Page 90

Evander

W e storm up the stairs as quickly as possible.

Bria has her skirts pulled high up on her waist as I nearly drag her behind me.

I have my sword strapped to my side and I can see from here that my dagger is still sheathed to Bria’s upper thigh.

There will be no time to grab the rest of our weapons, our armor and clothes. There’s only time to get out.

Bria killed the captain of the guard. They will find him soon enough.

And my mother, the high priestess, will be expected to explain, to provide some sort of excuse for what happened in the dungeons.

Knowing her, it will likely be the truth—that Bria was too powerful to contain. And then she will be hunted.

Again.

And so will I.

We hit the landing and I slam my hands into the drawbar, jerking it out of the way and spilling us out into the empty stone room.

The light from the sconces hits Bria. She’s splattered in blood, her dress covered in it.

A spray of crimson freckles decorates her face, her chest, and her upper arms. Dirt is jammed under her fingernails and covers the skirts of her gown, the edges of it nearly black. I imagine I don’t look much better.

We stealth out of the room, and I lead her quietly down the hall to a back staircase.

I recall from my time here that this stairwell holds the servants’ access for the various floors of the castle.

We will draw far less attention here than going through the grand foyer looking like this.

There’s a fleeting moment when I wonder if she could cloak us in shadow but think better of it.

Whatever strength remains in this fierce girl at my side will be needed for us to get the fuck out of here.

The stairwell is quiet. It’s now past dinnertime and the servants have cleaned and retired to their own quarters.

I breathe out a heavy sigh of relief at that.

There’s a chance we will be leaving a sea of bodies in our wake, and I would rather avoid killing as many innocents as I can.

I’m sure Bria would agree if I asked her.

As we slowly make our way up the stairs, I turn to Bria. The dim light makes it difficult to see her, but she clasps my hand tightly.

“Keep your hand on your dagger. Be ready to kill anyone you see,” I say, making sure she understands that we can have no witnesses to our escape. The further we get ahead of the king and his men, the better. We cannot risk it. “Don’t hesitate.”

The servants’ stairwell opens to the alcove behind our rooms. I move my finger to press against my lips, urging Bria to be silent. Without a doubt, someone will be guarding the door that leads to Nimai and I hope it is anyone other than Luthais tonight.

I drop her hand and grasp the edge of the doorframe, peering out slightly and catching a glimpse of blond hair. I yank my head quickly back to not be seen.

“Shit!” I curse under my breath.

“Is it Luthais?” Bria questions, keeping her voice a low whisper.

I nod. Does he never fucking sleep?

“It’s okay,” she breathes, her eyes flickering. “I can handle him. You get Nimai.”

She’s right. She can handle him and at some point, I need to trust her to do what we both know she’s capable of.

I’ve witnessed firsthand what her shadows warp into and even more so what she can accomplish with the dead.

And after what my mother said, there’s a chance she can kill him in other ways too.

“Kill him if you need to. Don’t hesitate, Bria. These people are our enemies.”

She lurches onto her toes and slams into me, my back thudding into the cold stone wall. She kisses me forcefully but rips back before I can dive into her and wrap her up in my arms. Her smile is brilliant, all gleaming teeth and blazing eyes. We are getting her sister. And going home.

Bria disappears from my view, her skirts swishing around her. When Luthais spots her, I hear him utter a string of curses, no doubt shocked by her appearance.

“What the fuck happened to you?” he yelps, fear and concern flooding his voice.

But Bria gives no response, and the air begins to thrum, the buzz of her energy rippling through the hallway.

Black mist shrouds the space outside the alcove, drawing a sheer midnight curtain that mutes the light and throws the area into darkness.

I wait and listen until muffled screams indicate it’s time for me to move and I swing around the corner.

Luthais is pinned to the wall, ensconced in a cage of shadow, his mouth bound along with his limbs.

Those gray eyes narrow as he watches me move past him to the door.

Fury radiates from him and the air around his body seems to shudder, though I imagine that must be the swirling mist. We fooled him, and his rage is palpable even through the dark depths of the shadows.

Bria is barely visible through the ebony whorls around her, only noticeable by the wildfire of her eyes flickering through the shadows.

She has this, but I need to be quick about it.

She’ll be drained too soon if she continues to use her power like this and we still need to get to the Gilded Forest and Quinn before we can get out.

I move my hand along the door, gripping the handle and slipping inside, letting it shut quietly behind me.

Nimai is lying on the bed, a book propped in her hands while her head hangs to the side.

I chuckle at the sight. She fell asleep reading a book, completely unaware of what was occurring outside her door, something I can easily see her sister doing as well, if her life were not the shitshow it currently is.

I stride quickly to her to wake her, placing my hand on her shoulder and gently shaking her body.

Nimai groans and my hand stills when I hear it—the scream that pierces my heart. It makes my blood run cold and every hair on my body stand at attention, my limbs freezing for a moment. I’ve heard it before even if I don’t want to recognize it. Too many times to count now.

Bria is hurt, and badly.

Nimai’s eyes flare open and lock on to me. But I’m already moving, turning on my heel and running back to the door, flinging it open to reveal my worst nightmare. The shadows are fading around her, pulling back.

Blood.

There’s so much fucking blood.

It’s pooling around her body as she kneels on the floor in her gown. Bria’s hands are clutching at the wound, trying to stifle the crimson flow of life pouring from her middle.

My eyes fly to Luthais, who is still caged, his eyes wide, his face a pained grimace.

Quickly searching the dark mist for who attacked her, I see the body—a guard on the ground behind her, not moving.

His body is littered with gaping holes, but I see no weapons aside from his own.

He was killed by blades made of dark and destructive shadows that dissipated once their job was done.

But they weren’t quick enough to save her. I wasn’t quick enough to save her.