Page 87 of The Oracle of Dusk

Aurora glared at Theron. She didn’t need this right now. If what the servants were saying was true, then the gates to the city would be opened soon. There hadn’t been a new case of torchlight fever for two days now. A few more without incident, and the gates would open. Aurora intended to leave the moment they did.

In the meantime, she’d made drawings for Orithyia and prayed she would never see the woman again. Even now, the clash of banging doors and stomping through the halls set her heart racing. All the nightmares of the lashing, of Drakon, of Phaedra’s last moments—they haunted her whenever she closed her eyes. There was no peace to be had in this cursed place. And there were certainly no true allies.

Theron had sat beside her as her walls had been torn down, had provided some small measure of comfort when she’d needed it most… and then abandoned her. She hated that he’d made his way into some small corner of her heart and then proven himself to be unworthy of it. She hated it even more that it hadn’t diminished the effect his presence had on her. At best, he was a distraction she didn’t need, and at worst, a liability.

“What Ithinkis that the only person I can rely on is myself.”

“Have you decided you no longer need my military? My support? My protection once I leave Boreas?”

In past cycles of calamity, the hero of the holy sword was said to have slain Drakon alone. Now she knew that the hero required her assistance, or someone like her. But would they also need an army? Had the aid of other warriors been left out of the histories in order to bolster the hero’s fame? She didn’t know. But the longer she remained here instead of searching for the hero, the likelier she was to face Orithyia again. Another beating like the one she’d endured could not be allowed to happen again. After all, there was no guarantee Theron would heal her.

“And if I stayed, will I get them, or will you turn on me as you did the other day?”

“That was…regrettable. As an apology, I repaired your artefact.”

How had he managed that? She’d done her level best to warp the metal bands no to avail. But there was no denying that it was drawing out her magic as it had done when she’d first found it in the dualist museum. The question was on the tip of her tongue. She mentally shook herself. No, this was just another way for him to delay her.

“Apologies usually begin with the words ‘I’m sorry’ and continue with acknowledging one’s transgressions.” She frowned.

No doubt a man like him would balk at such a demand. Let him prove himself unworthy of her trust once again. Let her heart and mind be in accordance.

“There are better ways for a man to apologise to a lady,” he purred.

Aurora fought a blush.

“You overestimate your dubious charms, Your Majesty.”

“You’ve never experienced my charms, dubious or otherwise, Aurora.”

“I will only be satisfied with a proper apology. If you can’t give me that, I have no reason to stay.”

“And if I promised I could satisfy you with animproperapology?”

“I would tell you to please move aside.”

He stepped closer then, making it impossible to ignore him, the heat of his skin, the sheer width of him. It was getting harder to ignore what an improper apology might entail.

“Aurora,” he said, his deep voice rumbling.

She clenched her fists at her sides, refusing to back down from his hypnotising gaze. It didn’t matter that the sound of her name on his lips made her insides feel like jelly. It didn’t matter that he physically appealed to her every feminine fantasy. He was a snake.

And he’d already bitten her once.

“Tell me you don’t want me. Make me believe it,” he said, his eyes pulling her in.

No, that way lay madness. If she kept playing this game, she would lose—and they both knew it. It was time to stop playing by his rules.

“Is this how you charmed that other lady, Your Majesty?” she said with more venom than she’d meant. A mistake. He seemed far too pleased.

“As gratifying as your jealousy is, there is no other lady.” He smiled indulgently.

Aurora all but growled. It took a great effort of will not to spit at him.

“I may have been missing one eye at the time, but I clearly saw you in the gardens with a lady. The one you snuck out of the room to meet while I was busy getting maimed.”

That wiped the grin from his face. Replaced with a haunted look that was gone in the blink of an eye. He settled for a scowl.

“I didn’t sneak out of the room.”

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