Page 103 of Eryx

“Why do you stare?” he asked, meeting my curious gaze.

“Why do you take out your frustration on a helpless strand of grass?”

A smile touched his lips at my teasing tone. “I cannot make sense of my thoughts, Ery.”

“Speak them to me,” I said, placing my hand on his leg. “We carry the burden together. Remember?”

Axios released a sharp breath and laid his head on my shoulder. “I miss the way the wind moved through the olive trees. I miss our youths and wonder how Demetrius and Cassius are faring under Nikias’ instruction. Gods, Ery, I miss our home.” He turned his face against my skin, and I felt warm tears fall down my arm. “For so many years, I dreamed of leaving Sparta. And now I only wish to return.”

I slid my fingers through his and gently squeezed his hand. “You will return to Sparta and see the olive trees again. I swear this to you.”

It was an oath I’d keep, no matter the cost.

Chapter Twenty-One

Battle of Olynthus

By the time the army reached Potidaea, we were ten thousand men strong. General Teleutias had summoned soldiers from our allies, including Thebes and Macedon. He had also sent messengers to Derdas, the Thracian king, and insisted that he also provide aid, for the rising power of Olynthus would threaten him as well. Derdas agreed and joined the cause with four hundred cavalry men.

Once in Potidaea, we were joined by the Spartan commander Eudamidas and his unit of warriors.

I was confident in our numbers. Olynthus did not stand a chance against us. Axios believed differently, and tossed and turned with worry the night before the battle. I was not arrogant enough to think we were invincible, yet I believed in our abilities as men of Sparta. There was no greater force in all of the Greek world.

Axios turned yet again and blew out a shaky breath, his back to me.

“Ax, I can sense you overthinking,” I whispered at his nape. “Turn and face me.”

He hesitated before turning around. The dark room provided little light, but the moon streaming in through the window lit his face enough for me to see the worry creasing his brow. At first, he only stared at me, as if his wandering gaze was memorizing every detail of my face.

“I fear losing you,” Axios admitted, tears surfacing in his eyes. “It is a thing I have said many times, but I fear it even more as we lay here, facing battle with the arrival of dawn.”

“You trust me, do you not?” I asked, gliding a hand across his stomach. “If so, hear these words and hold them close whenever you are in the clutches of doubt. You and I willneverpart, my warrior. In this life and the next, we will be just as we have forever been: side by side. There is not a thing that can take me from you, neither the slashing of a sword nor the impalement from a spear, for I willalwaysfind you.”

“Swear it, Ery,” he said with an intense stare.

I leaned forward to nuzzle my nose against his before pulling back and taking his face into my hands, allowing myself to be vulnerable. “By the gods, I swear it.”

Our lips softly met, sealing the oath and strengthening the thread connecting us.

“You must sleep,” I said, breaking the kiss. “Morning comes early and you need your rest.”

He softly smiled. “Will you stay beside me?”

I wondered why he’d ask such a ridiculous question. But then a memory surfaced. On the first night I had ever spoken to him, I had brought him bread in the barracks and spoken those exact words to him. He had then asked me to stay with him. Little had I known at the time how much he’d come to mean to me.

“Yes,” I answered, before pressing my lips to his forehead.

Even in death, I would be with him.

***

At dawn, we woke, dressed in our armor, and gathered our weapons before marching on Olynthus. It was an eight-mile trek from Potidaea. We stopped our advance about a mile from the city’s gates and waited for our next order.

Breath filled the air, visible like puffs of smoke, as the cold morning licked our flesh. And there was silence, apart from the cavalry men’s horses hoofing the ground.

The commanders spoke in private at the front of the lines before relaying their plan of attack. The units commanded by Teleutias and Derdas formed on the left side and faced the city gates. General Eudamidas moved his men to the right side, along with the Theban and Macedonian troops.

“Why is Teleutias shifting the formation?” Axios whispered, as the general instructed men to alternate positions in the line.