Page 95 of The Primal of Blood and Bone (Blood and Ash #6)

POPPY

I blinked rapidly, my heart thumping. The hand came into focus. Golden-bronze skin sprinkled with dark, coarse hairs near the wrist. It was his hand. Casteel’s.

“Poppy.” His grip firmed as I became aware of Kieran hovering nearby. “Talk to me.”

Dragging in a breath, I shook my head. “I…I think I…” I trailed off, stopping myself from telling him what was beginning to click together in my mind. That it hadn’t been my imagination earlier. I hadn’t been alone.

The words were sitting on the tip of my tongue, but I pulled them back. I couldn’t be sure I’d felt his vellá . And without absolute certainty, I’d only provoke their anger and worsen their concerns. It had nothing to do with the itchy, prickling sensation that made me want to scrub at my skin.

At least, that’s what I told myself as I nodded.

“I was just thinking about his vellá.” Swallowing, I reached for the glass I hadn’t touched since it’d been placed before me and took a drink.

“We wouldn’t sense it…strongly. It would be like a vague feeling of unease.

Nothing like when a god is actually present—one not able to mask their essence. Some can do that. Did you know that?”

Kieran exchanged a glance with Casteel that he didn’t even bother to hide. “No, I didn’t know that.” His gaze returned to me, sharp and piercing as he slowly sat back down. He didn’t relax. He remained on the edge of his chair. “Can Kolis do that?”

“I don’t believe so. Only a certain type of god can,” I said, my grip loosening on the glass as I sorted out what floated through my head courtesy of the Primal foresight.

“They would be from the Court of Lotho, though not all the gods from that Court can do it. Just a bloodline that…” My eyes widened.

“These are the gods changelings descended from.”

“Makes sense.”

I nodded as Casteel’s hand slipped from my arm.

I lifted the glass and sipped, letting the burn of the whiskey spread to my chest. Both Casteel and Kieran were still watching me like hawks.

I briefly closed my eyes and steadied myself.

“I’m fine,” I told them. “It just freaked me out thinking that he could project his will, be among us, and we really wouldn’t know. ”

What I said wasn’t a lie. It did freak me out.

“Understandable,” Casteel remarked, and I couldn’t decipher a damn thing from the word. “Attes told us there is no limit to how he projects his will. What he didn’t say was what his vellá was capable of. I’m guessing it’s probably the same for him and other Primals.”

I thought about that as I set the glass down. I’d taken two large drinks and figured I should be clearheaded for this conversation. “I think that would be close to limitless for him and the Queen of the Gods…and maybe me. Us.” I nodded. “In time.”

“Close to limitless?”

“A lot can be done with it. The closer to the…object you are using your will on or for, the stronger it will be.” I thought about how I’d snapped the necks of the archers along the inner wall of Castle Redrock’s Rise without lifting a finger.

“He would not be able to kill from a distance with his will alone. Up close? Yes.”

“Could he use his will to create a situation that kills?” Kieran asked.

I thought about it, and instinct told me yes. Especially him. After all, he was the true Primal of Death.

Death was his specialty.

I nodded.

Casteel’s glacial golden stare burned with the brilliance of frozen amber as it swept across the chamber. I glanced at his glass. There were hairline fractures in it.

“That’s…” Kieran cleared his throat and leaned back. “Good information to have.”

I arched a brow at that. More like terrible information to know. I reached over and put my hand on Casteel’s glass. His gaze snapped back to mine, and I smiled. A moment passed, but then he lifted his fingers, one by one.

“I think we should also operate on the assumption that Kolis has returned to full power,” Kieran stated as I rose and walked to the credenza. “That way, we don’t underestimate his capabilities.”

“I agree with that, but…” I frowned as I got an eyeful of what had to be a hundred different decanters and bottles.

Who needed that many different versions of whiskey, wine, or sherry?

Shaking my head, I grabbed the one I’d seen Kieran use earlier and filled a new glass.

“But it’s not going to be easy to kill Kolis—and yes, I know both of you figured that.

But there are only two ways to kill a Primal.

” I went back to the settee and sat as I handed Casteel a drink that hopefully wouldn’t end up all over him.

“One is another Primal—a mature Primal—who carries the embers of true life, true death, or both. They can strike down another Primal.”

“Does that include Kieran or me?” Casteel asked.

“I…” Tugging my hair free from under the robe, I loosely braided it as I waited for the vadentia to answer. When it didn’t, I sighed. “No. I don’t know.”

