Page 24

Jude

Your mother kept her secret for a reason. She’d been broken beyond all belief, and spent the rest of her life making sure her daughter was safe from that same misery. She might’ve gone about it the wrong way, but it was all done out of love. Sometimes even gods are painfully human.

Letter from Aurora Adair sent to The Sly Fox Tavern, year 32 of the curse

I wasn’t sure how far we’d traveled, but every time I peered over my shoulder, the abyss continued on forever, an endless shadow stretching beneath my boots.

Something had transpired in that chamber. My eyes were too hot. My sight was changing with every blink. I could see through the veil of black, and I caught the sight of a stony bottom. An end .

Wherever my gaze traveled, a soft yellow light followed—from the metal rungs of the ladder, down to the tops of my companions’ heads. It wasn’t strong, this light, but my right eye picked up details I hadn’t been able to detect in over a decade. The abrupt change sent my world askew.

Below, Liam let out a grunt, his boot clashing against metal. Like the rest, he struggled from exertion and waning adrenaline, and the climb down was by no means easy. Hands shook, sweat glistened on brows, and curses were loud and raspy.

Kiara’s movements, on the other hand, were far too stiff. Too mechanical. She didn’t exude her usual grace, and I suspected she was ruminating over what transpired in the offering chamber.

Too close . Kiara had nearly lost herself, hardly putting up a fight until I intervened. Gods, I hadn’t wanted to touch her, to cause any pain, but if she’d killed Harlow, I knew her well enough that she wouldn’t forgive herself.

We both had to learn how to maintain our powers, lest they control us. And at this point, it was becoming more and more difficult.

A few more minutes passed before I made out a small circular room below our feet.

Emelia dropped first, commanding us to wait while she adjusted her handheld torch. Carefully, she inspected the enclosure. When she gave the go-ahead, more boots struck stone. The last to dismount, I landed in a circle of bodies, the space not large enough to house everyone comfortably. The close proximity between myself and Kiara set my body abuzz with apprehension.

I was grateful when Liam slipped between me and the woman I couldn’t touch without ruining. She’d been a frenzied storm of lightning and shadows minutes before, but now, her chin was tucked low, and her shoulders slumped in what I took as shame.

Kiara had shown the horrors she could be capable of when she faced Harlow, her shadows itching to wrap around his neck and squeeze the life out of him. But such a terrifying display hadn’t frightened me—I’d felt nothing other than the need to protect.

How we’d switched roles over the course of a few days. She had held me once, her ungloved fingertips pressed to my cheeks, insisting that my past deeds didn’t define me. She helped me release a little of the weight I’d carried for years, and now, I’d do the same for her.

I meant what I’d said up there—I would forever catch her.

“Anyone else lose sensation in their hands?” Liam complained, stretching out his lean fingers. With my eyes on him, the boy shined a pale yellow. He lifted his head and wrinkled his nose at my light, his stare turning into a squint.

“Gods, Sunshine. Keep those things pointed out of our eyes,” Dimitri quipped, teasing in his voice.

Fucking nickname.

I quickly looked at the floor. My body temperature was hotter than normal, and my cheeks were blazing. Willing my breathing to even, to release the lingering emotions fueling my magic, I set my mind on the task. Only the task—survive and find the talisman. Gradually, the brightness of my gaze mercifully lessened.

Jake smacked Liam on the shoulder, causing the boy to jump with a squeak. “You did good. I half expected you to fall to your death.”

Liam quickly regained his composure, looking down his nose at Jake like a noble. “Only half expected? Such confidence in me. You’d be surprised what I’m capable of,” he said, whirling away, but I caught the smirk he tried to hide. I also happened to notice Jake’s ensuing grin.

“Enough with this.” The Fox motioned to the boys in exasperation, both of whom had the decent sense to bow their heads. “We’re all here, alive. Safe. Well, relatively .” She locked eyes with me while Finn touched her arm, sliding a comforting hand up to her shoulder. “We got lucky up there with Scarlet.” Kiara grumbled at the name, and I had to bite back my own grin—now I wasn’t the only one with an unwanted nickname. “But you almost lost control and killed us all, so you better keep that shit under control going forward.”

“Yes, so easy to do,” Kiara volleyed back. “I’ll just flip an invisible switch. Poof, gone.” She smacked her hands together for emphasis.

“Tone down the attitude,” Emelia ordered. “Let’s go before those thick-skulled guards find a way down here and give chase. That’s the last thing we need.”

Kiara rolled her eyes. Watching her spar with my mother was…odd.

Finn reached for his pocket watch. “We have a few hours left until we should rest. We don’t want to be stuck down here longer than necessary.”

