Page 29 of A Court of Truth and Thorns (Royal Scout #2)

KALI

M y body reacts before I do, slipping a knife free into my palm.

Bahir steps out from behind the Eye, his voice clear and booming.

“It takes a special kind of imbecile to climb atop this roof.” The bishop pats the glowing orb and rests his palm on its belly, as if soothing a beloved pet.

A band of dark, intricate glass covers his eyes.

His red robes and black hair billow in the wind.

He wags a finger at me, his heavy ring shimmering like a mirror.

The same ring that sent a shock of pain through me at King Firehorn’s dinner party.

“You’ve angered the Goddess now. Her gift is not so tame anymore. ”

I throw my knife into Bahir’s chest. It slams against an invisible wall and skids harmlessly to the floor.

With a flick of his boot, Bahir kicks my dagger off the edge. “I wonder whether you can do better than that, little mage. And whether you are worth breaking to bridle.”

Rune shifts his weight in a way I know too well, his fingers tightening around the hilt of his sword .

“Don’t,” I yell at him, my eyes on the black powder he hugs to his body.

“She’s right, princeling,” Bahir croons. “Some of that powder is still dry enough. Jar the keg around and it will spark. Your entrails will rain down on Delta before you get close enough to nick me with your toy.”

Rune grinds his jaw. “We know the Eye is unstable without the whisperers,” he says, his voice too reasonable for the madness around us.

Time. He is giving me time. I slide carefully sideways toward Bahir’s blind spot.

Rune tilts his blade, catching the light on its gleaming surface.

“You must know it too, Bahir. You must want control of Dansil’s people, not their corpses. ”

“I want nothing,” Bahir snaps. “I am but a vessel of the Goddess’s will.”

I slide another inch. Then another.

“My mistake,” says Rune, “but wouldn’t your Goddess, too, prefer her disciples alive?”

Another shift of weight. I’m three paces from Bahir’s free hand. I slip another dagger into my palm. Another few heartbeats and, if Bahir keeps his head still, I’ll slip past the edge of his vision.

“Bahir!” Rune’s voice booms as if shouting across a field of battle. “Help us save your Goddess’s people!”

“I think you’ve helped quite enough.” Bahir throws his hand out toward me. A spear of flame materializes at my throat, its tip scorching my skin.

I freeze.

“Set the powder down, boy,” Bahir instructs Rune. “And uncover it.”

“No!” I yell. Rune’s eyes lock on my throat and the crisp burn spreading across my skin. “No,” I say again .

But he tightens his jaw and obeys Bahir’s command. “Let her go,” he demands.

“Now, remove the fuse,” says Bahir. When Rune hesitates, the glowing spear at my throat traces the line of my jaw.

I stiffen against the pain, the stench of burned flesh filling my nostrils. Rune removes the fuse, which falls away harmlessly from the quickly soaking powder. My heart sinks.

Rune turns his face to Bahir. “Let her go.”

“I’ve not yet determined her to be a lost cause,” Bahir purrs.

Rune’s face darkens. He steps toward Bahir, his chest out. “You need the whisperers back to stabilize the Eye. Kalianna plotted their course. Send her to fetch them and keep me as collateral.”

My eyes widen, my face snapping to Rune’s. “Have you lost your mind?”

“Children!” Bahir holds up his hand, the spear at my throat not wavering a hair. “No need for squabbles. I believe my men are bright enough to follow ribbons without your expertise.” Reaching into his pocket, Bahir pulls out one of my markers.

My breath catches, my lungs unable to fill themselves as I stare at the bit of cloth in his fingers.

“Come out, my lady,” Bahir calls, holding out his ringed hand.

Violet steps out from behind the Eye. Taking the offered hand, she kisses the ring before intertwining her small fingers with his.

The dark band around her eyes, a sibling to Bahir’s, hides little of her face.

“I admit I little believed Princess Raza at first.” Violet tilts her head, studying Rune’s pale face.

“It was such an unlikely story. But when I learned there was an attack on the abbey, it seemed wise to seek the Messenger’s guidance. ”

I shake my head, no words coming to my tongue.

“Renounce the Dark God,” Violet’s young voice rings through the air. “Accept the Goddess into your heart, Lady Kalianna. Cleanse yourself of your sins, Prince Rune. Choose to live. Choose to save your soul.”

“Open your eyes, Violet,” I hiss. “The Order kills people. Ask your Messenger about the Drought.”

