A barrage of stones rained against the pillar that shielded them, and Rmí grabbed L’?r? in an embrace and swung her against the wall, allowing some of the stones to crash into his back. He groaned and tensed in her grip until the worst of the hail passed, and only the wind blew against his hair. L’?r? breathed, trying not to take in the scent of coconut oil that wafted from his locs. She looked at him, finding his eyes. ‘Fight with me,’ she said in a whisper. ‘I know we don’t know each other very well, but if you help me, I promise not to leave you behind.’
‘You haven’t been fighting. You’ve been running,’ Rmí said. ‘Since I met you, you haven’t put up a fight. Not when I captured you, not when the maiden came at you. You’re asking me to die with you. Where I’m from, you marry the man first before you ask him for his life,’ he said with a coy smile.
L’?r? shoved him off, and he dusted the sand from his hair.
‘How can you joke about this?’ she said.
Rmí glanced at the last wall again and when his eyes fellback upon her, they were glassy. ‘I’ve waited too long to miss this chance, I’m sorry.’
‘Fine. I don’t need you,’ she cried out. She ran into the storm and made her way back to the keep. Part of her hoped Rmí would follow, but even if he didn’t, she was done running from the maiden – Rmí was right about one thing: she’d been running for too long. It was time to stop and fight.
Two things broke the kingdom of Oru in two.
One day, the priests discovered a child born without agbára – an abomination.
Agbára, as gifted by the gods, was hereditary, passing from mother to child every single time.
So, who or what was this child?
Time revealed the truth that the parents who sired the child had agbára oru and agbára òtútù.
And this was, to say the very least, unacceptable.
39
Ìlú-Òdì, Sixth Ring, Kingdom of Oru
TOFA
The deserted foyer in the Lord General’s keep was half as large as its ballroom. So when the doors burst open, Tofa had time to study the girl who raged towards them to save Alawani. The way her hair bobbed as she ran, the strength in her arms as she swung the blades by her side, the anger in her face as she drew nearer. The storm raged in with her, breaking the windows and swirling around her like a hurricane. She looked as wild as Àlùfáà-Àgbà had described.
Next to him, Milúà stood tall and unmoving, her armour glistering in the morning light. She gripped her dagger to Alawani’s neck. She’d known the girl would be back for Alawani and had decided to wait for her here while the rest of the keep sheltered deeper inside, where the storm couldn’t reach them. ‘Stop. Walk slowly or watch his blood spill before your eyes!’ she said, pulling the cuffed prince into view.
L’?r? slowed instantly and started a slow prowl in Milúà’s direction, her face like thunder.
Tofa no longer believed in the subtle strategy the palace had used previously. If it were up to him, L’?r? and Alawani’s portraits would have been pasted on every wall in the kingdom until he’d found them. Trying to keep the world from knowingthat the temple had lost an Àlùfáà and there was a survivor of Òtútù living among them was the only reason L’?r? and Alawani had got as far as the sixth ring without being caught. The one who sat upon the throne could not leave it to fight battles such as these, so this might very well be Tofa’s last foray into battle. Tofa couldn’t take his eyes off L’?r?. He wasn’t sure what he’d expected her to look like. But as she drew closer, he saw glimpses of K?ni in her eyes. He saw his father’s nose and cheekbones carved into her face and it terrified him.
L’?r? stood defiantly, her eyes shifting to meet his gaze. Tofa wondered what she saw when she looked into the eyes of her brother. Her mouth opened, her hands now shaking so visibly the blades she held were nearly vibrating. Good. She knew to be afraid.
‘It’s over,’ Tofa said quietly. ‘Drop your weapons. You’re done.’
‘Let him go and I won’t kill you,’ L’?r? growled.
Tofa smirked and walked closer to her. She took a step backwards. Tofa kept walking until he cornered her against the nearest pillar.
‘Tell me the truth,’ he said. ‘Who are you?’
‘Who do they say I am?’
‘Who is they?’
‘Whoever sent you here to kill me.’
‘I haven’t decided yet if I want to kill you.’
‘You could’ve fooled me,’ L’?r? said, glancing at the storm outside the windows, bellowing and flinging streams of sand inside.
Tofa smiled slyly, ‘I bet your plan was to escape while the keep hid from the storm.’
