General Griffin finally gives a firm nod. “Yes, we are done here. Glaive, you will help me collect our armor.”
Just like that, the tension around me evaporates.
Without another glance at me, Griffin and Glaive set about retrieving the metallic suits they peeled off and left in the snow, along with their swords.
The Celestial Star darts to my side, where she sways so close to my downcast face that she nearly brushes my cheek. The glow around me has faded so significantly that she is brighter than me now. Her light is cold but somehow calming.
General Glass also approaches me, her footfalls seeming more cautious than before.
I narrow my eyes at Glass as she extends her free hand down to me.
“I wish to go in peace,” she says. “Will you allow that?”
I consider her offered hand. Does she really expect me to touch her now that I know how easily she could kill me?
“Or do you consider the Valkyries your enemies?” she asks, her voice tightening.
I’m conscious that the other two Valkyries are eyeing me again—and most certainly listening for my answer—while they busy themselves collecting the last pieces of armor.
“I have enough enemies already,” I say, turning away from them. “Go in peace.”
I have powerful enemies. The Fae Queen, for one. Even though I completed the deal I made with her, there is no trust between us. She will turn on me when it suits her.
The humans in the Cursed City are also my enemies. They schemed to kill Erik and nearly succeeded. I lived with their hatred my entire life.
And then there’s Thaden Kane, who could be my most powerful enemy of all. When he first came into my life, he claimed to be human. He said that the Blacksmith, Milena Ironmeld, had experimented on him and turned him into a beast. She’d supposedly killed Graviter Rex’s son, Lysander, and used Lysander’s soul to give Thaden the physical attributes of a dragon.
It was a lie.
Thaden is not human.
He’s a Blacksmith, the son of Malak Ironmeld himself. Malak subjected the humans in the south to a thirty-year reign of terror and subjugation.
Thaden pretended to assist me, sending me in Milena’s direction, only to actually send me into a trap.
My brother and sister are with him, and my fear for them is constant now that I know who Thaden really is.
General Glass quietly retracts her hand. She turns to leave and then pauses, lowering herself into a half-crouched, half-kneeling position at my side.
She speaks so quietly that I can barely hear her. “It’s a Valkyrie’s curse to live without affection. We can show it to our daughters, and they can show it to us. But to all others, we are monsters in the dark. I think you understand this.”
Her green eyes meet mine, but I consider her with wariness despite the open expression on her face.
“You are a Blacksmith, but not like the others,” she continues. “Even in the far north, we have heard stories of how you wield Malak Ironmeld’s tools. I think you must understand what it means to be the monster in the dark.”
My lips press together. Only a week ago, Malak’s metal adhered to my left hand. I couldn’t remove it. I faced a constant battle with the cruelty and malice in that metal. I used that power to turn humans into stone and ash and mist. Those humans had been trying to kill me—had tried to kill Erik—and I hit back without mercy.
I take a deep, shuddering breath and then speak quietly, hoping she knows I’m being genuine when I say, “I’m sorry about your daughter.”
Her lips press together as she swallows, her throat visibly constricting before she takes another glance at her sisters.
They’ve pulled on their armor and appear to be ready to leave. Just as they spread their wings and call her to join them, her focus shifts to Graviter Rex.
I’m surprised when a look of intense fear fills her face.
I’m baffled by the reason for her anxiety, since it’s clear she’s one of the few supernaturals who could kill the dragon king if she wished.
A heartbeat after her expression changes, she darts toward me, such a sudden movement that my hand closes reflexively around my hammer.