Liam hastily mumbled in agreement.

“At least our friend here is still glowing and not starting fires,” Finn added, slapping me on the back. I choked on an inhale, the smack harder than I’d expected. Finn didn’t notice.

Emelia’s eyes flickered up and down my form, narrowing when she reached my face. She lingered there for more than was comfortable. “Jude’s getting stronger. Kiara is , too. Though I suspect her strength comes from these sacred grounds.”

I did feel stronger, my magic easier to access. While my sight rippled with white sparks, the bursts causing my eyes to prickle, it reminded me of staring into a fire for too long. The Fox was right about another thing—I wasn’t the only one whose magic grew stronger.

“Jude.” Kiara stepped from behind Jake. Playing with the hem of her gloves, she tilted her chin and feigned a confidence I knew she didn’t feel. “I’ll take up the back this time,” she asserted, squaring her shoulders and putting on a brave face. “The light in your eyes will help lead the way, and Emelia should stay in the middle with her torch.”

“Oh, wait.” Dimitri smacked his forehead. “I forgot.”

My brows pressed together when he dug around in his satchel and brought out a sunfire. He struck it a few times before it lit up with a sputter.

“You had that the whole time?” Emelia snarled. “You could’ve mentioned it when our last few died out on the road!”

“Sorry, I was a little distracted!” Dimitri retorted. “And you’re welcome.” He waved toward a narrow doorway barely large enough to fit a grown man and resumed that dastardly whistling.

“If he whistles the entire time, I’m gonna kill him,” Finn said, reading my mind.

“Children, all of you,” the Fox chastised. She sauntered through the slim archway, her men bumping shoulders as they tailed her. Jake and Liam walked side by side, the former’s hand accidentally brushing the back of Liam’s. Jake didn’t pull away.

Kiara stayed where she was, watching her friend and brother before her eyes found mine. Our connection brought forth my powers, my magic illuminating her face, tracing her features with reverence. Her lips curled hesitantly, and the flames within my chest ignited.

“I’m sorry about earlier,” she said, low enough so only I could hear. “I didn’t mean to lose control.”

“It’s new to all of us,” I said. “Think of it like a weapon you’ve yet to learn.” Her eyes grew less clouded at that—weapons she knew well. “You just need to hone your skills.”

She paused, the furrow in her brow telling me something heavy weighed on her mind.

Just like that , her demeanor shifted, and her left eye twitched , a sign she was doubting something. My heart plummeted in my chest when all she said was, “Better get to the front and lead the way, Commander.”

I did as she asked, entering a long and winding corridor and making my way to the front beside the Fox.

I wondered what had put that questioning look on Kiara’s face…but deep down, I already knew the answer.

Me.

…

We strode through a tunnel etched with constellations and rudimentary depictions of the moon and stars. The engraved walls were eroded and damp, in stark contrast to the beauty of the veiny white stone we stepped upon.

“Does anyone know what these markings mean?” Kiara inquired from the back. “I’ve never seen symbols like these before.”

I frowned. “The constellations?”

“No. The circles. They remind me of your tattoo but with more detail.” I peered behind me, finding Kiara running her hand across a piece of blank stone. There were no drawings there.

“I don’t see any circles,” Jake voiced my thoughts, lines denting his brow. Liam nodded solemnly, eyeing his sister with uncertainty. He hadn’t been given time to adjust to her changes, but he tried to hide his fear. I saw it clearly enough.

“None of you see them?” Kiara shouldered her way to the front, careful to maintain her distance from me. My fists curled at my sides to keep from reaching for her. Cocking her head to the nearest slab, she said, “The other etchings are black, but these”—she trailed a fingertip down a symbol only she appeared to see—“are blue and white. They almost…shimmer.”

Emelia slipped between us, forcing Kiara to take a step back. “Seeing as she’s part… beast ,” the Fox hissed, “we should take her warnings seriously. I suspect those symbols are warnings.” My hackles rose at the term beast . Emelia hurried to add, “I only mean she’s imbued with dark magic”—she took a step back—“and we should get out of this tunnel that’s obviously not meant for us. ”

Us, being humans.

Those who didn’t emit shadows and spark lightning. But this woman would be a fool to believe I wasn’t a beast , either.

When I continued to glower, she huffed, walking backward in hopes I’d follow. On her fifth step, something clicked .

“Emelia—” Finn’s scream was cut off by a whooshing sound.

I turned too late, my sight showing the blur of a feathered arrow soaring through the air. Time slowed to a crawl and my scream lodged in my throat and—

Shadows fired out from behind me, flying before Emelia, curving around her body.

