My thoughts begin to frenzy. “I’m not leaving until you understand why youmusthelp us,” I say.
Matron Valeria turns to Delphia. “Your companion says he is a voice for the Queen. Aurelia would never suffer such discord. Unless there is a sign from our Queen, we will not help you.”
Delphia looks down, defeat evident in her gaze.
“How can you do this?” I roar. “People are dying! All of the Vale is in danger! You must help—”
A small hand grabs my arm. Delphia looks up at me, gaze empty. “It’s over, Ezryn. Let’s go.”
She and Nori walk toward the exit of the chamber.
No, this can’t be it. We can’t have come all this way.
I can’t have failed again.
CHAPTER 74
Rosalina
“Remember to block.” Dayton’s wooden sword slams against my shoulder.
Hissing, I bring my two swords up to guard my face, and he taps them with a satisfied smile. “I prefer the bow,” I say.
“Then maybe don’t snap it in half so I’m forced to watch your pitiful excuse for swordplay. Again.”
The midday sun beats heavily down into the open-air training pit. Grainy sand shifts beneath our feet. Knocking wood sounds in the air as other gladiators train around us. Though, I notice their gazes constantly drift to Dayton.
Tilla’s right: his presenceisigniting. There’s been a change since the last match where Dayton defeated his brothers. It’s reminded his legionnaires and the other gladiators that he’s not just the third-born son. Heisa High Prince.
Dayton puts me through a few more rounds, mostly practicing footwork and building on the defensive techniques Justus taught me. He starts wielding a spear, showing me how to block and how far away I have get in order to be out of its range. We’ll be fighting the Bronze Knight and his Lance of Valor in the next battle.
A few more hours slip by, and I take a break to eat dried fruit and bread and sip some lukewarm water. But Dayton doesn’t stop, instead choosing to spar with a spear wielder.
Dayton disarms him in a moment. The man begins to apologize, but Dayton just wipes his forehead and shouts. “Can anyone here offer me a challenge?”
A few more legionnaires face him, and he downs them in moments. Pairs, then triples, attempt to face the High Prince.Dayton sweeps them away, each landing flat on their back, clouds of dust rising up around them.
His chest heaves, a red sunburn scalds his shoulders, and sweat coats his skin. His eyes almost glow, and for a moment he looks more beast than fae. No one moves to challenge him, and he stalks off to the wooden pell, hacking at it with his swords.
A match begins in the arena, and most of the gladiators leave the training pit to watch, while the rest are chased away by the afternoon sun. Dayton and I are suddenly alone.
Still, Dayton makes no move to stop training. I ladle a fresh cup of water and bring it over to him. “You should drink.”
“Not thirsty.” He doesn’t turn to me. Doesn’t even look at me.
I stalk away, put the cup of water down, and pick up my sword instead, stomping back over to Dayton.
Intercepting his sword with my own, I glare up at him. “Are you going to tell me what’s wrong or are you just going to take it out on this wood?”
His eyes are cloudy. He backs up from the pell. “Nothing’s wrong.”
“The way you treated the other gladiators isn’t like you.”
We shift over the open sand. He’s barely listening, his concentration fully on sparring with me. I can barely keep up.
“Are you upset with me?” I ask, just barely blocking a hard blow. “Because of Cas?”
A low growl sounds in his throat, and he sweeps my feet out from under me. My swords go flying and I tumble back. Dayton catches me and lowers me to the sand, pinning me there.
