Page 11

Orion

T he sound of blood thrumming in my ears did little to drown out the hard pounding of my heart—or the vampire beside me.

Ivy’s scent clung to her, intoxicating and cloying, and it fed the terrible beast born of jealousy in my chest. How badly I’d wanted my flower to take me in her arms and hold me tight.

Until I proved to be worthy again, I couldn’t expect anything from her. I’d hurt her too many times.

Now that I was in her orbit, a piece on her board, I would not leave her again.

That was the only thing I had in common with the female beside me. We were pieces on the board, and Ivy our Queen. It was our job to keep him at bay.

And if my flower wanted a vessel to take her to the Underworld, then that was what I would give her .

The vampire and I slowed as we hit the docks. There were unmasked soldiers crawling through the seaside village, their sickly, unnatural magic an unwelcome tingle across my skin. Dozens of them walked the length of the port, from the small village nestled along the water, to the rows of ships.

“Do you recognise any of them?” Maeve Grey asked, voice low.

I wondered if she knew they’d wanted her talents on their side years ago.

That they’d been close to finding a way to have her.

The ability to read memories from blood would have been a great asset, according to Kamaria, and I suspected there had been many attempts at swaying Maeve Grey to their side.

They had, in fact, taken measures to keep her away, too.

Manufactured potions and charms to ward off her ability should she take any of them alive.

I turned from the immortal and eyed the port village with disdain. “There are only underlings here. If Dante suspected we’d take a ship, then he perhaps didn’t believe we’d try here, or doesn’t care.”

The vampire made a sound under her breath, like a grunt that slowly turned into a growl. “I recognise three Phoenix Compound Agents. And at least four students from the academy.”

I stiffened. I hadn’t been aware that the organisation had managed to turn many from Oberon to their side. But I followed her line of sight to a small group of unmasked idiots standing at the end of the dock beside a smaller vessel. “Layla,” I bit out. “She is?—”

“One of your little followers,” Maeve finished. “Yes. I noticed her in your group of Fae. She didn’t like your attention on Ivy. ”

My stomach twisted. “Layla did not like it when I gave anyone attention,” I replied darkly. “Her father was vying for our families to be joined.”

The thought of being with anyone other than Ivy made sickness churn in my stomach.

The mere thought of touching someone as vile as Layla made my hackles rise.

I’d known for some time that there was a chance Hyperion, my father, might address the potential of me taking chosen mates.

My very own powerful circle. It still boiled my blood.

“He knew I’d taken a mate,” I said quietly, still staring at the four Oberon students. “I couldn’t hide that from him when Ivy came into her magic. My father is an idiot, but he is not blind.”

Beside me, the vampire stiffened, head cocked. “Yes. I heard that rumour. Vanya told Ivy.”

I released a sharp breath and lowered my head. “I told Hyperion she was dead. It was the only way to keep him from seeking her out.”

He would have done to her what he’d done to his own mates if given the chance.

“You think he would have risked that? Especially when she came into her power as the Daughter of Nyx?” Maeve asked, turning her attention to me fully.

From the corner of my eye, I caught the darkening of her blue eyes, and the ring of red that circled her irises.

“I agree, your father is a fool for joining Dante—for this entire mess. But I doubt he would be so idiotic to chance angering the Goddess by taking her Daughter.”

I turned back to the students. To Layla and the other Fae who’d spent the last four years following me around the academy like lost fools. Who had done so because they’d been under Dante’s spell already. How had I not noticed sooner ?

“I don’t think you understand the lengths Dante and my father have gone to in order to secure their power,” I said, folding my arms across my chest. “I don’t even know the extent of their plans.

I never rose high enough in their ranks to find out.

But what I do know is they have something that will hurt Ivy.

Something that might stop her. We cannot let them get close. Otherwise, we are all doomed.”

The vampire remained quiet as we made our way from the dock to one of the smaller vessels, where no crew had been seen above deck for at least half an hour. If we were right, they were either dead or being held until they swore allegiance to Dante.

