“I asked what you were going to do about your brother,” Sasori said flatly, her black leather armor creaking as she crossed her arms across her chest. For a country that valued color, it was odd that she chose to don the military blacks of Vespera.
Can take the whore out of the house, but she’s still a whore.
A serpentine smile coated my face as I propped my head against my fist.
“That is none of your concern.” I spoke with a finality that should have sent her scurrying back to whatever hole she crawled from.
Sasori grunted disapprovingly with a slight roll of her eyes.
“When you accepted my offer of shelter and use of my army, I expected that you would share your information and intelligence, not withhold it for your own personal gain,” she snarked.
“I wasn’t aware that there were conditions for my stay.” My eyes flashed dangerously at her impudence.
“Nothing is free in life, Solace. There is always a payment to be made. Mine is that I demand to be included in your plans, for you to share your information. Otherwise, perhaps my trust and offer will be rescinded.”
I felt a twinge in my chest, but not from her words. Sasori continued to drone on, casting lackluster threats in my direction, but they fell on deaf ears. A piece of my soul twitched and writhed, almost like it was in pain.
Frowning, I rubbed at my sternum, willing the feeling to subside.
“Solace!” Sasori’s voice whipped through the empty room, bouncing off the walls until it settled around us.
My cold, hard gaze slowly rose to meet hers, and I watched, satisfied, as her amber eyes widened a fraction at what she saw. Her chest rose and fell in uneven breaths, and she stumbled back a step, her back connecting with the war table, as I rose silently from my chair.
How dare ahumanspeak to me that way.
Sasori’s mistake was written on her face, etched into lines of distress at the corners of her eyes. I could practically hear her heartbeat as I slowly approached, her body leaning back over the table as I towered over her.
“Yes?” I whispered, my voice low and threatening even as I felt that twinge in my chest again. The pain of it almost brought me to my knees.
“I—I—I” she stuttered, hands grasping for purchase on the wood behind her.
I kept walking until I stood toe-to-toe with Sasori, my chest slowly lowering until it was nearly touching hers. Her rapid pants coasted over my face, warming my skin, as I loomed over her.
“You, what?” I asked again. My own heart was beating erratically, but, unlike Sasori’s, mine was not due to the tense violence of this moment.
There was somethingwrongin my soul. Like a piece of it was straining to connect to another . . .
The realization of what it was sent my eyes wide as I froze. My lips were practically touching Sasori’s, and I quickly moved my face to the side so my mouth was next to her ear. Sasori flinched at the sudden movement, but I couldn’t take the time to revel in her obvious fear.
“This conversation is not over,” I said lowly before pulling away and sweeping from the room.
My stark-white dress trailed behind me as I strode through the occupied hallways. Servants and Mages alike jumped out of my way, bowing as low as possible in deference with mumbled “Goddess” as I passed.
This cannot be happening. It was safe. Hidden for millennia.
I barely registered my pathway through the palace and out into the bright sunshine. The courtyard in the rear of the palace was teeming with life—the sycophants that survived the Battle of Vespera mingled with Samyr’s Mage army, the differences between them distinguishable yet subtle after nearly a year acclimating to life in Samyr.
At my exit, the buzz of conversation ceased as they all kneeled as one, hands over their hearts, with a loudly mumbled “Solace.”
I blinked rapidly, the anguish from my tattered and broken soul screaming and writhing in my chest as its separated piece neared its point of creation. Sweat beaded on my forehead and back as I swept through the courtyard, not acknowledging the show of deference.
My breaths came in labored pants, and my hands shook as I balled them into fists, my long nails biting into my skin until slick, hot blood oozed between my knuckles to drip on the white stones under my bare feet.
Not even the gentle salty breeze that swept in from the surrounding bay could cool my feverish skin. I walked without destination, my feet drawn to a stonebalcony that overlooked the bay. I placed one shaking hand against my brow and squinted my eyes, desperately trying to see the other side.
It was a futile effort; not even my enhanced senses could see that far.
It’s there.
