Page 64

Chapter Forty

“Y ou found her!”

Lunelle’s voice echoed off the halls of the Mercurian palace as they landed at the gate and ducked inside. Lux dropped Astra’s hand as they rounded the corner and Lunelle’s arms collided around her sister’s shoulders.

“Are you hurt? Who took you? How did you find her?” She directed her last question to Lux, who hadn’t spoken since leaving the Court Above.

“I’m fine,” Astra insisted as she struggled against Lunelle’s grasp.

She dragged Astra down the hall and into a lush library.

Red tapestries and carpet glowed under the sunlight trickling in through the windows—the scent of something herbal rose to Astra’s senses.

Ameera perched beside a table overflowing with pastries and fruit, nervously picking at grapes the same color as her concern.

“I’m fine ,” Astra said again, easing everyone’s tension.

She felt a sharp tug at her chest as the commander crossed the room, the unexpected pull stealing her breath.

Her eyes flew toward him, but the pain was gone almost as quickly.

She watched his fingers fasten the leather cord around his neck.

Beams of Sun brightened his dark countenance, but not enough to comfort her.

“I cannot believe I let this happen.” Lunelle’s chest was a pit of black loathing. “Anyone could have grabbed you. I told you she shouldn’t be in the Rift!”

“You sound like Mother.”

Lunelle stopped pacing, a flare of bright red resentment blaring within her chest.

“Sorry,” Astra apologized. “But I wasn’t in the Rift. I was dreaming, Lunelle. It could have happened anywhere.”

“You were gone for hours! The Lunar Court will awaken any moment and we’re lucky we aren’t bringing back a corpse!”

Astra flopped onto a chaise lounge. She’d forgotten how little she was wearing until the embroidered cushions touched her exposed back.

“I attended a ball with a bunch of deities and drank some wine. That’s a Tuesday in the Lunar Court.”

Mirquios snorted in the corner. A quick dart of Lunelle’s eyes wiped the smirk from his lips.

“What did Selenia want?” Ameera asked. It was the first question she wanted to answer since Lux had dragged her back into the Rift.

“To make a deal.”

Lunelle kneeled in front of her, searching her sister’s gaze. “What did you do?”

“She wants me to go to the Court Below with you and Arcas to retrieve something for her,” she said as if describing the weather in the Court Above. “And Mirq.”

Lunelle gasped, resting her hands on her silver silk-coated knees.

“Mirquios?”

“In exchange for my help, Selenia will nominate Mirquios as a champion.”

“What—no. No!” Lunelle argued. Lux’s body stiffened in the window, his fingers clasped around the trim.

“Lu, it’s the solution we’ve been looking for. If Selenia nominates Mirquios, no one can argue. Not Mother. Not Arcas. It will be seen as a formal decision of the gods.”

“It’s too dangerous!”

“You’ll both be there with me,” she shrugged. “When I’m not knocked unconscious by an Ascended god, I actually handle myself quite well.”

Lunelle leaped forward from the ground, throwing her arms around Astra’s shoulders, a sob ripping from her chest.

“I do not deserve a sister like you,” she whispered against Astra’s neck. Over her shoulder, Mirquios nodded from the corner, a faint smile bubbling up over his lips, but his eyes flashed to Lux and Lux alone.

“What does she want you to retrieve?”

Astra pressed her lips together. “Leona.”

Lunelle’s brows folded inward. “As?—”

“I know it sounds crazy! But she wants to make amends. Leona has never Ascended. Selenia believes that there’s been a misunderstanding.” She felt the heat of Lux’s eyes land on her shoulders.

“She can do it,” Mirquios said mostly for his brother’s benefit. “If anyone can do it, it’s Astra.”

Lux did not respond.

“And there’s no catch? You bring her Leona’s Soul and she’ll leave it at that?” Ameera asked. Lunelle leaned back on her heels, tears still spilling over from her eyes.

“There’s always a catch,” Astra sighed. “I just haven’t figured it out yet. But until then, I have her word. She’s going to crash your Trial Ball and announce it.”

“Oh, Mother is going to hate that.” Lunelle stifled a nervous giggle.

Astra grinned. “A big part of the appeal for me, if I’m being honest. Now, if you all don’t mind, this crown is becoming a permanent part of my skull and I am drunk on the wine of the gods. I desperately need to get home.”

“Of course. We can talk more tomorrow,” Lunelle said as she crossed the room and placed a hand on Mirquios’s shoulder, their eyes holding the gaze of infinite possibility once again.

“I’ll have breakfast sent up to your room,” Ameera said softly. Her eyes slid from Astra to Lux, sending a flush to her cheeks.

