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“You found that in the Tempusrealm?” It made no sense whatsoever. Gaulnir was never without it, always looking for something to shape. In fact, he would’ve had it…when…
“It wasn’t me,” Brand whispered, the wash of relief so stark that he listed to one side before righting himself. “I didn’t send Gaul to the Veil.”
“No. It would seem the one responsible for Bal and Nyri, and damned near everything else going on, can claim that wrongdoing as well.”
Lyriat scrubbed both hands over his blotchy face. “And doesn’t it make a sick sort of sense? I should’ve known when no one could name who they saw Gaulnir speaking with. Only that there was someone, and they argued.”
“This isn’t why you’re so upset, though,” Luna said, eyes narrowed. “What did you do, Lyriat?”
“He apparently followed the same shocking path of discovery. The difference between us is that I had secret permission from the Chieftains and he did not. Or as Uncle Caius so eloquently put it when he found out this morning”—Amun revealed yet more letters from another pocket and held one of them up, waving it back and forth—“Lyriat ‘seems to have misplaced his behorned head all the way up his fathomless fucking arsehole,’ thus tying mine, father’s, and Caius’s hands.”
Amun raised the third missive. “Which lead us to this.”
“Which is?” Luna threw her hands up on a sharp exhale.
But Brand knew exactly what that shimmering scroll was, with its verdant ribbon and frosty seal.
“An Imperial Edict,” Lyriat answered, “banning me—and everyone related to me—from Thodelebor for the foreseeable future, with the exception of leading our Legions in the final push that the Nachthellians, thanks to Lunara, have agreed to join. It also requires any other Demons to formally announce themselves to the Chieftains if they wish to travel there in groups larger than two.”
Luna’s worry spiked in the bond beside his own, both of them having the same thought at the same moment. According to Endellion, they couldn’t look for Nyri and Bal. And if Lyriat, Hedda, and Faldir were now banned from it, too…
Shite. The already limited list of trusted ‘others’ who might ‘know what to do’ to find them just got much shorter.
Brand was struggling to keep up with the influx of information, his bones weary to the marrow, but details mattered if they were going to figure it out. “Caught doing what, exactly, and by whom?”
“Shall I do the honors?” Amun directed down at Lyriat. “Or would you like to tell it?”
“Fuck you, Amun. I’ll do it.” Lyriat rubbed firm circles at his temples, muscle ticking in his jaw. “Mag and I have been trying to find the shapeshifter ourselves, hoping it would lead us to my cousins, and we’ve been using Araxis to do it. At night. In secret. Unannounced. And we…convinced Thad to help us, too.”
Brand cursed under his breath. It was the first time he heard or thought the word shapeshifter ages, but everything came flooding back in the wake of it.
Luna crossed her arms, her suspicion slamming into him. “Just how long have you been using Araxis to do it?”
Lyriat stared at her, clearly dreading the answer. “From that very first visit, before Brand was even awake. We made the deal right before he stole Brand’s blood.”
Shock, hot and swift, twisted her features. A sense of betrayal followed next, flowing through his own veins, and Brand fought the rage she was feeling.
“I see,” she said, bland as anything.
“If it makes you feel any better, Magnus and I both hated it. And we used most of the summoning tolls he gave me after he took you, trying to get you back.”
“Oh, did you? Well that changes everything.” She nodded, the smile not meeting her eyes. “Thank the stars you made a secret deal and got those summoning tolls. Otherwise, when you summoned him and let him in on our plans, you wouldn’t have been able to unsuccessfully use them in your efforts to get me back after he betrayed us!”
Sweet Sisters, she was magnificent. Sharp and cutting as a fucking blade. Lyriat had the decency to look sheepish, grinding his teeth as embarrassment painted itself across his cheekbones. Amun actually laughed out loud.
Absolutely fucking none of it was funny to Brand.
He breathed through the anger, counting and holding, and exhaled long and slow.
She squished her cheeks and groaned. “I wasn’t exactly being open and honest either, so can we agree it’s all in the past and does us no good now?”
Lyriat melted at that, his shoulders slumping. “Agreed. I’m sorry, Lunara. Truly. Thank you for understanding.”
“Yes, well. Don’t thank me yet.” She finally plopped onto the ground, gathering one of her curls and twisting it ‘round her fingers. “You’re still an arse and I will find a way to use it against you the next time I want something. But we also came to deliver news of our own, which is probably going to make all of this worse. There’s no helping it.”
“How much worse?”
“Allow me to preface this by saying it’s from Endellion, so it’s going to feel like the worst possible thing, but I don’t think it’s as bad as it sounds, all things considered.”
