“My loyalty has never been to chaos or what she created. She would spin this universe eons tenfold into utter disarray. I cannot allow it,” I said
Death’s chuckle was as cold as the ether that crafted him. “Peace does not last, kinsman.”
“It will last long enough.”
A low grunt came from Death. “It seems your interference is changing, kinsman. The closer you draw to her, the less you become.”
A soft smile played on my lips. His observations were not incorrect. Not that I cared. Death and I had been created alongside each other long before beings had legs, yet we were very different beings. I knew my purpose, my goal, and what needed to be done to achieve it. I sometimes missed my solitude, but this was the closest I had gotten to truly living. It was a gift, and I would treasure it always. “I would choose her in any lifetime.”
The darkness around Death seemed to shudder in response to the emotion he could feel coming from me. “That much we both know.”
My hands rested in my pockets as the night waned on. Stars flickered high above us, some shooting across the sky in quick flashes of light.
“I assume you did not come to tell me your current plan?” I asked my compatriot.
“I did not.”
“Therefore, what is the reason?”
“I simply wished to warn you. He will not take it well once he finds out, but it must be this way in order for him to understand how serious it is,” Death explained, and I wondered if this was how others felt when I spoke.
“I do not understand.”
“They must reconcile or all is lost,” Death said.
That made me pause. I turned fully toward him, having to lift my head a mere fraction to stare at the covered side of his. Darkness continued to flutter around him like a living, breathing thing. “Reconcile?”
Still, he watched. Still, he waited.
“I fear you are asking for too much if you are attempting to force some bond between Dianna and Samkiel’s brothers. Nismera has done what she set out to do. The fracture between them is as deep as a cavern. The connection is splintered into so many pieces, mending it will be impossible.”
“You fear that,” Death said. “I do not.”
Apprehension prickled the skin at the back of my neck, and I knew that whatever he had set in motion would not be easily undone.
“What have you done?”
A gust of wind as cold as the void between the stars washed over me.
“They will mend, or we all shall break.”
And when Death looked at me, it was not a formless face he wore. I realized the darkness surrounding him was not merely the absence of light. Wisps of purple-speckled power flared around him. Ancient and archaic, it coiled and snapped like smoky serpents protecting their master. It was not some mere slain king or warrior he wore.
It was Samkiel.
Death vanished in a rush of wings. His last warning echoed in my ears, joining the screams of a million dying breaths.
“Mend or break.”
21
CAMILLA
Rain pelted the small window of the tavern. Elianna curled up on the small bed and huffed again. I was more than glad that we had managed to get a room with two beds. Vincent wouldn’t stay in here with us. He had been on edge since we had left. He was on high alert everywhere we went, expecting Nismera’s retribution. It was my fault. My dream had outed us, and as soon as the ship had docked for supplies, we had snuck off.
I pulled the hood of my cloak over my head and secured the thin straps around my shoulders. I covered the small platter of bread and dried meat, wrapping the cloth tightly around it. My steps were quick as I left the room and turned down the hall, heading toward the stairs at the back. The old wooden door at the top of the steps opened on creaky hinges, and the chilly air laced with the smoke from the twin chimneys breathed into my face. The rain had let up, the clouds parting to glaze the sleeping city below in moonlight. As beautiful as the view was, it was the tall, lean figure that held my interest. I had become accustomed to how he pulled at me, drawing me toward him. My steps were quiet as I approached him.
“I brought you something to eat,” I said, offering him the plate.
