Page 73 of The Curse of Gods (The Curse of Saints #3)

When Josie and Aidon were younger, Aidon used to beg Josie to play soldiers with him. He would take one of the maps from their father’s study and spread it out on the floor, using the figurines as toy soldiers as he marched them around the map.

Josie never really understood the appeal.

She liked playing with the pretty wooden figures, imagining the individual sword strikes they’d use, but Aidon was obsessed with placing them just so, waxing on and on about strategy and better ground and location advantage.

He’d rattle off street names and identify hidden crevices of Rinnia, and Josie would eventually tune him out as he got lost in his own world.

Staring down at a map of Rinnia now, she wished she’d paid more attention. Then again, how was she to know that those games they’d played as children weren’t games at all, but preparation for a reality she never would have imagined?

Aleissande stood at her side, her hands braced on the wooden table that sat in the center of the small study in the bowels of the Maraciana. Natali was across from them, their brow furrowed as they toyed with a figurine, while Lucas and Clyde stood clustered together at the head of the table.

Clyde had marked the main areas where the Bellare patrolled:

Old Town, particularly near the Council building; the main thoroughfare that curved with the beach; the palace, of course; and…

“Why this street in particular?” Josie asked, pointing to the last circle.

“Two of the Visya Councilors live there,” Clyde said darkly.

“They’re monitoring Visya Councilors?” She’d known they were watching Clyde, but she’d assumed that was because of his ties to her family.

“Are you truly surprised?”

No, she wasn’t. But she was surprised to learn they were doing it in such a blatant way.

The Bellare had clearly gotten bold. Perhaps that would work to Josie’s benefit.

Hubris led to mistakes, especially in a battle.

It was a lesson Josie had taught Aidon when they were just two teenage siblings using the furthest sparring room to fight.

Aleissande sucked on her teeth, her eyes darting across the map in careful concentration before she plunked one of the wooden figurines down. “Here. We stage the protest here, and draw the Bellare in.”

She took two of the smaller figurines and placed them on opposite sides: one near the Merchant Council building, the other closer to the main thoroughfare.

“We’ll use two protesting groups to engage the patrols,” she explained, moving the pieces until they were clustered around the main one, “and we’ll trap them within the heart of the city.”

“Meanwhile,” Natali murmured, placing their own figurine down by the palace, “the main contingent will be taking back the palace.”

Clyde pursed his lips as he hummed in consideration. “And the Royal Army has agreed to come to tend to the protest?”

“Half of the Royal Army will come under the guise of assisting the City Guard with calming the crowd,” Josie corrected, plunking down another figurine. “The other half will join us as reinforcements at the palace.”

“The City Guard will think they’re receiving aid, but really…they’ll find themselves surrounded by soldiers loyal to us,” Aleissande filled in. “Soldiers who will keep them at bay while Josie and I do what needs to be done.”

“You won’t be joining the raid on the palace?” Lucas asked curiously.

“What good is my knowledge of the palace’s many hidden entrances if I don’t use them to sneak in and kill the usurper?” Josie asked, faux sweetness dripping from her voice.

The idea had come to her a few days ago. She didn’t need to wipe out the Bellare entirely. The best way to kill a snake, after all, was to chop off its head.

And the Bellare’s head was Avis Lavigne.

“Seven hells,” Clyde mumbled. “You’re terrifying.”

“I love it,” Lucas added with a grin.

“You two aren’t so bad yourselves,” Natali chuckled from across the table as they nodded to Clyde and Lucas. “The idea to stage a mass protest is particularly inspired, especially given several have already occurred.”

“That was all Clyde,” Lucas admitted.

Natali shot a pensive look at the Head Councilor. “Have you ever considered a career in the force?”

“He’s far too vain for it,” Lucas replied with a wink. “Not nearly enough preening. Best for him to stick to merchanting.”

Clyde rolled his eyes at his husband, but he did not argue.

Josie tugged her bottom lip between her teeth as she scanned the figurines of the map once more. “I don’t like the idea of putting our citizens in the middle of this,” she sighed. “The people of Trahir do not want to fight in the petty battles of kings and queens.”

