With a twitch of her lip, Thalia snickered. “No? You have my sincerest apologies then. That was the only reason I was inclined to sit here.” She leaned in, picking up the still vibrating glass before her and bringing it to her lips, taking a low sip of the crimson liquid. Hints of pepper, cherry, and plum—it appeared the expensive taste in wine ran in the family.
“Will the two of you quit acting like children, otherwise I will have to start treating you as such.” Cal pointed his finger between the two of them.
Shit. Cal had only used that voice on her once before and it was when she not so accidentally pinned her fellow Skiathan soldier, Sebastian, to the wall with throwing daggers during training. She was sternly reprimanded in front of her fellow soldiers, though later on Cal congratulated her on besting the overly cocky man. For some reason, Thalia doubted he was acting just for show this time around.
“I will if she agrees to stop throwing such vitriol at me.” Dimitris brought his fork to his lips, pulling off a piece of charred lamb, all while keeping those silver orbs narrowed directly at her.
“I didn’t realize you knew such big words, Prince.”
“I said, enough!” Cal yelled, making even Mykonos stop chewing her food.
“Sorry,” Thalia mouthed at him.
“It appears you have agitated the méntoras,”Mykonos chuckled in between bites of her fish.
“You really do love to state the obvious, don’t you?”Thalia replied down the bond.
“I wasn’t sure if you noticed. Your mind does wander at times—”
A piercing pain stabbed through Thalia’s stomach. Had Dimitris thrown a knife at her? Her hand clutched her stomach, but nothing was there—no knife, no blood. Mykonos let out a wail and an equally shrill cry left Thalia’s lips as she fell from the chair to her knees.
“Not again,”she managed to get out.
“This is the fourth time today. That’s more than—”Mykonos was cut off by another wail as a second searing pain went through both of their guts.
It wouldn’t be long—at least, Thalia hoped for a quick death. Sometimes it lasted for minutes, others only seconds. They must be traveling near someone passing into the hallowed halls of Aidesian for the pain to be this heightened, usually it was a mere inconvenience, a headache at worst. But sometimes she could sense every trickle of pain the dying experienced. She would be able to handle it too, if it wasn’t for the fact that Mykonos had to endure it along with her.
“Cal, go get one of your serums! It looks like she was poisoned!”
The older man raced out of the door in a blur.
“Not…poison…” she coughed out.
Dimitris moved to the ground beside her, holding her up by the shoulders. “Your face is pale, eyes bloodshot, and sweat clings to your forehead. Those are all indications of poison, I just don’t understand who could have—”
“Not. Poison,” Thalia repeated through gritted teeth. The pain in her stomach began to recede, enough that she was able to hold herself up. “It is the curse I bear—for leaving Aidesian whole. It is the cost Aidon spoke of.”
Dimitris’s brows furrowed, the corners of his mouth drooping down. “Is this the first time it has happened to you?” he whispered.
Thalia shook her head. “Why do you think I prefer to take my dinner in the privacy of my quarters?” Her gut still felt like it was bleeding out. She could barely breathe, her lungs collapsing with what little air they had left.
“I thought it was because you absolutely despised me.” His hand ran down her back, then stroked back upward, easing the pressure in her chest.
“Yes…that is another reason.” It was oddly calming, the feel of his fingers grazing along her spine, like a fire warming her bones after trudging through a snow-filled forest.
His chest rose sharply in a huff. “Glad your disdain for me hasn’t disappeared at the moment.”
“Never,” she whispered, though the corner of her lips ticked upward.
Clattering came from outside the door and Cal bustled through with a wooden carrier of six different vials of colorful potions. “This one should do the trick.” He held out a bright green vial to Dimitris. “It is a neutralizer. Should counteract anything except viper venom—but your veins are not blackened, so it can not be that.”
“I don’t need it.” Thalia shooed the disgustingly emerald concoction away.
“Apparently it is a symptom of whatever themystikistídid to her in Aidesian.” Dimitris removed his hands from her and stood, returning to his seat, where a half-eaten plate of food lay, though he did not reach for his fork again.
“Is it always like this?” Cal asked, his voice softer than before.
“No—rarely has it been this bad. Usually I get a small pain in the place that caused a death. That’s what I assume it means. Sometimes it is nothing more than a bothersome headache, but every few weeks it will feel as if I am dying right beside the person passing over.”
