My whole life, condensed down to a shining point, its power as deep and as potent as a thousand Goddess Tears.
It pulls together, binding tight, so tight. And then I unleash it.
With one smooth stroke, I unsheathe the long dagger at my hip. Then I slice the blade right through Killian’s wrist, sending the hand wearing the Goddess Tear ring skittering off to the side.
He shouts in pain, staring down at his mutilated arm in disbelief.
As the magic of the Tear fades, the cobwebs clear from my mind.
Noemi gasps at my side as her brain clears as well. Her eyes instantly harden, and she pulls her own dagger.
“Get him,” I tell her, my voice laced with violence.
She doesn’t need to be told twice. “This is for what Cyril and Alistair did to me.” She drives her dagger straight into his crotch. Killian collapses to the ground, his bloodcurdling screams echoing in the shocked, silent camp.
Noemi moves away, and I step toward him. “Tell Alistair that Lucien sends his regards,” I tell him cooly.
Killian opens his eyes, his face pulled into a pleading mask. “Kitten,” he gasps. “You and I both know that you’re not capable of killing me. You never were.”
“I am really fucking sick of you telling me who I am, Killian,” I choke out. “But I know just what to do with that smart mouth of yours.”
And with one smooth stroke, I shove my long dagger directly into his mouth, watching his eyes widen, and he gags on the cold metal and the river of blood that follows.
Then I yank the dagger back. All the fury and outrage of my entire life is contained in the sweep of my arm as I slice the weapon through Killian’s neck.
Beheading him.
60
MERYN
Killian’s headless body tips to the side, then collapses to the ground. A strange, blueish smoke pours from his bleeding neck, and for a moment, I see that glint of blue eyes again, Alistair’s eerie gaze.
Then it’s gone.
I inhale deep and latch on to my shadows with all my might, reining in their chaos, and quickly disperse the magic all around us before just letting go, falling to my knees in the blood-soaked dirt.
I let myself sink to the ground, empty, exhausted.
It’s so bright and sunny out, suddenly. The sky above me is clear and blue, as if everything that just transpired was only a dream.
I stare at it, dazed, and for a long moment, my mind is blessedly empty of pain and the clamor of voices and the buzz and pull of magic. The color is so pure, the blue so vibrant. It’s as though it is washing me clean.
Then the pain crashes back into me.Anassa.
I pull myself to her side, frantically checking her over.
She’s weakened, but alive. Her chest rises and falls with breath. Weeping, I throw myself across her side. “You’re not rid of me yet,” I whisper.
I pull off my jacket and press it to her wound, stanching it, though it’s thankfully already slowed to a trickle.
The howls of direwolves all over the camp bring me back to the moment. Stark and Cratos exert their control back over them, taking advantage of the chaos caused by Killian’s death and the coercion Tear’s power ending.
The wrist that holds my engagement bracelet tingles, and I lift my arm and watch wonderingly as the metal loosens, the ruby lightening from its shadow-soaked red to the unvarnished shine of a normal, lifeless gem.
As if it’s been there all along, a seam in the metal appears, just the faintest black line in the metalwork, with a simple clasp holding it shut. Feeling like I could weep, I tentatively touch the clasp, then use my nail to flick it open, watching as the bracelet opens. It dangles balanced on my wrist for a final breath.
And falls into the dirt next to me.
