Page 50

Kiara

Some of the earth and soil priestesses say Arlo is headed west. If this is true, then he’s surely on his way to you and the girl. He better train her properly, or I’ll attempt to kill him myself, with or without an enchanted blade.

Letter from Lieutenant Harlow to Aurora Adair, year 40 of the curse

The pain finally stopped.

The second Arlo arranged his hands on my torso, the pleasant numbnes s of death had been shocked away, his fingertips emitting sparks of pure, unfiltered power.

I lay there, unable to do anything but accept the agony. It didn’t burn like Jude’s touch, and his power wasn’t icy like my shadows. Arlo’s magic was a devastating thing, a force that tore into my flesh, the sensation of phantom hands violently digging around my insides.

“Get it together,” Arlo ordered from somewhere above me. “Our training sessions were more painful than this.”

“A-asshole,” I croaked, my vision gradually settling. The god studied me through narrowed eyes, his lips twisting into a frown.

“Asshole I might be, but I’m an asshole that’s kept you alive this long.” He reached around me with both hands, scooping me up and into the air. I barely regained my balance before he set me on the ground. When I swayed, he imparted me with a look of warning.

Slowly, I began to feel the tips of my fingers, pins and needles stinging my legs. I was reformed in a way I couldn’t describe. Still human, but abuzz with power that hummed through my bones.

“I f-forgot how empathetic you w-were, Uncle .” My sarcasm didn’t hit quite as strongly as I intended given my trembling voice, so I attempted my best glower in its place. “What did you d-do to me? Twist m-my insides?”

He had the audacity to chuckle. “So dramatic. I only saved your life, you ungrateful child.” Arlo’s hand hovered beside my shoulder, prepared to steady me. “Pain is nothing if nothing is gained.”

I groaned. “Always the philosopher.”

“Always right ,” he corrected, finally inching back. He coughed awkwardly, then scanned the woods over my shoulder, avoiding my eyes.

I stretched my arms out, wiggling my fingers and my toes. There was an enduring ache in my limbs, but it was lessening with each stiff movement.

Peering down upon myself, I’d expected to be different in some way, having been tied to a god…but I was still me. Seemingly unchanged. My clothes were stained, my trousers ripped, the corset seeped in my blood. I looked half dead with the amount of red defiling the silk, yet Arlo’s gift granted me energy. The will to fight.

All was in place except—

Except… My scars. My hands were free of the twisting vines, and my skin appeared smooth where scars had grown to graze my elbows.

“That happened when you presented your soul to that boy,” he said, not hiding his sneer.

“I…” I didn’t know what to feel. A part of me felt naked, and in a way, I missed them.

Arlo scoffed when I lowered my arms. He wouldn’t understand anyway.

“You did the right thing. But now, you’ll have nothing but yourself to rely on. Which should be enough, given all the time I spent on you. Certainly should be,” Arlo grumbled. He jerked his chin to the side, to where my still ringing ears picked up the echoes of screams.

Jude .

A wave of panic engulfed me. “Where is he?” I asked, frantically patting for the Godslayer. Of course. I’d given it to Jude. I still carried my own blade in a sheath at my hip, however unimpressive it was in comparison.

If the mark of the shadow beast was gone, did that also mean…

I reached for the scar on my chest tying me to Jude and sighed with relief when my fingers grazed bumpy and raised skin an inch below my beating heart. It was still there.

Somehow, against all the odds, against being saved and practically reborn, I still retained the one scar I never wished to part with. I supposed some bonds couldn’t be broken.

Arlo grasped my shoulders, forcing me to look into his stony eyes.

“People think power comes from magic, but that is far from the truth. As much as I take credit for your skill”—his nostrils flared as he paused—“it was you who worked to attain such strength. Achieve such competence. And without the aid of a single spark of divine influence.”

I stilled. “Is that a compliment ?”

Arlo shoved off me like I carried the plague. “Here,” he barked, fumbling at his hip. He moved to his sheath, retrieving a sword that had me drooling. Sleek and commanding, the polished steel greeted a hilt of emerald green. Amber gems were embedded in the metal, surrounded by brass vines, and sharp thorns encircled the magnificent hilt.

“Take it before I change my mind.” Arlo pushed it forward, still not looking at me. I noted how his hand held a slight tremble.

This was no simple gift.

My jaw dropped, but nevertheless, I reached out, unable to help myself. Needing to hold such striking craftsmanship in my hands more than my next breath.

“Hurry. Your commander needs you,” Arlo reminded.

I grasped the mighty weapon, my limbs buzzing, my adrenaline picking up. The time to fight neared, but there was one thing left to do before I went into battle.

“My friends,” I said weakly, thinking of where they were still imprisoned. “Can you help me reach them? They’re stuck right outside the doorway that leads to the chamber with the mirrors.”

Arlo growled again. He was more bear than man. Perhaps he’d have been better suited for Lorian’s position. “You ask for too much of a weakened god, child. Especially after you broke my mirrors.”

“The Moon God stole them in the first place,” I mumbled, but he was already marching away, compelling me to follow. About thirty feet from where he saved me, a gaping chasm opened in the earth. This must’ve been where he pulled me out.

I peered down, spotting a hint of white smoke rising to the surface.

