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“Gods,” I moaned, my breath catching.
There couldn’t be a drop of me left on my fingers by the time he finished. Quicksilver eyes met mine, and then thick lashes lowered as he kept our joined hands near his lips. “How do you feel now?” he asked thickly.
I opened my mouth, at a loss for words as I became aware of dampness against the curve of my ass, where his semi-hard arousal rested. He…he had found release. “Better. Much better.”
“Good,” he said, and that was all he said for a time.
In the silence that followed, my heart slowed, but the heat of his touch remained, while that of his blood faded. I stared at his hand folded around my fingers, his skin several shades deeper than mine. I…I liked it when he held my hand, and a…
A want still remained.
One different than all those earlier desires. I didn’t want to leave this moment of him holding me to him, against his chest with my hand in his. This moment of his lowered lashes fa
But we had to.
I had to.
Because these moments wouldn’t last. I knew that when those lashes lifted and he looked down upon the one who had pla
I wanted to remember these moments because what happened tonight had revealed a painful truth that couldn’t be denied. There would be no more of this.
Because I knew what I had to do.
I slipped my hand free. His head lifted, and I quickly looked away as I gathered the bloodied halves of my robe. “Nektas will be returning soon?”
“He will.”
“Okay.” I swallowed, still tasting the lingering honey of his blood. I started to move.
“Careful,” Nyktos said, taking hold of the robe and closing the halves over me. “You may feel strong, but you could be a little dizzy.”
“I feel fine.” I sat up slowly. Nyktos’s arm tightened around my waist. “I need to clean up.”
A long moment passed, and then his arm loosened. “I’ll send water to your chambers.”
I nodded as I slid out of his lap. Holding the robe together, I hurried across the room. I grasped the door handle, feeling his stare on my back. My eyes closed briefly. “Thank you.”
There was no answer.
I opened the door and left, leaving Nyktos and those peaceful moments behind.
An hour later, I sat in the war room, the closed-off chamber located behind the thrones, tracking the numerous daggers and swords lining the walls. The last time I’d been in here, it was after I’d learned the truth about the Rot.
And Nyktos had learned the truth about me.
The chamber gave me bad vibes.
I decided it needed windows. Softer chairs. A table not so carved up by the gods only knew how many weapons. Less bloodstained armor of those in attendance.
My slippered foot began tapping off the stone floor as I twisted my hair between my fingers. Cleaning all the blood from my skin and hair without using the tub had been difficult. I’d tried to get inside. I’d even made it as far as standing in it, but as soon as I began to lower myself, I started feeling the sash digging into my throat. I’d scrambled out, nearly slipping on the tile in my haste. I’d felt foolish as I resorted to dunking my head in the water to wash my hair. I still felt silly. Weak. But I didn’t know how to get past it.
And it really didn’t matter at this point.
“There were at least three gods involved in the attack,” Theon was saying, drawing my attention to him and his twin sister. Their armor was stained with blood, and their deep brown faces looked somber and tired. It had to be getting close to morning. “Including the one Orphine killed. I didn’t recognize the two I saw as being from Attes’s Court.”
The twins were originally from Vathi, where Attes and his brother Kyn’s Court was located. Apparently, it was the closest Court to the Shadowlands, and it seemed fitting to me that War and Vengeance would be located near Death.
“I didn’t recognize the one I saw talking to Sera,” Bele said from where she sat, crossed-legged on the table.
Lailah’s tightly braided hair swayed above her shoulders as she leaned back, looking down at the table. “And I’m guessing you didn’t recognize the draken?”
I followed her gaze to where Nektas sat. There was a whole lot of coppery skin on display since he wore only a pair of loose, black pants. I tried not to stare at him, but I was fascinated by the pattern of faint lines over his shoulders and chest.
“I know it may come as a shock to all, but I don’t know every single draken,” Nektas answered. He hadn’t spoken much since we’d all gathered here. I imagined his thoughts were on Davina. Had he been close to her? Did she have family?
Lailah stared at him, her brows raised.
“All I know is that I got the sense the draken was young,” Nektas added. “Too young to be up to that kind of shit.”
That had been a young draken?
“They could’ve been from any Court,” Nyktos said from behind two fingers that tapped his lower lip slowly. Fingers that had—
I cut those really inappropriate thoughts off as I peeked at Nyktos. I sat directly to his right, only because that was where he’d basically put me after retrieving me from my chambers. He’d swept his hair back in a knot at the nape of his neck and replaced the tattered shirt with a new one. Tension had returned to the set of his jaw and shoulders.
The moments of peace were truly gone.
I’d waited by the doors in my chambers, luckily catching the sound of his door closing. I’d figured he was leaving to speak with his guards about what had occurred, and I wanted to know what he would say. He’d appeared surprised by my request to join him but hadn’t stopped me. Though, he hadn’t said much and had barely looked at me. I…knew regret had found him, even though he had clearly been an active participant in what’d happened and had also found release. I shifted in the chair, the wool sweater suddenly too thick.
“They could be,” Rhain agreed. He sat across from me, his reddish-gold hair redder in the light. He’d stared at my wrists as soon as he sat beside me. Just as Bele had when she entered. I had a feeling they were the only two who sensed the charm, but the rest had been told about it. “But how many Primals would be bold enough to pull a stunt like that?”
“Does it require bravery when it wasn’t them who carried out the act?” Nyktos countered.
Rhain nodded slowly. “Good point.”
“It was likely Hanan.” Bele spat the Primal’s name like a curse. “He has cause to be upset, and he is one Primal definitely not brave enough to come to the Shadowlands himself to see if I’ve truly Ascended.” Bele slid off the table and began to walk. She was a pacer like me. “Those entombed gods were freed to create a distraction—enough time to grab my ass. People died because of it. I shouldn’t be here. I need to leave.”
“You’re where you’re needed,” Nyktos told her.
“I told her that.” Aios watched Bele, her deep red hair a shock of color against her pale cheeks. “She doesn’t want to hear it.”
“He wants me here because it’s safer,” Bele countered as she came to stand beside Nektas.
Aios sighed, shaking her head. “And as I also said, there’s nothing wrong with safety.”
“She’s right, and it can mean both things.” Nyktos brushed a strand of hair back from his face. “I need you here, where it happens to be safer for you.”
Bele’s chin lifted. “I can’t stay hidden forever. I don’t want to. I refuse to.”
“I’m not suggesting that. But for the time being, you need to keep a low profile. Hanan and others may believe you’ve Ascended, but until they’ve seen you, they can’t one hundred percent confirm that.”