that as a threat.” He shook his head. “You are so incredibly lucky, liessa.”
I didn’t feel very lucky right then.
“Why did you not tell me about this?” When I said nothing, his head tilted. “Don’t go quiet on me now, liessa.” An achingly cold smile crossed his features. I gritted my teeth. “Where is all that foolish bravery of yours?”
“Maybe you’re scaring her,” Aios suggested from somewhere behind the pulsing shadow wings.
“No. Sera doesn’t scare that easily.” Ash stood in front of me, so close that I tasted citrus and fresh air when I breathed. I tipped my head back. “Sera knows very little of fear. Isn’t that right, liessa?”
“Right,” I managed to force out.
His skin thinned as his head dipped. Icy breath coasted over my cheek. “Then why didn’t you tell me about this little talent of yours?”
“Because you’re the Primal of Death,” I snapped. “And I didn’t think you’d appreciate knowing I’d stolen souls from you. That’s the truth. So back off.”
Someone made a choked sound, but Ash…gods, he laughed, and that sound was full of dark smoke. “So, you have brought someone back to life before.”
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