“They may very well want to fight in this one,” Lucas argued gently. “They’re furious with the Bellare. Your political scheming worked brilliantly, Josie.”

“Besides, that’s what the Royal Army is there for,” Aleissande added. “They won’t simply engage the Bellare. They’ll protect the people.”

Josie nodded. She could feel anxiety pulsing behind her sternum, but she forced herself to breathe through it.

“Are you two sure about this?” she asked Clyde and Lucas. “If anything goes wrong, I won’t be there to help. The Bellare very well could make an example of you.”

She had already put them at risk by asking them to stir dissent in the city against the Bellare. But leading a protest like this…it almost seemed too far.

“You could die, too.” Clyde’s rebuttal was quiet and understanding. “But you don’t see us stopping you from picking up your sword.”

“That’s different,” Josie insisted. “I’ve trained—”

Lucas tossed one of the spare figurines down. “If you think we are going to stand aside while you take back the throne from the scum who stole from your family, you don’t know us at all,” he cut in. “Do not insult our friendship like this.”

Josie’s argument died in her throat as Aleissande laid a hand on her shoulder. “It’s their choice, Josephine.”

She knew that. She did . But it did nothing to quell the worry that stirred inside of her. “Fine,” she conceded. “But if you two die, I will personally drag you back from the Beyond so I can kill you myself.”

Lucas barked a laugh. “Deal.”

“Now that that is decided,” Natali drawled, their hand sweeping across the map to clear the figurines, “we should get moving. We have a big day ahead of us tomorrow. We all need our rest.” They tugged on the parchment, rolling it up with a snap.

“I’ll ready the Saj,” they continued. “I don’t expect this to spill over to the Maraciana, but…they should be prepared.” Their amber eyes found Josie, their stare heavy with implication as they said, “And you? Have you gotten your affairs in order?”

Josie could feel Aleissande’s gaze on her. She hadn’t asked Josie about what she’d interrupted the other day, hadn’t pressed for details on why Josie had sent for Viviane, or what had come of it. Now certainly wasn’t the time nor audience for Josie to get into it.

“Don’t worry about me, Natali,” Josie assured the Saj. “There’s nothing that is standing in my way.”

“Good,” Natali said simply. “Meeting adjourned.”

Clyde and Lucas ducked out of the room first, their hugs tight and lingering as they said their goodbyes. Aleissande went next with nothing but a curt nod. But Josie stepped in front of the doorway before Natali could leave, blocking their path.

“Why are you doing all of this?” she asked. She had pushed the question aside for weeks, but now…

She needed to know. They were all trusting the Saj, and Josie could not handle the lingering doubt that gnawed on her as she wondered if her trust was misplaced.

“The Saj of the Maraciana have long been neutral in conflict,” she continued. “Why choose loyalty now?”

Natali, to their credit, did not seem affronted by Josie accosting them like this. They merely observed her in that stoic way of theirs, their hands clasping behind their back, as if readying for a lecture.

“I have spent my life reading history books and studying affinities,” they began carefully.

“One might even say that I am an expert in the ramifications of power—both that which is innate and that which is taken.” Their lips quirked, but the ghost of their smile did not linger.

“The Saj of the Maraciana may not tie themselves to countries or kings and queens, but that does not make us impartial to the happenings of our realm. We have always abided by the laws we set for ourselves; we have always respected the lines we have drawn.”

“Lines like refusing to study the Decachiré?” Josie asked, thinking of the Vaguer and how they’d been excommunicated from the Maraciana. Natali nodded.

“It is not loyalty I am choosing, Josie. It is the future of Eteryium. I do not wish to see the end of our realm. And I believe that you, and your brother, and your friends, can help stop that from happening.” They cocked their head, their silver hair swinging with the movement.

“I suppose it’s much like the gambling your brother loves so much. ”

Josie couldn’t help the laugh that rasped from her. She loved the pragmatic way Natali approached life, even in the face of such uncertainty.

“Well…thank you. For betting on us.”

Natali hummed, their hand brushing against Josie’s arm as they stepped past her. “Do try to help me not regret it,” they requested as they gave her bicep a gentle squeeze. “It perhaps will come as no surprise to you, but the Saj loathe being wrong.”

