Vera may see us. Noire may see us.
I look away first.
After a long while of walking in silence, Daegel finally speaks. “Has your patron told you anything about the first trial?”
I shake my head. My stomach’s in knots. “Have yours told you what to expect?”
“A little,” he admits.
Dread floods my chest, heavy and sticky like volcanic tar. Daegel’s steps halt and he faces me. I know whatever comes out of his mouth next won’t be something I want to hear.
“All champions will fight till death, until the very last trial when only one will be standing,” he says. “But we can forfeit anytime if we change our minds.”
I lift my chin defiantly. “I will not.”
He takes my hands in his. “I’ll get to my knees and beg, if I must. Just tell me. What do I need to do for you to drop out, Phoenix?”
I’m stunned to silence. But after a couple of heartbeats I find my voice again. “Nothing. There’s nothing you can do to change my mind, Daegel.”
Pain taints his beautiful features, as if my words have struck him.
Suddenly, I’m so tired I need to lie down.
When he speaks the next words, they come out rushed, in a hush. “Your stubbornness will be the death of you, and me. If you want to risk your life, and our relationship, then so be it.” His words strike through my heart, like an arrow. The cold resignation in his tone chills my bones. Surprising me, he adds, “The first trial will be brutal and dangerous, designed to test our will and wisdom. We’ll be facing ancient beasts. That’s all I know. Prepare to fight for your life against something bigger and much more lethal than yourself, or any of us. Stay safe, Phoenix.”
His hands are gone, but they leave a burning mark on my skin as he walks away.
CHAPTER FORTY-ONE
PHOENIX
“Phoenix, please stop brooding over your tea,” Vera says to me, snapping me out of my thoughts. “What is up with you these past few days?”
I blink. “I’m not brooding.”
“Oh, Phoenix darling, you’re brooding like ninety percent of the time,” Jax says.
He’s picking at his nails using a sharp dagger with a diamond-encrusted handle. The urge to rip the blade out of his hand and stab his palm with it is hard to tame.
But I manage.
I deserve a medal for it, truthfully.
I glance between Vera and Jax. “Well, maybe I’m a brooding type. What’s so wrong about it?”
Vera takes an elegant sip of her tea. “Nobody likes a brooding General.”
I roll my eyes. “Whatever.”
Truth is, I may have been brooding. Have been since the Starless Night. How could I not? I can’t forget Daegel, ourargument, and the hint he shared with me about what to expect during the first trial.
Worse of all—I don’t know what to do about it. I can’t tell Vera I know what to expect in the first trial, because she’ll ask how I know. But then…why doesn’t she know anything about the first trial?
She’s supposed to help me win, and yet.
“So, when is this Oka Oyo showing up?” Jax puts the dagger down. “I’m so excited to meet the legendary woman.”
Vera cocks her head to the side. “Who says you’re meeting her?”