The arrow shattered against a wall of moving ash, splintering into a dozen pieces. I brought my hands to my face, fragments piercing my skin, digging into my knuckles, arms, and biceps.

I opened my eyes, expecting to see blood, or maybe an unmoving body crumpled on the floor, but there was only the Fox, her eyes wide and full of relief.

Kiara’s shadows surrounded my mother, the sentient wisps swirling in the air before returning to their master, leaving the potent scent of smoke and burned wood in their wake.

Kiara shuddered as she inhaled them, her entire body vibrating with raw energy.

She’d saved my mother.

Visibly shaking, Finn dropped into a crouch, one hand reaching for Emelia, the other hovering above the ground.

“This piece of marble is discolored,” he whispered, peering up at the Fox. “Your weight triggered the arrow.”

Emelia swallowed thickly, her nostrils flaring. She looked at Kiara, but she didn’t say, “Thank you.” Not that I expected her to.

Finn continued, “If you look closely enough, there are seams here. It’s not one solid piece at all.”

“Pressurized traps,” Dimitri noted. “How delightful.”

Kiara pushed to the front and eyed the stone Emelia had triggered. She sank to her knees and placed a hand over the rock, forcing Finn to step aside. It didn’t escape my notice how the Fox angled her body around his, or how his hand reached for her waist, tugging her close.

“The same marking as before,” Kiara murmured, wrinkling her nose.

The ones only she could see.

“ You need to lead us,” I argued, as much as I didn’t want that to be true. I’d planned to be the one at the front, taking the first hit or strike. Not her. But there were no other options.

Kiara nodded, not able to meet my eyes. It was how she avoided me while at the same time shifting her body toward me that cemented what I so clearly felt—fate had decreed we separate, but the invisible tether tying us together couldn’t easily be severed.

Sucking in a breath through her teeth, she scanned the ground. “Well, looks like you’re all following me , then.”

Occasionally, she’d halt, motioning to us which areas to avoid. Left and right, we zigzagged down the corridor, Kiara cautiously guiding us to safety.

We did this uneasy dance for another half hour—no one keen on speaking—until a looming wall towered in the distance.

A circle of pure onyx stone glittered, taller than me, and equally as wide. With my eyes trained on the stone, and with Emelia’s torch, its facets captured the light and sparkled, sending glimmering stars dancing across our skin.

Kiara lifted a hand. “Wait,” she intoned, shifting around the imposing gem. She bent to her knees, her face inches away from the luminous rock.

“The suspense is killing me, Ki,” Jake said after some time. Kiara ignored him, continuing her exploration with a steady concentration I admired.

“There are more than a dozen different symbols on this thing, and none of them match the ones from the corridor. So excuse me if I’m taking too long, but if you’d like to try to figure it out, be my guest.” She smiled a sickly-sweet smile at her friend, whose own grin fell. “That’s what I thought.”

“It would be best not to argue,” Liam whispered to Jake. “She gets cranky when she’s hungry.”

“I noticed that , too!”

Liam beamed. “That’s why I usually keep snacks on me at all times…” The pair carried on, but I tuned them out. My focus homed in on the subject of their conversation.

Kiara gave the rock her attention again, mumbling to herself as she worked. Shadows floated off her frame like steam, vibrating as they wavered in place.

“It’s some sort of riddle,” she whispered, and her magic swelled, winglike creations sprouting from her back before slithering around her head like an eerie halo. Cautiously, Kiara grazed her index finger across a serrated edge. “Each symbol is a story.”

“Go on,” Finn pressured. “Let’s hear it.”

“The first line shows the moon, the constellation of Aloria, a sword, and what I think is a teardrop?”

“Isn’t Aloria the ancient fighter who supposedly set herself on fire after her lover was killed in battle?” Liam asked, though, by his confident tone, I imagined he already knew the answer.

“Yes.” Kiara dipped lower. “And then there are three symbols below. A skull, a dagger, and a…a heart split in two.”

All of them could relate to the warrior’s story. How she ended her life because her grief drowned her. “Are you sure we can only push one? Or are they switches at all?” I asked. “Maybe it isn’t a riddle.”

Liam stepped up to his sister. “It’s not a riddle, Ki,” he agreed, bending to his knees beside her, even if he couldn’t see the symbols for himself.

“Each one is part of the full story, and look here…” He traveled to the side of the circle, to the roughened edges.

I followed where his eyes aimed, and my heart skipped several beats.

It looked like a single needle jutting out from the rock.

