Page 222 of A Vow of Embers

I took a step back. How could she have sat here while Artemisia murdered everyone, even her own adelphia? She had broken all bonds of sisterhood, violated every law. Why?

Never again.

I remembered the words that Antiope had roared at us here in this room on my first day, the ones every woman here had shouted back.

Never again!

They had trained and trained to protect themselves from men. To not ever be taken again, to prevent any of us from being violated, abused, or harmed.

But they had been killed by a threat they had never seen coming.

One from inside the temple.

Their own sister.

“Why would she let you live?” I asked.

“Professional courtesy?” Her lips curved up into a mocking smile. “I’m not sure I understand why you’re so angry with me. I didn’t kill anyone.”

“You stood by and let Artemisia do this. How can you not care that she murdered your sisters?”

The smile faded and her eyes were dark and angry. “I had one sister that your ancestor took from me. Caring brought me nothing but suffering and grief. I haven’t cared about anything in a very long time. Certainly not about any of the women here.”

All the priestesses and acolytes had been expendable in her eyes. Their deaths meant nothing to her.

Furious, Suri advanced with her daggers drawn, intending to kill Lysimache. I grabbed her left wrist and stopped her.

“Not yet,” I said lowly. We needed answers. Even if the eye was gone, people I loved were in danger. Whoever Artemisia answered to, that was the true enemy. We had to find out who that was.

Lysimache smiled again. “After you’ve been alive as long as I have, you have a very clear understanding of human nature. You can see whatmotivates a person. Can easily recognize someone who is consumed by hatred. A need for vengeance. Someone who shares your goals.”

“Goals?” I echoed.

“The complete and utter destruction of Ilion and Locris. And Artemisia was also clever enough to have a plan to accomplish those goals.”

My heart thundered in response to her words. It wasn’t just Ilion that was under threat. Locris was also on that list.

“Why would you want to destroy Ilion and Locris?”

Lysimache only stared at me, not answering my question. If she was Kysandra’s sister, then I understood her hatred of Locris.

But why Ilion?

She finally responded, “You should know that you played an important part in our scheme, Princess Thalia.”

In shock, my gaze flew back to hers. “What?”

“In order for her plan to work, the leaders and the citizens of this country needed to be distracted. What works better than a royal wedding? Especially a wedding that throws the palace into chaos as people vie for the position of king. I was the one who originally came up with the idea of having a council choose the next ruler. When I instituted it, I never imagined that it would someday work so well in my favor.”

That was why she had agreed to let me marry Xander? It had been part of a plan?

“When the prince came to demand that you marry him, it was difficult not to laugh. It was perfect. I couldn’t have planned it better myself. The fact that you hate him so much only made it better.”

“Why would my feelings about him matter?” I asked.

“You’re a filthy Locrian that I was already planning on killing. The only flaw to allowing you to marry the prince was that you were away when Artemisia culled the temple.”

It wasn’t just because I was Locrian—I was Aianteioi. A descendant of Ajax the Lesser, the man who had violated and killed her sister. That was why she had enjoyed doing something that would hurt me.