One tray or two?

Astra fought the urge to shrug. Your guess is as good as mine , she sent back.

Ameera patted Astra’s shoulder. Before leaving the library, she hugged her sister once more, the joy radiating from Lunelle’s chest worth anything that might happen in the Court Below.

“Thank you,” Mirquios said as Astra left, his eyes still fixed on Lux. “Will you make sure Astra makes it back to her chambers safely, Commander? I’d rather she not enter the Rift alone, after tonight.” Lux’s head snapped toward his king, his answer in the form of a shallow nod.

Luxuros followed her in silence, his hand lightly skimming the back of her dress, a twisted knot of fury working itself out into a straight line in his gut.

It wasn’t until they made it back to her dressing room that he spoke. She reached for the crown of stars when his hands stopped hers.

“Let me,” he whispered.

She dropped her head as she leaned against the vanity. He took his time untangling the delicate metal and mess of curls with the utmost care. A satisfying burn sizzled against her scalp when he finally freed it.

Lux set the crown on the crystal countertop, stars reflecting in the white quartz as his fingers moved to the braids in her hair.

He loosened each of them, letting his hands rake through her ruby curls as they sprang free, brushing against her shoulders.

Before he moved from behind her, he reached for a crescent pin on her vanity and twisted her hair off her neck, the way he’d seen her do a million times in the gardens as they’d worked in the late Summer heat.

With her hair neatly tucked away, he slipped the silk straps over her shoulders and let the dress fall to the floor. Astra was relieved to find she still had underpinnings on, she’d never learned who dressed her in the Court Above.

“Get in,” Lux said as he dragged the ivory lace off her body, tilting his head toward the simmering pool beyond the arch in the wall.

She was about to ask if he’d join when his fingers went to work on the buttons and laces of his leathers, his boots falling next to the pile of silk her dress became.

She slipped into the pool and leaned her head back against the tile floor. The water was perfectly warm, exactly what she needed. Her eyes drifted closed as Lux joined, the water heating as he crossed the pool and sat beside her.

The fog Alastair had placed around her mind still lingered, turning her to clay in Lux’s rigid hands as he pushed his fingers into the muscles beneath her neck. He placed a quick kiss at the top of her spine before moving lower, digging into the sore tissue between her shoulders.

She leaned back into him, letting her head fall against his shoulder, his lips resting gently against her neck.

“You’re so quiet,” she said.

“There was a time when you would have preferred I keep my opinions to myself,” he murmured into her skin, working his fingers into her lower back.

“Not when I can feel how distressed you are,” she returned.

“I’m working through it.”

She smiled. “I feel that, too. But you don’t have to do it alone.”

“You’re busy saving everyone else. You don’t need to listen to me whine.”

“This only works if you talk to me, Luxuros.”

“Luxuros,” he mimicked. “Full-naming me.”

“And you say I’m stubborn.”

“I’m not avoiding it. I know that you would tell me if anyone… tried anything.”

“You mean Alastair?” She turned around, folding her legs under her so she could watch his face as he spoke.

“Is that his name?”

“Yes.” She reached for his hand under the warm water, twisting her fingers into his. “And you’re correct. I would tell you. He’s Selenia’s right hand, Weaver of Dreams? Or something to that effect. He seemed to understand our plight. Like he knows what we’re up to. He kept me safe.”

“He was less kind to me.” Lux’s brows furrowed. “Though I couldn’t fault him for wanting you to himself.”

“Nothing like that,” she assured him.

“Thank you.” Lux reached forward and tucked a loose curl behind her ear, the warm water on his hands dripping over her neck.

“Better already,” she said, gesturing to his chest as the red knot settled and unwound into something more manageable, though fiery anger still lingered at the edge. “But you’re still pissed.”

“I’m angry at myself, not you. I didn’t even consider the possibility that might happen. This is now the second time you’ve gotten hurt because I was distracting you. I should have sensed someone there. I should have protected you.”

“Easy, Commander. I also got distracted and failed to protect myself. I’m not a child.”

He nodded. “I’ll work through it. I promise I’m not usually a possessive asshole but there’s something about him. I don’t know. I don’t trust it.” He leaned forward, cupping her face. “The thought of something happening to you makes me physically ill. It’s overwhelming.”

“You’re talking to the woman who burned someone alive for a little tap on your ankle.” She pulled him closer, enjoying the warmth settled over her—she no longer drowned in him, she reveled. “ Some of your stress could be rooted in those identity issues we like to pretend aren’t a problem, no?”

She poked him in the shoulder, his eyes rolling.