Liam stood. “Blood,” he said, his voice echoing in the corridor. “Aloria’s tale is one of great loss and heartache. In the myth, her lover’s blood was drained on the battlefield by his enemies, and his remains were thrown from the top of the Argondale Mountains. After Aloria learned of his fate, her grief became a blaze, and she ignited in flames before rushing into the enemy camp, killing any she could until none were left. Arlo, so stirred by her sorrow, shed a tear, and a field of Midnight Blossoms rose from the dirt where her lover had fallen. Rebirth after such devastation.”

“It requires blood , then,” Kiara said, already moving to shuck off her gloves. But Liam grasped her wrist, stopping her.

“Not yours.” He shook his head. “Aloria was heartbroken and destroyed. A woman who’d lost the love of her life forever. You”—Liam’s eyes hesitantly rose to mine—“have not yet lost yours. ”

Silence.

I didn’t miss his choice of words. Yet .

Kiara avoided me, her attention on the symbols. She hadn’t said those three tender words. I’d opened my soul to her and she’d merely planted her lips to mine. I dug my nails into the flesh of my palm, loathing how my doubts morphed into a blade aimed for my chest.

Death was at our heels , and I feared I may never hear the declaration I craved. I felt like a lovesick fool.

Liam hummed in thought. “This requires the blood of someone with a broken heart.” He glanced around the group, a question in his eyes.

My mother opened and closed her mouth but made no move forward, and Finn let out a frustrated scowl, indicating he wasn’t our man. That left us—

Dimitri shoved past the others.

“What are you doing?” Finn gawked at his comrade.

“The boy said it needs the blood of the heartbroken, right?” He shrugged, emotionless. “That would obviously be me.”

Emelia nodded to Finn to step down. “If Liam is right about this, then Dimitri’s blood will work.”

Aloria’s heartbreak was legendary, and few understood that kind of immense pain. The kind that literally set her mortal body aflame.

Some romances didn’t conclude with a happily - ever - after. Sometimes, they were fleeting and lasted a heartbeat, although their end didn’t make the love any less profound.

Tearing my gaze from Kiara, I drank in Dimitri, whose eyes had creased at the sides in a way they hadn’t before.

“My wife and daughter,” he whispered, lifting his finger and aiming for the jagged edge of the needle. “They were murdered years ago.” His finger poised above the tip, his hand trembling. “I…I was beaten down and knocked unconscious. When I woke, it was just long enough to watch as Cirian’s soldiers sliced their throats. They laughed as I screamed. As I tried to crawl to them. But they kicked me back, holding me in place. Making me watch as my daughter’s blood spilled across our kitchen floor. Her last words were her screaming for her father.”

A single tear fell down his tanned skin. He didn’t bother brushing it off. “I was left there, alive, when all I wanted to do was join them. Apparently the soldiers had come to the wrong house. Killed the wrong family. It was our neighbor they’d wanted, and after they realized their mistake, they simply left and kicked down his door, spilling more blood.”

My throat grew tight. I had been a faithful soldier of Cirian’s, committing unspeakable acts. Killing innocents. While I’d never slaughtered a child, shame weighed on my shoulders, knowing I’d worked alongside such evil.

Carefully, Dimitri pressed his finger to the stone’s sharpened tip and pushed down, hissing when it pierced his skin. “I lived like a dead man until Emelia found me. And by that time there wasn’t much soul left in me. There still isn’t.”

My attention darted to the Fox, stunned when a tear of her own slipped free. She hurriedly swiped at the evidence.

“Danielle and Tilly,” Dimitri whispered. Their names hung thick in the air, almost solid, almost real.

Something clicked into place. A gear.

Dimitri jolted back. The glimmering stone creaked and shifted, the edges vibrating as the wall behind it quaked.

“Keep back!” Kiara warned, lunging forward, dagger raised in one hand, her other lifted, palm out. She remained by my side as I also readied for the worst.

Dimitri shifted to the Fox, ignoring Finn’s pitying look. He shoved the hand with his bloodied finger inside his pocket. I didn’t need to see the red on his finger to know he bled on the inside. I suddenly realized how quickly I’d judged him.

Everyone hid their pain. Dimitri only showed his with a lullaby. A song meant for a little girl whom he’d hopefully see again one day.

A thunderous crash sounded, forcing my attention from the thief. The circular gem began to roll, sliding across the stone until it collided with the wall. A gap had been created, broad enough to fit two men.

I faced Kiara.

The unspoken word passed between us. We were more than capable of defending ourselves, and in a much better position than the others. If anything attacked, we’d be the first line of defense.

“ Together ,” she mouthed, and I nodded.

We walked through the doorway, side by side—

And fell.