Страница 82 из 216
He gri
What he said struck me silent. Had I earned it? I guessed almost dying qualified as such, but I doubted many of the other Primals cared about that. To them, I was not only unproven, I also hadn’t earned shit.
“There’s just one more thing I didn’t mention before regarding meeting with the Primals.” Rhain closed the leather folio on the bound parchment. “Yesterday, you did amazing during the speech. I have every belief that you will do the same with the Primals as long as you keep your temper in check—”
“Yeah, I wasn’t pla
Rhain let out what was becoming one of his infamous sighs. “I’m being serious.”
“So am I.” I frowned. “Why would my temper be incited?”
“Does it need a reason?”
“Fu
The look on his face said he doubted that.
Irritation flared. “I know you’ve seen me lose my temper on more than one occasion, so I get why you’re doubtful, but you also have to know that I wouldn’t be standing here if I didn’t know how to keep myself in check.”
Reaver’s quill stopped again as Rhain’s head flinched back. “You’re right. I do know that.” His gaze lowered and then returned to mine. “I’m—”
“Don’t apologize. It’s not necessary,” I cut him off, sounding like, well, Ash. “Thank you for helping me with all of this, but I think that is enough for now,” I said, then winced at the bite in my tone. “And I do mean that. Thank you.”
Rhain nodded awkwardly as he stood. He started for the door but stopped beside me. He appeared to want to say something more but changed his mind. Giving me a quick bow of his head, he left the office.
Pushing the last bit of conversation between Rhain and me aside, I began pacing the length of Ash’s office.
My mind kept alternating between what Rhain had said and why Ash hadn’t returned yet. I’d suspected that his trip to Vathi would be an in-and-out sort of thing. He’d been gone for almost two hours. But Ash was fine. He and Attes were likely just talking.
Honestly, I hoped he and Attes were genuinely speaking to each other and talking things through. They may not have been friends before, but there had been mutual respect between them.
I looked around the office. “I need to be doing something…queenly right now.”
“I hope it’s not more pacing,” Reaver muttered.
I shot the little smart-ass a look, which earned me a boyish giggle. Gri
“Wait,” I whispered, my lips parting. “Great Primal power.”
Reaver cocked his head to the side, his eyes alert.
“The prophecy,” I told him, although I doubted he had any idea what I was talking about. I hadn’t thought about it, not even when I was with Aydun. “Kolis said there is a whole other part. Something about great powers stumbling and falling—” My eyes widened. “It was about the Primal of Life and Death.”
“No such Primal exists,” Reaver said.
“Right.” I ran my fingers down my braid. “I totally forgot about that supposedly unknown part of the prophecy. The third part—the end—that wasn’t seen by Penellaphe but dreamt by the Ancients.”
Was it true, though? Kolis could’ve been lying, but I didn’t think so. So, who did that part reference if he was speaking the truth? The one who would basically wipe out the other Primals. Because that was what Kolis had said he wanted to do—well, he’d claimed that initially.
And what had Aydun said? That a war among the Primals wouldn’t be won until there was blood and bone. What the Ancient had said and the prophecy felt related. How, though? My intuition was unsurprisingly quiet, but I knew who’d probably know. Who could likely shine some light on what Eythos had been thinking when he devised his plan and would also know what could be done about Sotoria’s soul and why Eythos had ended her second life.
“Holland,” I a
“Are you sure you want to do that?” Reaver asked, sounding nervous. “Summon a Fate?”
“It’ll be okay,” I promised. “Holland is…he’s like family. The kind who spends your entire life lying to you, but still, family.”
My words didn’t seem to reassure Reaver, but I wasn’t worried about Holland being a threat. He may be an Ancient, but he was still, well, Holland. And since he’d already talked openly about the prophecy with Ash and me, it had to be something the Fates didn’t consider overstepping.
The question was, how did I summon him? Just…call out to him? The skin behind my left ear tingled. It wasn’t just calling out to him. Doing so also involved using the essence. My will.
Stopping between the chair and the couch, I closed my eyes and focused on the faint thrum of eather. As an image of Holland formed in my mind, complete with the single crease between his brows, the essence pulsed intensely from my chest. “Holland,” I spoke, my stomach twisting sharply as the resonance of my voice reverberated with the intertwined strands of power. “I would—” I shook my head curtly. “I need to speak with you.” Pausing, I opened one eye. “Please.”
Letting go of the eather, I felt it calm as I opened my other eye.
“Did it work?” Reaver asked as he scooted forward so his feet touched the floor.
“I’m not sure.” I swept the tail of my braid over my chin. “I suppose we will need to wait and find out.”
So, that’s what we did.
We waited.
And waited some more.
Holland didn’t magically appear before me.
“Maybe I did it wrong.” I started to ask if I should try it again, but a sound came from the hall. A series of soft thuds.
My head swung to the closed doors, eyes narrowing. Wait, was my…?
A knock came.
“Aha!” I shouted, shoving a fist into the air. “My hearing is finally improving.”
Reaver stared at me.
Gri
Reaver shifted forward as the doors opened, positioning himself so he stood half in front of me. It was a clear, protective move and made me want to hug him.
My two shadows, Rhahar and Kars, stood in the doorway. The latter shifted to the side. A guard with short, spiky dark hair and a complexion that reminded me of a smoky quartz appeared in the alcove of Ash’s office. I was sure I hadn’t met her before, but the name Iridessa came to mind. More information started to form, but I thought about Rhain’s request not to use the foresight on him and stopped myself.
She bowed her head. “Your Majesty.”
Rhahar raised a brow at me as I started to speak. “It’s either that or meyaah Liessa,” he informed me, and I snapped my mouth shut. “One or the other.”
“Does it really have to be one or the other?” I countered, glancing between the two. “Because I’m not like Kolis. I don’t need my ego repeatedly stroked.”
“Kolis is greeted as such out of fear.” Rhahar’s hand fell to the hilt of his sword. “And because he demands it. We address you as such because it is owed. Deserved.”
I started to argue that I hadn’t done anything as their Queen to deserve such, but Reaver tugged on the sleeve of my tunic.
“Yes?”
“You are respected,” he said in that quiet, far-too-wise voice for one as young as he was. “And Nek told me that acknowledging the thoughts and emotions of others is how you repay their respect with yours.”
I stared at the youngling, my lips pursing. The fact that a ten-year-old was giving me sage advice was probably a good indication that I had a lot of maturing to do.
“Okay,” I said, turning back to the two guards. “I won’t continue to complain.”
Rhahar ducked his chin, but not before I saw a look that said he didn’t quite believe that.
Couldn’t blame him.
I faced the other guard. “I don’t believe we’ve met before.”
“No, we haven’t,” she said, her bright amber gaze meeting mine. “I’m Iridessa.”
“That’s a pretty name,” I said.
“Thank you.” Pink blossomed on her cheeks, spreading across the small bridge of her nose. She was clearly as good at accepting compliments as I was. “Some visitors are quite insistent that they speak with you.”
Rhahar’s expression hardened at once. “Who is it?” he asked before I could.
“It is the goddess Penellaphe,” answered Iridessa. “And a man named Ward.”