Page 104 of Lady of Starfire (Lady of Darkness #5)

“There are not mortals where you come from?” Callan asked, moving with the seraph as he began to circle.

The seraph smirked. “My world is not a place for mortals. They are not even worthy of menial tasks there.”

“Then it seems to me you should not be making assumptions about a people you know nothing about,” he replied, noting that the seraph’s left wing appeared slightly injured, and he favored his left side.

The seraph scoffed. “Mortals rarely have purpose. You, however, are in luck. You do serve a purpose today.”

“Is it rescuing innocent people? Because if so, that purpose has been achieved,” Callan retorted, still tracking the seraph.

“I will let my commander deal with you for that stunt,” the seraph gritted out.

“So you do nothing then? From what I gathered earlier, you simply follow orders.”

“On second thought, I’ll detain you myself,” the seraph snarled, drawing his own blade. “Then maybe I won’t have to answer to the commander anymore.”

Callan knew he wouldn’t be able to keep the male talking for long, but he had succeeded in getting under his skin.

It made him impulsive with his attacks, which also made them easier to predict.

He dodged the first swing, spinning to the right.

The momentum of the swing kept the seraph propelling forward, and Callan was able to bring his blade down on the injured wing.

The seraph let out a cry of pain, the wing dragging as he whirled. “You are dead,” he said with a growl, and he rushed him. He was too fast for Callan to avoid this time, and he was thrown to the ground, his head cracking on the stone ground, black spots appearing in his vision.

The seraph tossed his sword to the side before kicking Callan’s weapon out of reach as well, clearly not deeming Callan a threat anymore. He wasn’t wrong, but before he could drag in another breath, a shadow was at the seraph’s throat.

Death’s Shadow, to be exact.

She tore his throat clean out, spitting it to the ground a moment before Mordecai appeared, severing wings and head.

“Nice work, your Majesty,” Nuri said, reaching down to help him up.

“Nice work? I would have died if not for you,” Callan rasped, the room spinning slightly.

She waved a hand dismissively. “I was watching the whole time. All that training has paid off.”

“You couldn’t have intervened sooner?”

“Noting the weak wing and capitalizing on it? Perfection,” Nuri went on wistfully.

Callan blinked at her, his vision still blurry. “Can we get out of here, please?”

“Agreed,” Mordecai said, reaching for them.

A second later he was back in Windonelle, and his stomach was revolting against all the Traveling of the day. He sank down on a nearby log by the fire, his head dropping to his hands.

“Callan?”

He lifted his head to find Juliette making her way towards him.

“Is there word on Drake and Tava?” he asked.

Juliette studied him in that unnerving way of hers. She’d come to a stop directly in front of him. He often forgot she was raised the same way Nuri and Scarlett had been. She seemed so much …more sane, even if she did speak in odd riddles at times now.

She called to a nearby woman and asked her to bring warm water and a cloth.

“I am fine,” Callan said. “Tell me an update on Drake and Tava.”

“I do not believe Balam will harm them, Callan. However, the other Lords are growing impatient with their prince. You are bleeding.”

“What?”

She lifted a hand, touching it to his head. When she pulled it back, there was red staining her fingertips. “You have a cut on the back of your head.”

“No. What do you mean the other Lords are growing impatient?” Callan said, nodding in thanks to the woman who had brought the supplies to clean his wound.

“They were sent here with purpose,” Juliette answered, moving behind him. “They either succeed or face repercussions for failure, whether at the hand of Scarlett or another. Alaric is not the only one with something to lose in this. Tell me what happened at the Necropolis.”

While she tended to the wound, Callan filled her in on everything that happened, and as he was finishing, Mordecai and Nuri returned along with two others.

Arantxa and Drake.

Callan shot to his feet. “Where is Tava?”

Drake met his gaze, his features tense. “There was a deal made between Balam and the other Lords.”

“Where is she?” Callan repeated.

“She is at the castle.”

“How are you here?”

Drake ran both hands through his hair, tipping his head back and pushing out a long breath.

“We suspected Balam was becoming suspicious. We had talked about lying low. Not coming out here as often. But he was not the only one who had taken notice. Mikale shared concerns with Alaric. The other Lords confronted Balam about it at their meeting, accusing him of working against them. As a show of good faith, Alaric demanded a deal. We could be released from the Lairwood house, but we had to stay at the castle.”

“Then how are you here?” Callan demanded.

“Ezra,” Drake answered. “They transported us to the castle. Ezra has connections to the castle guards. It was too risky for both of us to come, so Tava stayed behind. As long as she remains there, she is safe. But …” He dragged a hand down his face.

“I learned the cost of taking down the wards. It was why he sequestered us when the other Maraan Lords showed up. I cannot go back. Not now.”

“You cannot leave her there alone,” Callan said in outrage.

“I did not know the cost when she agreed to stay behind. The fact that I learned it at all was purely by chance.”

“Or fate,” Juliette said calmly from where she had taken a seat next to Arantxa.

“I do not give a fuck if it was chance or fate,” Callan said sharply. “What is it? What is this cost?”

“Taking down the wards bound our lives to the Maraan Lords on the thrones respectfully,” Drake said.

“You mean if Mikale is killed, then I die too? And vice versa?”

Drake nodded.

“Then doesn’t that mean we are safe?” Callan asked. “If they kill us, the Maraan Lords die.”

“Yes, but it also means they want us kept close. Locked in cells to ensure we do not find a way to end ourselves and thus them,” Drake said. “It is why I cannot go back.”

“Why would we end ourselves?”

“Because as long as there are Maraans here, Achaz has a way in,” Mordecai supplied.

Callan had forgotten he and Nuri were still there.

“Arius and Serafina have heavy protections around their children. It is why Achaz has not been able to come here yet, but Alaric is close to finding another way to let Achaz in. The only way to stop what he has planned is to kill all the Maraan Lords and the Maraan Prince.”

“Are you saying that to truly end all of this, Drake, Hale, and I have to die?”

The silence that greeted him was answer enough, and yet he didn’t care. All he cared about was that they had his wife, and it had just become infinitely harder to get to her.