I shove the wrapped blade into my jacket pocket and, in a flurry of darkness, I reopen the blood connection between us and call to the shadows to lead me to my light.
A mist covers the gardens of Nobus’ palace, tinged purple by the light of the two suns that shine beyond the mountains. Of all the thousands of the realms in existence, I should have known she’d be here.
Her blood pulls me toward her, like an invisible rope tied around my sternum. I follow it through the hedges and down the river stone paths as if my very life depends on reaching her.
And maybe it does.
“Have you come for me at last, Dark God?”
The voice startles me, my feet stopping so fast that my immortal grace is the only thing that prevents me from fallingover. I turn toward the voice, to the goddess sitting on the stone bench holding a sleeping child.
“No,” I reply. “I am not here for you, Arcasia.”
“For Calaedon, then? Has his father finally decided to do it?”
The Goddess of Protection’s face is hard, no hint of sorrow or worry, only resignation gracing her features. In her mind, it’s a matter of time before Nobus takes the life of her son. She doesn’t know that the soul of the young Prince of the Gods isn’t on my list.
The toddler stirs in his mother’s arms. Arcasia drops her gaze, brushing tendrils of onyx hair from his face. Silver eyes pop open at her touch and I watch her mask slip slightly. If I was here for the boy, she would beg me to take her too.
The place where my cold, shriveled heart should be aches.
This child is so small, yet already so powerful. He’s not just covered in magic, but also in love. The love of a mother who would give up eternal life to never be separated from him, and the love of gods who joined a rebellion at the sight of his eyes alone.
I saw it that night, the ripple of realization across the faces of the gods who hadn’t yet agreed to join Mikais’ rebellion. Across the face of the goddess I’m actually here to see. An entire section of the pantheon plots against the man who would kill this prince simply for the crime of being born.
It’s a crime and a punishment I know all too well.
The image of the Goddess of Blood flashes in my mind’s eye.
War clings to her leg, standing amongst her flowing skirts while my mother holds the lifeless carcass of a raven in her hands.
“That was my offering, you careless child! How dare you steal from me!”
She drops the bird and strikes me again across the face, my blood joining the bird’s on her fingers.
“Every drop of blood spilled ismine. The power of life and death belongs to me. ME! Not you. Never you.”
“Your Majesty, it’s time to go now.” The voice of a servant rips me from my memory. “Your allotted time is up.”
Arcasia clears her throat as she rises, her gray eyes locking onto mine in a final, desperate plea to take them both. I can’t tell her what I know—that the child won’t die but will grow up under someone else’s care, that the Goddess of Light will steal him away with the dawn—but I can grant her one sliver of hope for now.
“Not today, goddess.”
She nods in thanks as the servant leads her back into her gilded prison, her head held high as the invisible noose around her neck tightens slightly.
The servant will tell Nobus what she saw and the king will summon me. I need to get to Selene before word of my presence reaches him.
The rope tied to my body tugs again. I let my shadows conceal me as I move—a quick walk that increases speed rapidly. The stronger the blood bond between us becomes, the faster I move. I have never in my life ran toward someone, never felt the sharp stab of fleeting hope that grips me tighter in her vice with each passing second.
Hope.
For the first time in my life, I feel hope.
There’s a possibility that she won’t see me, that she won’t open the door or let me gaze into those sparkling golden eyes. But there’s a possibility that she will, and that is what I cling to now.
My feet skid to a halt outside the library and I know without a doubt that she’s inside. I scan the rows of shelves and find the room empty except for the glowing light near the reading alcove.
My shadows race ahead, blazing an eager path between the stacks. Selene’s muffled gasp sounds when they round the corner and give away my approach.
