Page 227 of The Chains You Defy

“If I asked you to release her, would you do me the favor?”

Amethyst fae eyes drilled into mine, and Dion’s throat bobbed before he finally nodded. “If that’s your wish, I’ll bow to your will.”

He was torn apart, and I could tell.

For him, the female in his grasp was a danger, and rightfully so. In the end, Dion had learned only one way to deal with threats like her, which was also the natural approach of his people, according to Antas. Who was I to judge him for what he’d been taught by his ancestors?

Could I—

Was I—

Swallowing the bile rising in my throat, I finally nodded. “Just…make it quick.” Shuddering, I balled my fists. Dread paralyzed me as I digested that I’d convicted the female to a death sentence, and I wasn’t willing to analyze if this acceptance was more for myself and my weird jealousy or for Dion and his need to eliminate a threat.

Instead of discussing, Dion nodded, and within the blink of an eye, his obsidian magic blade formed in his hand as he caught my gaze once more. “Nayana, my goddess. You’ll never be unprotected. I once told you that I’m your sword and your shield, and I would swear so in front of every deity known and unknown. Today, I’ll seal my vow with the blood of your enemy, the one who wronged you, and through this deed I prove to you that the only emotion left inside of me for this vile creature is burning hatred.”

A cry left my lips as my eyes widened. Time slowed to a crawl as Dion raised his sword before wielding the blade downward in a mighty arc.

Only moments later, Danartha’s head landed with a silent thud in the grass. As I’d requested, he’d performed her execution quickly, so fast I couldn’t even close my eyes.

My hands covered my lips in shock, and I shivered.

Another death I’d witnessed.

Another one I’d caused.

This was just as much on me as on him, and the most unsettling bit was that a large part of me felt only purring satisfaction.

Nayana was in turmoil, her eyes wild with conflicting emotions. She was losing some of her innocence, and the loss was tough for her. But hardening herself would be mandatory if we continued further on this path. We wouldn’t be able to stop the downfall of the worlds with pretty words and prayers alone, and the earlier she learned she wasn’t as morally dead as I was just because she’d delivered a necessary judgment for the greater good, the better.

“If this had been an innocent villager who had stared at me funnily, would you have decided the same?”

“Gods, Dion, no. What kind of stupid question is that?”

“There you have your answer to the problem written all over your face. Just thinking about the possibility that there are people out there coming too closeto you makes me want to burn the entire population down. And you won’t let me. So no, you’re not depraved.”

Nayana sighed after being confronted with my flawless logic, and I tucked her into my chest. Her fatigue was like a living beast swallowing her whole, yet her mind was still spiraling.

“Your magic—”

The last hour had been a blur, and the same insecurities igniting in Nayana’s gaze churned in my brain.

What the fuck had that been?

What had I been?

Growling, I shook my head. I couldn’t deal with this enigma—neither of us could. Nor with this weird presence lingering in the depths of my being, unchained and unbound. Not now, at least. A distraction was in order.

“Danartha mentioned a letter from Galrach.”

“Oh. Yes, where—”

I canted my head, waiting, and when she’d finally found the paper in her pocket, the wind carried over a panicked voice screaming our names.

What the fuck?

“Antas?”

After we’d heard Antas yelling for us, Dion had picked me up and sprinted to the others. An abhorrent noise, indecipherable, attacked my ears, whirring and groaning, and waves of panic licked down my spine.