Nodding, he leaned forward, picked up the hair tie I’d dropped there earlier, and handed it to me. “What is the other way?” he asked.

“I don’t know—and yes, it’s the faulty vadentia again. I know there’s another way, but the foresight’s silent.”

“So helpful,” Kieran murmured, eyeing his glass before taking a long drink. “So, this means we have to find a way to weaken Kolis.”

Glancing at Casteel, I nodded. “Essence from an equally powerful Primal will weaken him. So will Ancient bone,” I said, mentioning something they already knew.

“The dagger’s in the chest,” Casteel answered when Kieran looked at him. “Though I imagine getting more of that will be difficult.”

I laughed. “There’s probably some in this realm, but buried…and possibly with flesh still attached.”

“Well, that’s not an option,” Casteel murmured.

“Maybe there’s more in Iliseeum?” Kieran suggested, and I nodded, even though I didn’t know. It just seemed logical. “Even if we have an army outfitted with Ancient bone, it means nothing if we don’t know where he is.”

“True.” Casteel leaned back and hooked one leg over the other. “The first thing we should do is confirm his location. Pensdurth seems like the likeliest place. Then we need to determine the size of the army he’s gathered.”

“After that?” I asked, having a feeling I already knew the answer.

His eyes met mine. “Then we go after him with everything we have. We don’t sit back and wait for him to make another move.” Faint shadows appeared along his cheeks, causing my eyes to widen. “We show no mercy to him or any who support him.”

Tension gathered in my chest. I liked the plan, as simple as it was. A lot. But… “What we have might not be enough.”

“What we have is three Deminyen Primals. He’s only one Primal god who has been entombed for a millennium.” A smile full of smoke and shadows appeared, causing the eather in my chest to hum. “We should not underestimate ourselves.”

“You’re right, but neither of you has fought with eather. Only I have. And that doesn’t mean much since my experiences are limited,” I reasoned, looking at Kieran. “Why am I being the completely rational one here? Isn’t that your job?”

“I’m a wolven,” Kieran replied dryly.

“I know. You said that earlier.”

He arched a brow. “As I said, how do you think I change forms? Stay in one or the other? Summoning the eather will likely be little different.”

I twisted toward Casteel. “And what about you? You haven’t used the eather outside of accidentally summoning random ravens.”

Casteel raised a brow as a corner of his lip curled up. “How do you think I use compulsion, Poppy?”

I pressed my lips together. “I don’t think using compulsion is on the same level as using your will to inflict bodily damage.”

“You may be right.”

“May be? Shifting forms does require more…control over the essence. Something neither of us has experience with.”

That half-grin appeared once more. “Is that so?”

I frowned. What was that supposed to mean?

“We should begin training, though,” Casteel continued. “With the eather.” A dimple appeared in his right cheek. “You can be our… instructor .”

The way he said that made it sound like something illicit. “When can we start?”

“Tomorrow,” Kieran suggested.

Before I could respond, the click of…claws rapping off stone interrupted me. Casteel tensed, and Kieran looked toward the main chamber.

“I can’t believe I heard that,” I whispered. “I have super hearing. Finally .”

Kieran arched a brow. “Congrats.”

Casteel leaned forward and placed his glass on the table. Tension bracketed his mouth. “Are you expecting anyone?”

“No,” Kieran drawled.

Eather hummed faintly in my chest as I let my senses stretch beyond me and the chamber. My stomach tightened and then dipped when the fresh, springy mark of… “It’s Delano.”

“I’ll see what he needs,” Kieran said, setting his drink on the table as he rose and quickly left the chamber.

I twisted toward Casteel. “I’m surprised the notam is still intact.”

“Because Seraphena is now awake?”

I nodded and brushed some damp hair back from his brow. Not only did the notam belong to her, but she was also the one who’d given the kiyou wolves their duality.

His narrowed eyes fixed on the doorway. “I wonder how that’s possible.”

The answer slowly came to me, the subtle prickling sensation spreading across the nape of my neck and stirring the fine hairs there.

“We’re both true Primals of Life. And we’re both bonded to the wolven.

But she is the true Primal of Life.” I looked over at him, and his gaze met mine.

“If she summons them? If she pulls rank?”

That muscle along his jaw began to tick. “They would be hers to command.”

“Yes.” I wasn’t sure how I felt about that.

“Let’s not borrow tomorrow’s problems,” he murmured, turning his gaze to mine. “We have enough for today.”

Gods, did we ever.