“There were souls taken from their trial,” I add, gaining his attention. His gaze turns to me, and a slither of cold works its way down my spine. “We’re here to bargain for them to be returned.”
The corners of Daimon’s mouth twitch upward, more amused than interested, as he says, “Are you now?”
I swallow.
“Duringyourtrial, correct?” he prods, facing me. “A trial you didn’t finish—one that would’ve connected you to your fae side for good. What power will you have without being blessed by thegloriousEurydice?”
Blood drains from my face, turning my veins into ice.
“Foolish.” Hetsks, turning to the others. “All of you.”
He knew it was my trial, too. Which means he likely knowseverything; Ellerry and Avery’s mother dying and losing their souls to Vidaris as they sacrificed themselves to get those of us left back to the waking realm. And those who didn’t make it out, the ones Vidaris plucked out and trapped here.
Some part of me thought we could persuade him, but that hope fades quicker than it appeared.
Daimon’s nostrils flare, and he turns his attention to the rest of the group. There’s fury written across his face as he looks at the Riders and their beasts. His gaze briefly pauses on Leda, and his jaw ticks.
My brows twitch at his response to her, but before I can question it further, the binds winding around me pull tighter. The ones around my neck twist until my airway is restricted once again, and I shove my panic down as it threatens to cloudmy thoughts. Gasps and coughs sound from around me, letting me know it isn’t just mine that tightened.
It doesn’t matter if we came here seeking his help. There wasn’t a flicker of humanity in his gaze. Even as he saw me, as the first word he said to me wasdaughter, no warmth filled his face. No softness eased his hardened features.
Our intention may have been to use him to save the lost souls, but it’s clear that won’t be an option now.
With his attention set on the group, my gaze returns to the one person who can help us, a person who knows battle more than anyone here.
Brielle’s eyes connect with mine, her face still red as she gives me a subtle nod. She juts her chin down slightly—almost too subtly to notice—but the sign is clear:fight.
Two
Pyrite
Brielle turnsher attention back to Daimon, her eyes filled with hate. Her brows pull together tightly the longer she looks at him. She tries to speak, but it comes out strangled. Spit dribbles from the corner of her mouth, and a vein in her temple pops out.
Sweat trickles down my back as the life begins to drain from Brielle’s eyes, the blood leaking from her face as he strangles her.
I yank against my restraints, desperate to do something.
Brielle is the piece that holds our wyvern fleet together, the stitch that weaves into each of us and cinches us tightly together. We can’t find the missing souls without her to guide us.
My hands tremble as I try to figure out a way to help her, hopeless as she stands against the Lord of Shadows.
But panic doesn’t overtake Brielle. Instead, the challengeignitesher. Her gaze sparks with determination, a fierceness I imagine she took into battle time and time again. There’s awarrior within her, lying just beneath the surface and begging to be released.
There’s a similar call within me, stirring under my flesh and itching to sink its teeth into something…orsomeone.
The grasp around my throat lessens, just enough that I can greedily sip more air.
“So this is where you’ve been?” Brielle spits out. I jolt at venom in her voice—the familiarity. “You just up and left us? We were your family.”
Family?Her tone may be sharp, but her words are uneven. Broken.
Daimon growls, and the chains of darkness tighten around our throats once again.
This time, the corners of my vision blur with haziness and my head grows light. If Brielle’s plan was to piss Daimon off, it’s going wonderfully.
“Ah, Brielle the righteous,” Daimon muses. He strides past me, stopping directly in front of Brielle. “Tell me, how did you fare without having me to follow around?”
He leans closer to her, his face obscured from where I’m trapped—stuck watching this exchange between Brielle and a man I’ve just met. A man Brielle seems to know in a way I can’t begin to understand.