Arlo pressed on, walking farther into the trees. A minute later, he dipped into a crouch, placed his hands on the ground, and shut his eyes. The first tremor shook the soles of my boots, the earth shuddering. Vibrations danced up my calves as the quake increased in strength, and I teetered to the side, quickly knocked onto my back.

Arlo glowed a soft blue as he worked, his lids fluttering in concentration. Murderous screams came from beyond the trees.

The fight was well underway, but I had to save my companions, even if I was tempted to find Jude first. If he believed he was the cause of my death, he’d do something obnoxiously heroic.

Another violent shift cracked the earth, the land splitting as the chasm spread.

“What are you—”

I scrambled back before I fell into the pit. More voices rose from below, those not belonging to the battle taking place.

“I may not be capable of entering his inner chamber without my full power,” Arlo hissed between his teeth, his brow creasing, “but I command the earth his temple sits upon, and I still have a few devoted followers who haven’t abandoned me yet.”

“So you could’ve helped us get outside the main vault this entire time?” I nearly screamed. We’d lost a life on this journey, and Finn was missing a foot. Unbelievable.

“I didn’t have the power to help until the prayers were released. So I’d appreciate it if you ceased your whining and accepted the help I can offer you now.”

I shook my head. He could hide behind the persona of heartless prick all he desired, but he’d shown his hand. Arlo cared far more than he let on.

Arlo’s light slipped down into the split earth, and the voices I’d heard evolved into shrieks. “Your friends are resisting,” he added, displeased.

Jake was likely swatting at Arlo’s magic with his fists.

Sweat slicked Arlo’s brow—the energy leaving him a pale shade of white. He grunted with exertion, already having expended too much when he saved my life.

A minute later, four bodies were hoisted from the depths of the rocky fissure, all flailing wildly, screaming curses—mainly Jake—and deposited at my side, soft blue winding around their torsos. The light flickered gently before sliding back and rushing into the god’s body.

Arlo stumbled to his feet and wiped his hands down his robes. “I’ve done enough,” he said to no one at all, though he carefully inspected my friends, who were just now thrusting to their feet, their eyes trained on him, unsure of whether or not to be thankful. To me, he said, “I’m drained and must recover, meaning you must go and do what I trained you for on your own. And don’t you dare disappoint me.”

A flash of blue, and Arlo vanished into thin air as if he didn’t just save my life, make me immortal, and rescue my friends.

He knew how to make an exit.

“Everyone all right?” I asked quickly, scanning them.

Emelia had Finn propped up between her and Jake, the bodyguard’s chin lowered, his face in a permanent grimace. And Jake…well, the bastard was smiling at me as though we weren’t fighting for our lives.

“I can’t say I appreciated the surprise of being yanked through the earth by a god, but I love the new sword, Ki.” He whistled appreciatively, eyeing the weapon cradled in my hands. “But how about we put it to use? Those screams don’t sound fun.”

Indeed.

“Was that really Micah? Or Arlo, I mean?” Liam gasped out, squinting to where the god had disappeared. I nodded in reply. “I didn’t believe Jude when he told me, but seeing him…”

Seeing him in all his divine glory was an entirely different story.

I faced Emelia. Her eyes were puffy and red, and she visibly trembled beneath Finn’s weight, even with Jake’s assistance. To her, I asked, “Can you take care of them while I help Jude?”

I may not have any powers, but Arlo was right. I never needed them.

The Fox nodded stiffly, though she added, “We’ll be out of sight but close by. I won’t sit back and watch my son perish if I can do anything about it.”

“Emelia,” Finn rasped, his voice strained. “Leave me behind and fight for him yourself. I know how much you hate to miss out on a good bloodbath.” He cupped her cheek, and she shut her eyes leaning into him. When she opened them, he gave her a knowing nod.

Her decision was made.

“It’s decided,” Jake said. “Finn and Liam stay behind. Emelia, Ki, and I are going in.” I went to protest , but he cut me off. “I haven’t left your side once, and I don’t plan on doing so now.” Jake shot me with a fierce stare, his eyes blazing with intensity, the blue in them shining clear, even in the soft moonlight.

I wouldn’t be able to dissuade him.

“Fine. But let me do most of the heavy lifting,” I conceded, and he mumbled some unintelligible curses in reply.

I started to walk off toward the sounds of battle when Liam grasped my arm. I had a difficult time looking at him.

“I need my sister,” Liam said, his jaw tense, brows drawn together in concern. “Come back to me.”

Swallowing thickly, I forced a nod. Liam was having none of it. He snatched me in his arms and wound himself around me tight, squeezing the life from my bones.

“Go out there and be nothing but Kiara Frey,” he whispered into my ear. “You’ve always been enough.”

“I love you, Liam.” I swiped at the errant tear that had escaped, drawing back.

A furious neigh and the pounding of hooves severed our connection. I’d recognize that glorious sound anywhere, and my heart gave a hopeful lurch.

Starlight . She’d come for me.

Jake and I marched into the woods toward the furious neighs belonging to Starlight, two mortals with not an ounce of power and all the odds against us.

But one thing was certain—

We wouldn’t be brought to our knees. We wouldn’t surrender. And we’d go down swinging…taking as many monsters with us as we could.