The spear at my throat dips to brand my collarbone, and I howl.

Violet’s hand tightens in Bahir’s. “It’s a necessary price for our fertile fields and kind weather.

Those who’ve accepted the Goddess into their hearts and borne their children beneath the Order’s sanctuary suffer no ill effects.

Only those who refuse to hear the Messenger’s word suffer the Goddess’s wrath. ”

I grind my teeth. “Violet, your father—”

“Stop.” She thrusts her free palm toward me.

“Listen to me. You are still alive because the Messenger believes your soul not yet lost to the Dark God. The battle between the Dark God’s evil and the Goddess’s love is waging within you this very moment.

Choose the side of love, Kalianna. Swear your allegiance to the Goddess and let the Messenger guide and train you to serve her will. ”

I stare at Violet’s eyes beyond the darkened glass of her visor. Large, determined, lashes as long as Wil’s. My friend’s little sister. My cousin. The girl who betrayed us all.

Violet’s lips move, though no words come from her mouth.

Kali. Kali. Kali.

My brows twitch.

No! Don’t move. Leaf said you can read lips.

Violet takes a sharp breath. Her free hand curls around her skirt in a white-knuckle grip.

Despite the wind and rain, her skin looks flushed.

My heart slams against my ribs. I stay frozen except for a small, nervous glance at Rune and Bahir.

Uncertain. Considering. It’s all I can do to buy Violet a few moments to find her words.

Whether those words can be trusted is another matter.

I’ve been watching. I think Bahir’s ring is his key, Violet’s lips say silently. Maybe it can be yours. The next moment, Violet turns her hand in Bahir’s grip, grabs the ring, and yanks it off his finger.

The spear of flame at my throat falters. Violet goes to throw the ring but crumples to the ground mid-step, her body convulsing.

I sprint toward her as Rune rushes Bahir, the prince’s sword raised high. The moment my skin touches the ring clutched in Violet’s spasming fingers, bees shoot out across my skin. The ring must be akin to a stim crystal—one that’s stopping Violet’s heart.

The agony in the girl’s eyes spills over us. The bones of her small fingers threaten to break under my attempts to pry open her fist and remove the ring from its grip.

I force my breathing to slow, bracing myself for the influx of the ring’s magic. It comes, but not in the way I expect. Magic siphons into my body, coating my nerves like oil, and stops. No replenishment of my reserves, no diversion from Violet’s assault.

Whatever in the rutting hells this ring is, it’s unlike anything I’ve felt before.

Violet’s lips darken from lack of blood and air.

I scrape my palm open on the rough stone, but even the direct contact with my blood changes nothing.

Clenching my teeth, I ignore the crack of bone as I force the ring from Violet’s grip.

I slide it onto my finger at the same moment as Bahir bellows my name.

I jerk my head up.

For the first time since stepping foot on the roof, Bahir is away from the Eye. He stands now with one arm pointed at Rune, who’s standing too close to the platform’s edge .

Rune bends against an unnatural concoction of wind and rain that drives him backward toward death.

“The Goddess’s sacred gift is not for you, Kalianna,” Bahir roars at me, his wind forcing Rune back another step. Then another. “Return it now or the boy’s life is forfeit.”

Panic washes over me. A barrel of black powder topples onto its side, taking the other one down with it.

I watch them roll off the roof as if in slow motion.

What dry powder remained in their bellies sparks at the collision with the cobblestones below.

The boom of the small explosion echoes through the streets.

Our one means of breaking apart the Eye, gone in a flash.

“The ring, girl!” Bahir turns his palm up. “Throw it to me.”

“No!” Rune shouts.

My mouth dries. I raise the hand with the ring to my face, staring between the artifact and the bishop.

Despite wearing the ring, my reserves remain empty.

Perhaps Violet was wrong when she thought the ring valuable enough to risk her life for.

Or maybe the ring and I are simply incompatible.

Perhaps that oily sheen that covers my innards is the final mark of my failure.

Perhaps the ring is useless to me. Rune is not.

“Don’t do it,” Rune yells. His sword is gone. His arms try and fail to stave off Bahir’s assault. Silver hair, damp with rain, whips in Rune’s face. “Don’t give him anything.”

Bahir wheels on Rune. With the next heartbeat, Rune loses his footing. His body skids toward the edge of the platform, fingers grasping for purchase. His head strikes the gargoyle, and his body goes slack for a moment before toppling over.

The world ends. I scream, falling to my knees.