Page 160 of Merciless Is My Crown

“Think, Anaria. Think.” Cosimo’s expression was intense, his blue eyes shining. “If you don’t control them, they’ll roam through this city without purpose. People—your people—could get hurt. People will die. Call them,” he said, gentler this time. “Just…hold out your hand and call them.”

I swallowed hard. “If they eat me, I will haunt you for the rest of your life.”

He grinned. “You aren’t going to be eaten. Those shadows are just another aspect of your magic.”

“I don’t like them,” I insisted, but I held down a hand tentatively, like they were feral dogs that might nip my fingers off. “I swear, why can’t things go according to plan? All I wanted to do tonight was kick Trubahn’s arse.”

The shadows sniffed—fucking sniffed—at the tips of my bloodied fingers, and the second they made contact was like plunging my entire arm into an ice bucket. Then they disappeared. Into my fucking hand.

For a second, I just stared at my fingers.

“Are you fucking kidding me?”

“They’re part of your magic,” Cosimo explained, gazing at me with the kind of curiosity usually reserved for something strapped down to a scientist’s table. “Another manifestation you can call upon when you need protection.”

“You sound pretty fucking sure about that for someone who’s been stuck in a magic amulet for three hundred years,” Tristan snapped. “Care to explain?”

Simon struggled toward us supporting a clearly exhausted Torin, and Cosimo was gone, racing toward him while trying to avoid Zephryn, who was trying to turn his enormous body in the tight street, his tail shattering windows and collapsing a wall.

“This is a fucking disaster,” I muttered as the dragon took out an entire shop with his tail. blowing a mouthful of blue heated fire straight through the collapsed hole. Flames burst to the sky in a roar of fire and ash. I glanced at the sign.

Trubahn’s.

Okay, so that was probably on purpose.

I watched the mage’s shop burn, my body trembling as the adrenaline faded. “Those farmers are going to turn around and go straight back to the Havens.”

Zor took one long look. “I’ll clean this up.” He whistled, and Lyrae glared at him then flipped him off, her blue eyes glinting like ice chips. “Don’t worry, princess. We’ll have everything back to normal by noon.”

I sagged and Raziel caught me around the waist. “I’m taking you back to the Keep. You are going to eat then sleep. That’s a fucking order, Anaria.”

I tried to lift my hand to salute, tried, really tried, to come up with something clever to say to wipe that look of worry off his face, but came up empty.

66

ANARIA

Iate and slept, then ate and slept some more.

By the time I stumbled down the staircase to the main floor, everything was running surprisingly smoothly.

The farmers had made their delivery and gone back for another load. Torin and Lyrae took charge of food distribution, along with about a hundred handpicked soldiers.

I found Zorander and Raziel sitting on the back of a wagon beside a newly built barracks, shirtless in the sun, basking in the now-balmy temperatures and eating apples. Beyond the Keep, the Northern Road disappeared into a towering forest, and the Chasm, which had been nothing but barren rock, now had a series of waterfalls spilling over the edge, that too-fragile bridge still spanning it like a delicate spiderweb.

A shirtless Tavion jogged up from between the newly built barracks, his brow gleaming with sweat, a grin on his face.

“Nice view,” I commented, and Raziel made it a point to flex his powerful arms as he tossed his apple core into the grass. “Your muscles are quite nice, too, but I was talking about the buildings. And the forest. And the waterfalls. Much better than a bunch of dirt and rocks.”

“Cosimo was true to his word. He convinced, and by that I mean threatened, five mages to come down here and erect new barracks for the men. They got twenty-three done. The mages are currently recharging, but they’ll be back at it tomorrow, bright and early.”

I hopped up beside them and leaned back, letting the sun play across my face.

Tavion settled himself beside me, and that look on his face…

Happy. He was happy.

With a jolt of surprise, I realized…I was happy, too.

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