She separated from me with a knowing gleam in her eyes and then Raghnall clapped loudly and the doors behind him opened.
Pax and Olympia stood straight on either side behind me as I raised my chin and strode into the garden. Members of my family in various shades of blue dotted the circle amidst a sea of red. I saw my mother seated next to Olympia’s, tears shining in her eyes as Helena gripped her hand in her lap. Nick, Cleo, and Sebastian sat together a few rows back on the left side. They were watching warily as if wondering how much of a choice I’d actually had in today’s events. Colby sat with Uncle Elias on the far side, directly in my eyeline as I settled in front of the priest beneath the trellis. They were grinning from ear to ear as I met their gaze and smiled in greeting. Paxon and Olympia took up the space behind me, lining up side by side as my chosen witnesses.
Down the aisle, my father began helping my grandmother forward. With her arm clutched in his, he made his way to the front of the circle just feet away from where I stood. He met my gaze with a stoic scowl of his own, nodding once in the only form of approval I’d ever gotten from him.
Once Nascha was in her seat, my father beside her, the priest began to speak. He welcomed both families to the ceremony, praised the Geist and their infinite wisdom for bringing Isla and I together, and called forward the bride’s witnesses.
I wasn’t surprised to see Luca and Cora make their way toward me. They were precisely who I’d expected Isla to choose. As they took up their positions on the bride’s side in mirror image to Pax and Olympia, I noticed Luca exchanging glances with my cousin and wondered if they used their bond despite the warning not to. But then the priest was calling forth the bride and the garden doors were opening again to reveal Isla in a shimmering satin gown so deeply crimson it was almost black. Strapless so as to expose her shoulders, it flowed down her body in a way thatfitted her curves like a glove before trailing out behind her in shimmering waves.
Her red hair was pulled up in an elegant updo that made it look darker than it was and her chocolate eyes had been lined with kohl so that they stood out against her pale skin. She didn’t smile as she made her way down the aisle and that simple fact alone had me wanting to reach across the bond, but I didn’t.
The priest began droning on and on about the gods and their favor and a request for them to bless our union but I just watched Isla as she stopped before me and met my gaze. I could see the same sturdy determination in her eyes I’d grown so accustomed to during our brief venture into the trials. She’d set herself on this course and was too stubborn to turn away from it now, but that didn’t mean she was happy. All of a sudden, I hated myself for what I’d done to us, for the choices I’d made which had brought us here, standing on the precipice of a forced marriage and more responsibility on our shoulders than any couple in Sanctuary had ever had before.
The priest instructed us to hold hands for the next part and I reached for her, squeezing her fingers in what I hoped was a show of support. I’d given her every opportunity to back out of this, but I should have known she wouldn’t take it even if she wanted to. We both felt the mantle of our duties lying heavily against our necks.
Finally, after what felt like an hour of standing in front of the priest in the increasingly hot morning sun, it was finished. He sang some harsh, staccato song in the old language before announcing us husband and wife and sending us off into our future.
I took Isla’s hand as we turned to face the riotous applause from every standing member of our families as they beamed and cheered us into our future. Her palm wasn’t sweaty and herfingers weren’t shaking. She was solid, perfectly composed, but she still wasn’t smiling.
We led the way into the house, going first as tradition dictated, with our witnesses and the priest following close behind. Pax walked with Cora while Luca took Olympia. I heard him mutter something to her as we approached the grand ballroom where the feast would be held. I wasn’t sure what he said but I heard the resulting howl as she stomped on his foot before striding ahead of all of us to her seat on the raised platform at the end. I turned toward Luca and raised a brow, but he just huffed and walked away.
“Our families are getting along swimmingly,” I remarked to Isla as we made our way to the table set high on the dais where we would dine with our patriarch, matriarch, priest, and witnesses.
“As always,” she replied, tone flat.
I cocked my head to the side as I turned to her but she wasn’t looking my way. She was staring straight ahead as we made our way forward, eyes locked on that table as if it were the only thing that mattered in the world.
Isla, I tried via the bond.
Don’t,she warned, tone tight.Not now, Milo. Please.
I backed down, pulling away from her as we sat at the table. Externally, she was calm and collected, as stiff as she could possibly be, but internally, she was panicking. I could feel it through the bond. I wanted to comfort her, to squeeze her hand again or support her in some way, but I knew that right now, I was the one causing her anxiety. She didn’t want my touch or my support. She didn’t want me at all in this moment.
So I peered around her to where Cora sat on the opposite side of the priest. Isla’s twin met my gaze the moment it found her and she frowned, eyes shooting to her sister and back. She could feel it too. I opened my mouth to say something butwas interrupted by none other than Harrison, the Third Ringer who’d been Adrian’s roommate in that apartment he still lived in down on the lower rings.
Gasps arose and conversations died as he stormed into the hall, rushing past the line of First Ringers still making their way into the ballroom, and panting to catch his breath. A chair squeaked against the floor and Olympia was on her feet, storming off of the dais toward the wide-eyed man making his way toward us.
My cousin reached him in an instant and placed her hand on his chest to push him back. I couldn’t hear what they were saying but she was speaking in a low tone through gritted teeth and held her patented glare while he was arguing back and gesturing up toward us. I rose slowly from my own chair, prepared to call out to him, but he beat me to it.
“You need to come to the Deck, Sir,” Harrison called up to me, still fighting for breath. “It’s the Culling. Cosmo’s there.”
Chairs scraped against the floor all around us as Raghnall and Luca rose as well. The priest and Nascha flanked me in a moment and the three of us made our way to the Third Ringer who’d clearly run all this way to retrieve us.
“What’s happening?” Nascha asked once we reached him and turned as one to make our way down to the Deck.
Olympia followed without being asked, trailing closely behind Harrison as he began explaining what was going on.
“Some of the lower ringers refused to go through the arch,” Harrison said quickly as we hurried through the ballroom and out of House Lynx. “The priests were trying to force them, threatening them with damnation or whatever else, when Cosmo arrived. He said he’d ensure they went through one way or another. Then he grabbed a family member of one of the Culled, a brother, I think, and he…”
Harrison trailed off, a haunted look in his eyes. Olympia poked him in the back and he rushed on.
“He beheaded the kid.”
Chapter Sixteen
Olympia
Iwanted to kill Cosmo.
