Page 63

A shadowed tendril sprang forward, connecting and melding into her flesh. Lily suppressed a shriek, and Luka fell backwards, scooting away. She attempted to grab the shadow, but her hand went right through it. The connection was fierce, searing with pressure. On her next pass, her other hand was caught in the same trap. Before she could react, her arms were fastened to her chest, and her body was shoved backward until she collided with a tree. Lily’s dazed head slumped from the impact.

The vapor clinging to her wrists twisted outward, pulling itself into a vaguely human shape. The air thickened, heat pressing in until Lily’s lungs burned and sweat beaded along her skin. The heat at her wrists dulled as the shape hardened, replaced by the sharp pressure of skin against skin. When her head finally steadied, she found herself almost nose to nose with the green eyed trespasser.

The Serpent couldn’t do that… could it?

Lily turned away, resting her head against the tree and clamping her eyes shut. “Leave him alone.”

“He’s fine,” he said dully. “But I am bothered by what you did to my arm.”

Lily sucked in whatever bravery she had and forced herself to look down. His right hand gripped her wrists, but his left was braced tightly to his side. Small tremors rolled through the limb like he was bearing through pain.

I did that?

A small laugh escaped her throat. “What? You want an apology?”

“I want you to reverse it.”

“I don’t even know what I did.”

He didn’t respond, but behind him, Luka yelped once, then twice.

“Alright!” she snapped. “I’ll look. Just, don’t hurt him.”

Lily held her head steady, focusing her attention on his trembling arm. He'd pulled his sleeve up, and only in the twilight could she see it—a faint purple aura hugging his frame like a halo. Below his forearm, there was no aura. Above, it was creeping up his body.

She’d never seen a necro aura behave like that. Death didn’t cling so tightly. It wafted around bodies or those who came into contact with it, like steam from a hot stone until it finally cooled over time.

Regardless of its age, why was he covered in it? He clearly wasn’t dead.

With curiosity building beside courage, she craned her head up. Once she found his face, she glued her head to the wood he had pinned her against. Loose clouds of black smoke wafted from the surface of his skin. The god he housed swirled peacefully in his narrow eyes, casting a glow like wicked flames in a hearth. His thick eyebrows pulled into a gentle frown, and Lily’s stomach turned over.

I’ve seen him before. His shadowed likeness hung from the banners above Reave’s streets. In memorializing murals painted on the city’s walls. Drawn in textbooks depicting the imperial family.

The light brown skin, the dark hair…

That’s why this aura was so different. Death had already consumed him long ago.

Lily swallowed hard. “What did you say your name was?”

“Ah, ah. That’s not the topic of conversation right now.” He carefully released one of her hands. “Fix my arm.”

Fix it? Does he know who he’s talking to? “I can’t—”

“You can.”

He eased away from looming over her, and Lily flexed her hand, examining the shrinking aura.

Would restoring it fix the issue? But how? She’d have to touch him, and that alone was nerve wracking. What if she screwed up? Not that Lily had any grievances about accidentally killing him, but would he take it as defiance and hurt Luka if he didn’t die, or she made it worse?

His expression suggesting amusement turned aggravated. “Go on.”

She bit her tongue. “If you really know who I am, then you know I have no idea what I’m doing.”

“It’ll be fine.”

“How are you so sure?”

“Because I’m not giving you another choice.”