He recoils as ifI'veslapped him.It'slanguage not befitting a princess, but I am not the prim and proper girl he once knew. I am ice. I am light. And I am filled with vengeful rage.
"Shaye," he pleads, a broken whisper. "No one was meant to be harmed – "
"Tell that to Nyx."Nyx. Panic rumbles through me. Hehasn'tmoved or made a noise. "Nyx!Nyx!"
Bastian turns his attention to Nyx. He moves to stand behind him, and horror streaks across his face. It must be worse than Iimagine.
"Is he alive?" I ask, my throat raw from screaming. I stare at Nyx's bloody and bruising body, waiting to see the slightest twinge from him breathing, but Idon'tsee any sign of life. "Bastian!"
That seems to snap him from whatever daze he found himself in.
"Is he alive?" My voice cracks.
Bastian presses two fingers to Nyx's neck and we both wait.
I swallow hard. If Vesper killed him…
"I feel a faint pulse," Bastian reports, sounding just as relieved as me. "He's breathing."
"This is your fault."
His eyes flick up.There'sa darkness there that nearly makes my heart stop.
"If he dies," I growl lowly, "I'll make you suffer."
"If you had come with meinElowen, this could have been avoided," he barks, and I flinch. He inhales deeply, as if trying to keep the beast clawing to escape at bay. "I can'tundowhat Vesper has done. She will be dealt with. I assure you. Her orders were to find you andyoualone. Bringing theTronovianwas not part of the plan and torturing him certainly wasn't approved by me."
"I wish I could believe you."
"Believeme or do not. That is up to you. But I am a man of order. My soldiers areto listento my voice."
"Yeah, I'm completely convinced you have them following your every command. Such dutiful dogs, heeding their master's call."
"Apparently my intimidation factor is lacking. Otherwise, you would have obeyed me weeksagoandwe'dbe in Midori. All this ugliness could have been avoided had you behaved." He marches to the staircase. "If theTronoviansurvives the journey, and you don't give me any trouble, I will consider administering him medicine to help – "
"He could heal himself if your bitch hadn't drugged us!"
"Again, she was only supposed to force you to drink it. You gave me no other choice, Ilaria."
"I hate you."
He whips around, fire blazing in his eyes. "What did you say?"
"I said, I hate you! I hateyou,I hate you, I hate you!" I shout, rattling the chains pinning my wrists and ankles. "I hope Atlas finds you. I hope he ripsyoulimb fromlimb. I hope you die a slow and painful death. You've certainly earned it."
"Your threats are wasted on me," he says sadly. "Perhaps you should save them for someone who is easily intimidated."
"But you are afraid. I see it in your eyes." I poke. "How faryou havefallen, Bastian Tarkin. I once looked at you and believed you were the epitome of good. How wrong I was."
"You think you are void of fear?" His voice slithers around my body like a snake. "I hope this Atlasdoes comefor me. I will force you to watch him beg me for his life, or rather,what'sleft of it. When I finish with him, there will be no way of knowing if he was once a man or some unsightly beast cursed by the Celestials." He slides up next tome,our faces inches apart. Months ago, I would have given anything for us to be this close, his lips a breath away from my own. Instead of looking upon the face of a lover, I now look into the eyes of my enemy. "All you had to do was listen," he whispers, the tips of his fingers caress my face. Tears well in his tormented gaze. "Oh, Ilaria. Sweet, naive, Ilaria. All of this could have been avoided, had you only listened."
"My name is Aurelia Basilius-Sol. I am forgedofice and starlight. I am the daughter of House Basilius and House Sol. I do not bow to your whims or desires. Before this war is through, you will beg for death to claim you quickly. This I swear."
He retracts hishand,terror and confusion plastered across his face. Hardness sets in. His brows pinch into a frown. "You really mean that?"
I nod, my lips twisting into a snarl. "With all my heart."
Pain floods his face, a moment of clarity flashing in his tormented blue eyes.I'vewounded him. Good. I wish I could stab the dagger he gave me deep in his blackened heart.
