“So, I ran, and then …” Her shoulders shook and I tightened my hug, pulling her even closer to me. “A lion entered the arena. It went after the wolves, trying to attack. But they caught it.” She trembled. “They … they tore the lion apart.”
I ran my hands up and down her sides. Her aura was pulsating now with distress and grief.
“A lion?” I asked. “If the wolves were Ka Kormac, then, who does the lion represent? Do you know any Kavim with lions on their sigils?”
“No,” Lyr said. “The lion didn’t represent a Ka.”
“Then what?” I asked.
“Not what. Who.” Lyr shuddered. “I recognized the lion’s eyes.” She looked at Meera. And then, with a small, shaking voice, asked, “Do you remember her hair? I used to call it her lion’s mane when we were little. In my vision, it was red. Batavia red. Remember the way she’d been lit up by the eternal flame in Auriel’s Chamber? Remember how she looked? Just before? The lion had her hair at that moment. And I heard her voice in my head, for the first time in two years.”
Meera’s eyes searched hers, rapidly jumping back and forth before she cried out.
“By the Gods,” I said, the puzzle clicking into place for me, too.
“The lion was Jules.” Lyr’s voice broke. “She’s at the capital. I know it beyond a doubt. And she’s being torn apart.”
We’d suspected as much after Morgana revealed that Lumerians arrested for vorakh were taken and then enslaved there. The Emperor and Lumeria’s most elite nobility were siphoning off their power, using it for their own benefit. We’d guessed she was being kept in the capital, close to the Emperor. But this felt like the confirmation we’d needed to make our next move.
“There’s something else,” Lyr said. “There were two lights that scared everyone in the audience. One was indigo. The other orange.”
“Moriel and Ereshya,” I said. Aemon and Morgana. Well, that was just fucking perfect.
Lyr nodded. “They’re going after Jules, too.”
CHAPTER SEVEN
RHYAN
Meera’s face hardened, her eyes on Lyr, a dare in her expression as if she expected a fight. “If Jules is in the capital, then that’s where we’re going. All of us,” Meera said pointedly. Her gaze flicked to me, daring me to object.
Most of my interactions with Bamaria’s former Heir Apparent had been in the last year, when she was weakened from visions. But I could see the flare of who she’d been before. The Meera who might have become Arkasva and High Lady.
Lyr’s own aura still felt faint, but a sudden burst of heat rose off her skin as if in response.
“Yes. We’re all going,” Lyr said, and turned in my lap, her gaze intense. “Now we know for sure she’s there. We’re going to get her back.”
“We will, I swear,” I promised. “And if Aemon’s headed there, too, maybe we’ll take Moriel down as well.” There was a violent edge to my words I couldn’t hide. Ever since I’d seen that bastard whip Lyr, I’d barely been able to stomach looking at him. And now that I knew the truth, knew he was evil, my hatred for him had grown.
“We need a plan. We should leave Glemaria tomorrow. First thing,” Lyr said. “We need to forge a path south to the capital. Then we’ll find a way in.”
My throat tightened, but as Lyr leaned forward, trying to stand, I let her go, my arms falling to my sides. She was steadier on her feet than I’d expected, but as I reached for her hand, the cold still clung to her skin.
“Lyr, wait,” I said. “We can’t just leave Glemaria.”
Her hazel eyes flared with anger, the golden flecks molten. “What do you mean? That’s what we’ve been discussing for days. We have to. It’s been almost two and a half years. And every second we wait, is another second she’s tortured.”
I’d seen the determination and fire in Lyr’s eyes, the moment the shock wore off, she’d become obsessed. Nothing was going to stop her from rescuing her cousin. Nothing was going to stop me from doing the same. I’d do anything for Lyriana. I’d crawl through the fires of hell for her. But this was more than that. Jules was my friend, too. I cared for her, too. She’d been there for me at a time when I’d had no one. I also needed to get her out of there. Needed to protect her.
And I fucking would.
But, not at the cost of Lyr’s life. And if I knew Jules, she wouldn’t want that either. She’d been just as protective of Lyriana as I was.
I squeezed her hand, still careful to keep my aura pulled back. “Partner,” I said softly. “I’d go get her this second if I could. I’d travel into the Palace, jump into every room until I found her, kill everyone who’d laid a hand on her.” My voice rose with the truth of my words, my rage boiling under the surface of my skin. “But it’s not going to be that simple. There’s going to be far more than the wards of the Palace and the Emperor’s soturi guarding her. Especially now. I need to tell you both something I heard this morning. I think it’s related to your vision.”
Lyr’s eyes widened, a quick glance to Meera before turning back to me.
I rose to my feet. “The Emperor’s trying to do damage control right now. With …” I coughed, hating bringing this up. “With Brockton’s death, and the fact that you’re both missing, as well as Morgana, and … well, me … people are talking. Public perception is that Imperator Kormac doesn’t have control over the South. Between the Imperator’s failings, all the akadim attacks, and the unsecured transfers of power, rumors are spreading, and political protests are breaking out. Rioting, even. And it’s becoming increasingly known that Aemon hasn’t made contact with Lumeria in days. It makes the Emperor look like he picked the wrong man to lead. From what I understand, my father’s at the helm of making sure these stories spread. If I know him, he’s encouraging, if not outright funding, some of the riots. He thrives on civil unrest, especially if he can blame the violence on a rival. The Emperor plans to distract everyone while Imperator Kormac cleans up the mess,” I said.
