“Quite the show,” Kade quipped with a slow clap of his hands.
“Shut thefuckup, Kade!” Sebastian hollered back, holding a finger up behind him.
Chapter
Eight
Sebastian didn’t put up a fight when I declared that I would be riding back on Sawyer’s horse.
We stopped twice to rest for a few hours, but otherwise made the journey back without fully setting up camp. By the time we returned to Lumosia, we were all thoroughly beaten.
Jensen graciously stayed back to feed and settle the horses in their stables, while the rest of us began our walk—which felt like miles—to the palace.
Archer met us on the steps of the golden staircase, Delani rigid by his side.
“Very glad to see that you’re all still alive. How did it go?” my father asked.
Sebastian shouldered past him and through the doorway, grumbling to himself.
Archer’s brows narrowed and he angled a thumb towards the grumpy asshole as he stormed by.
“He’s overtired.” Sawyer shrugged through the blatant lie.
Kade stepped forward. “No. He’s pissed because Maeve dumped his sorry ass in front of all of us. By the sounds of their argument, though, he deserved it.”
I cringed at Kade’s choice of words.
I didn'tdumpSebastian. I told him that I needed time—needed to figure out if this was something I could forgive. I still loved him with my entire being, but as I said, love wasn't always enough.
“Anyways, we discovered that Beaumont is alive and, unfortunately, in decent health. While we were there, he just so happened to make his first public appearance since Caelestis,” Kade continued, taking a seat on top of the railing. “Weird timing…I dunno.”
“He is going off the assumption that I am alive and told the entire kingdom about my markings.” I glanced down at the glittering tattoos on my arms. “I never heard anything about the markings of a god in Caelestis, but in Draemor it seemed to be common knowledge.”
“Someone must have seen me carry you out of the castle's rubble.” Archer ran a hand over his stubbled face, flustered. “And I don’t know much about the markings myself, if I’m being honest. What else did you hear?” he asked me directly.
“Beaumont told everyone that I am too powerful and am now considered a threat, though he doesn’t seem to know what exactly the markings mean, or at least he didn’t share the information with his citizens if he does.”
“He still wants to find her, but seems even more motivated now,” Sawyer added.
“He said he would capture me and contain me. Utilize my magic if they needed it, and then if he decided that I was too powerful, he wouldhandleme. Whatever that means.” My blood warmed at the words.
Archer groaned, leaning against the railing beside Kade. “I knew this was far from over.” His hand rustled his hair, settling over his scalp as obvious apprehension consumed him. “We have to kill him, that much is obvious. We will meet tomorrowevening and come up with the means of doing so. For now, go get some rest.”
Delani walked with me back to my room, where she made herself comfortable on my bed while I showered and changed.
“So you really dumped him?” she pressed when I reappeared with wet hair and fresh clothes.
I sat next to her, and it was then that I noticed that Sebastian had come and gathered his things while we were giving Archer the rundown. Not that he had been sleeping here, anyways, but the empty dresser made my heart clench.
I sighed and raked my fingers through my hair. “I didn’t dump him. I told him that I needed time to figure out if I could trust him.”
“So…you dumped him.”
A groan escaped me as I threw myself back on the bed, hugging a pillow to my chest. “I guess? I don’t know. I’m not good at this guy stuff.”
“Sounds to me like you broke up with him.”
“Okay. Fine. Yeah. I guess I did.” I paused to breathe through the wave of anxiety that tried to overrule my balance from the claim. “He called me an anxious mess.”