It was harder, holding to the shadows in broad daylight, but the water gave us some coverage beneath the dock itself. We swam to the side of the ship and took hold of the water-logged ropes dangling from the top deck.

Grey and I waited in the darkness of the water for several long moments, our breaths quiet.

The vampire listened, while I took the shadows and spread them out over the decks.

Eyes closed, I fell into the shadows. Watched through its eyes.

A skill none had taught me, at least none from my father’s court.

It was a gift from Ivy, an increase in power thanks to her own.

my shadows crept over the wooden deck carefully, keeping to the natural darkness in the corners. Not a living soul dared walk the length of it, so I took to the next deck, where the darkness was thicker, easier to navigate.

Where I expected death, I saw tied bodies, chains, and a few traitors with weapons drawn.

Their mouths moved, but I caught no words from their lips.

So, it was the latter, then. A ship full of creatures still loyal.

But for how long? Anger swelled within me as I wondered just how many had been easily turned to Dante’s side.

How many of these vessels were already loyal to him, and how many remained still followed the Goddess and her Queen?

How many had already betrayed my mate, and would do anything to harm her?

It was a good thing the vampire was here. She might have been one of the only creatures capable of stopping me from slaughtering the entire dock. I would burn it all down for Ivy, would take care of the darker sides of this war for her, as I had been for the last several years.

I sent the shadows deeper into the belly of the vessel.

There, I found a few dead creatures, though they must have been crew of the ship, not Dante’s soldiers.

They were bound with chains marked with runes I did not recognise.

There were no soldiers amongst them—dead or alive—so I went further, going as deep as the ship and shadows would let me. But there was nothing more to find.

When I pulled back, the vampire turned to me, a ring of red surrounding her blue eyes.

“It appears the crew is being questioned about their loyalty. The team leader is assessing whether they can be turned from Nyx to Dante. The crew are unaware of the Queen’s death, and they do not know Dante has usurped the throne.

They believe they have been named traitors and the team holding them is from the Phoenix Compound. ”

My jaw clenched, and I glanced back at the ship. “They still appear loyal to Greer,” I replied darkly, beckoning the shadows to me. “We should see to it they remain that way.”

A smile curved my lips as we scaled the side of the vessel. I used the shadows as a shield to hide our presence, but it wouldn’t matter. As soon as we hit the top deck, the soldiers below would be alerted to us. We just had to make our way down there, first.

Maeve took the lead, diving towards the hatch that opened to the lower deck. Her speed was barely perceptible, and within the blink of an eye, she was there, throwing the hatch open. She spared me a brief look, pulled a knife from her belt, and dove into the darkness.

I pressed my lips together and summoned the shadows to her before following.

The darkness below was unassuming, and when I dropped into the filthy hold, I found the vampire with her knife to a female’s throat, the creature—a witch, likely elemental based on the power wafting from her—on her knees.

The other creatures in her team had their weapons drawn; the nozzles of guns were pointed at the heads of the crew, daggers unsheathed and held to their throats, and the shifters with claws let them free.

No one noticed me, too caught up in the vampire.

I stuck to the shadows and circled the room.

The sound of my heart and the blood in my veins disappeared, turning into a dull hum as I focused on the creatures around me.

There were seven crew members left other than an unconscious male.

He was tied to a beam and beaten bloody, lifeless upon first glance.

There were five soldiers, one of whom was being held by Maeve. Two shifters, one mage holding a gun, one Fae holding a dagger. One of the shifters had a hand of claws, with a gun gripped loosely in the other. The other shifter was decorated with weapons, but hadn’t reached for any of them.

I buried myself in the shadows. The vampire didn’t make a move, but she knew I was there. She scented the air, likely catching my scent, but she trained her glare on the soldiers. “Move, and your leader dies. ”

The shifter with the gun adjusted his grip on the weapon. “Then the crew dies too, traitor.”

“Traitor?” She quirked a brow, though her voice remained void of emotion. “Your false king killed Queen Greer. The only traitors on this ship are you and your cowardly team. Release the crew. Or suffer at the hands of Nyx Herself.”