Page 179 of Burn of the Everflame

Brant didn’t wait for Andrei’s answer. He bounded into the Bellator kitchen, loudly slamming cabinet doors open and shut. Andrei grunted and followed behind to call him off. Brant raised his hands in surrender and stepped back, placing himself in front of some cooking knives laid out on the counter.

“What are you doing?” I whispered to Vance. “Andrei’s not going to help us if you keep making him mad.”

Vance smiled as he dragged me to the kitchen and shoved me forward. Andrei had poured a splash of amber liquid into two glasses, one of which he offered to me. When I took it, he leveled me with a hard stare.

“My daughter is a very special woman, Henri. She is courageous. Compassionate to a fault. If there’s a battle to fight, she’ll take every blow herself to spare anyone else a cut, and then she’ll hide the wounds so no one sees her bleed.”

I struggled to hold his eyes. I was angrier with Diem than I’d ever been. She was stubborn as hell and so naive it drove me mad. Lately, her loyalty seemed to change with the wind. Loving her required nerves of Fortosian steel.

But she was also all the things he’d said. The worst part of admitting he was right was accepting that it might be the real reason she’d sent us away last night.

Maybe she hadn’t betrayed us, after all.

Andrei’s chin lowered at my silence. “Do you think I’m wrong?”

I took a sip before answering. “No, I do not.”

“Good. Because it will be your job as her husband to stop her.”

A snort broke free. “Even the Old Gods couldn’t stop Diem from doing something she’s set her mind to do.”

“You can’t stop her from fighting whatever battle she has decided to fight,” he agreed, “but you can keep her from doing it alone. You can try your best to protect her, and you can help her find people she can trust.” His eyes darted briefly to Vance. “People she can trust, Henri, not the people you do. A husband’s oath to his wife should outweigh any cause.” He set a hand on my shoulder. “Is that something you’re willing to do?”

I masked the stiffness of my nod with another sip. The liquor felt like sawdust in my throat.

Three more Guardians edged into the kitchen and stood at Andrei’s back. His head shifted slightly as he noted the movement. He glanced at Vance, then at the two Guardians by the door. He let out a slow sigh. When his eyes returned to me, he seemed to have aged ten years in a single breath.

His hand gripped me hard. “I hope someday you know the joys of fatherhood. I pray that you know a love that is as pure as what I feel for my daughter and my son. They are the most treasured things in my world. I’m entrusting one of them to you. Take care . . .” His voice caught. His fingers dug into my flesh as he slowly, with effort, cleared his throat. “Please take care of her. Swear to me now, no matter what happens between the two of you, you’ll protect my little girl.”

The look in his eyes sent a shiver down my spine. He looked oddly urgent, and maybe a little sad.

“I will,” I promised, nodding intently.

Andrei downed his drink in a single gulp, then set the empty glass aside. He smoothed his palms over his shirt and straightened his vest, then lifted his chin to Vance. “Do what you came to do, Vance, or get out of my house.”

“War is coming, Andrei,” Vance said. “The future of our people is at stake. It’s time to pick a side.”

“I’m on my daughter’s side.”

Vance moved closer, as did the other men. “Even if she aligns herself with the Descended?”

“Always,” Andrei rumbled. “Better still if it’s a side you aren’t on.”

The air in the room turned to ice. Vance had just drawn a line in the sand, and Andrei had kicked it in his face. I looked around, hair rising on my neck.

“Let’s discuss this another time,” I offered nervously.

Vance kept his stare on Andrei. “You know, when Auralie told me where she was going on her mission, I knew the Old Gods were handing me a gift.”

Andrei’s eyes widened. “You know where she is?” He stepped forward, and two Guardians grabbed his shoulders to yank him back. “Auralie’s alive?”

“Indeed, she is.” Vance gave a heaving sigh. “It’s too bad you won’t be here when she returns.”

A spray of red splattered over my face, blinding me as I saw it—Brant’s hand, a silver blade, and a bloody line across Andrei Bellator’s throat.

I screamed.

Everything that came next was a blur.