***

There was something settling about knowing that no matter how tomorrow went, Josie would no longer be hidden away in the cliffs. She was grateful, of course, to Natali for finding her this sanctuary. But she was ready to be free of the Maraciana, come what may.

She was ready to stop hiding.

“Natali will have your head if they find you out here,” Aleissande said over the waves.

Josie hadn’t heard the general step onto the terrace.

She smiled, her arms folding over the balustrade as she gazed out in the pitch black of night.

She could hear the water crashing below, but without the moon shining in the sky, she couldn’t see the Anath.

“I think I deserve a bit of fresh air before tomorrow,” Josie replied as Aleissande took up a spot at her side. “Besides, it’s a moonless night. For anyone to make out my features with just the torchlight on this terrace, they’d have to be standing just beside me.”

Aleissande made a contemplative noise that Josie could nearly feel with how close the general was standing to her.

She turned to see Aleissande peering down at her, her eyes raking over her face. “This lighting does suit you,” Aleissande murmured.

Josie felt dizzy with her proximity, but she turned to face her fully, her leg brushing against Aleissande’s as she did.

“Every light suits you,” Josie replied softly.

Aleissande’s eyes fluttered shut, a pained expression flitting across her face. “You cannot say such things to me,” she whispered.

“Why not?”

“Because,” Aleissande argued, her gaze pleading as she opened her eyes once more. “I will not be able to focus on the task at hand if I’m thinking of where such words can lead.”

Josie couldn’t help the way a grin tugged on her mouth. Something molten was stirring in her stomach, something that Aleissande had long been able to evoke in her. For once, Josie did not shy away from it.

Slowly, she placed a hand on Aleissande’s hip, her fingers digging in just so . “I can show you where they lead, if you’d like,” she offered.

There was a something brewing in Aleissande’s eyes, desire turning them from light blue to storm-cloud gray. Yet her touch was gentle as it cupped Josie’s face, her thumb gliding across the apple of her cheek as she tipped Josie’s head back.

“I’m going to kiss you now,” Aleissande breathed.

“I would be mad if you didn’t.”

“Well we can’t have that, now can we, Princess?”

Josie’s lips parted, a retort ready on her tongue, but Aleissande captured her mouth before she could voice it. Her lips were warm and firm, her tongue flicking against Josie’s playfully, and seven hells, Josie had never been more content to not have the last word.

She pushed herself up on her toes, her arms winding around Aleissande’s neck as she dragged her closer, her lips parting fully as Aleissande teased her tongue.

Josie had always thought of the general as cold. Unmoving. A pillar of golden stone , she’d once described her.

And perhaps that’s what she was when she was wearing the title of general. But this Aleissande was a raging inferno, one whose flames Josie would gladly submit herself to.

Josie nipped at her lip, relishing in the sharp gasp it drew from Aleissande. Aleissande tore her mouth away, her chest heaving against Josie’s as they struggled to catch their breath.

“We have to stop,” Aleissande panted.

“Why?”

“I meant what I said. I need to focus on tomorrow— we need to focus on tomorrow.” Yet even as she made her argument, Aleissande ducked her head once more, her lips finding Josie’s effortlessly in the low torchlight.

Josie let herself get lost in the kiss, her fingers tingling as she raked them through Aleissande’s hair, tugging it from its bun.

Aleissande groaned as she tore her mouth way again. “I mean it,” she breathed.

“You don’t seem to,” Josie teased as she twisted one of her blond locks around her finger. It was just as soft as she’d imagined.

Aleissande grabbed her wrists, her touch tender as she pulled Josie’s hands from her.

“After we take back the palace tomorrow, we can resume this…conversation.”

Josie couldn’t help but smirk. “Conversation?”

Aleissande’s eyes shut as she took a deep breath, as if she could will patience into her bones. “Do not tempt me to kiss you quiet.”

Josie laughed. “You need to work on your threats, General. They’re not nearly as terrifying as they once were.”

Aleissande shook her head, but she smiled, light and free and happy . Josie didn’t think she’d ever seen such an expression on her before.

“Tomorrow,” Aleissande vowed.

“Tomorrow.”