Page 70 of Between Fear and Favor

The screams of our soldiers dying in that pit echoed in the early dawn, and divine fire crackled behind me as it destroyed the Wend. All of that work we’d wanted to accomplish, homes that our people hadn’t wanted to leave—gone beneath my fire. But I couldn’t regret it after killing so many of their soldiers. I didn’t know what else to do. If only they didn’t have Rain and Ryo, I would have used Lux to kill them all and delighted in their screams.

Nereza stalked toward the Supreme, and Ryo flinched away from her. She tightened the shadows around him, sneering down at my poor, bound creature. He couldn’t move, and the daggers were so deep in his back, I worried I wouldn’t be able to heal him. I did my best to hide my own reaction because his movement made me ache. I couldn’t take a deep breath, and a forceful cough came up my throat. Ryo let out a long and loud whine, and I decided I wasn’t going to wait any longer for their decision.

“Send Rainier to me now, or Lux will turn us all to ash.”

My dragon rumbled behind me, and I wondered if I only imagined the disappointed tone. As if the idea of hurting me pained her.

“The vial first,” the Supreme boomed.

I bit my lip, uncertain about my course of action. With the wards surrounding the city down, there was nothing to stop him from using another conduit to rift away with my blood, leaving Nereza behind to kill Rain and my dragon.

“Come and fetch it, then,” I decided. If he came close enough to take the vial from my hand, I could demand my husband and the dragons in exchange for his life. I would kill myself along with him if I had to. Lux growled behind me, only further confirming she understood my intentions.

The Supreme weighed his choices and listened as Nereza whispered in his ear. I couldn’t understand their dynamic. Most of the soldiers belonged to her. Though many Folterrans had sided with the Supreme after Declan’s demise, many returned to their homes. The vast majority of the enemy encircling our city had been Nythyrian—evidenced by their pale skin and light hair—so why did Nereza defer to him? Why did he take the lead?

The Supreme pushed Nereza away, and she hastily caught herself. Was she hopeful her soldiers didn’t see the Supreme’s dismissal? Her eyes caught mine as she turned toward us once more, and her hateful gaze narrowed on me. I worried she would take her anger out on both Rainier and Ryo, who were still tangled in her shadows. I could only hope she understood that whatever she did to them, I would do to her and her daughters ten-fold.

“So much trouble could have been avoided if you’d come to this conclusion sooner,” the Supreme said as he approached. When his eyes dipped to my legs, I worried he could see the shadows keeping me upright.

“So much trouble could have been avoided if you’d have been content with what you have in Lamera,” I countered, trying to draw his attention away from my weakness.

I was tempted to kill him where he stood, but then Nereza would do unspeakable things to those I cared about. He stepped closer, speaking to me almost conspiratorially.

“I’m afraid what I need the god’s favor for is far too important for me to remain at the Seat.”

“Then take this, and go back there,” I said, shoving the vial of my blood into his hand. I shuddered, knowing that I was only pushing him one step closer to his goal. But if Rain and I could figure out the prophecy and find favor amongst the gods first, perhaps that would be enough.

It had to be.

The Supreme snatched the delicate, glass vial out of my hands, inspecting its contents. When a cool breeze lifted my hair and his robes, he shivered. “How do I know it’s yours?”

I stared at him, lifting a single brow. “You don’t, I suppose.”

“And you expect?—”

“Would you like to discuss your doubts with my dragon? You did seem cold.”

His throat bobbed, though his brows furrowed as he scowled at me. “I admit I have not given you any reason to trust me, and so surely you don’t expect me to trust you.”

My eye began to twitch as I reached for my dagger. The violet-red stone inlaid in the hilt caught the Supreme’s eye. His gaze darted to the ring I wore on my finger, its color matching that of the stone on my weapon. It changed color depending on the light, and in the early dawn, with divine fire behind me, it favored red.

Like the blood in the vial. Like the blood I planned to spill one day.

He unstoppered the vial as I trailed the blade across my palm, and then held it to the wound. “You would do anything for love, would you not?” he whispered.

I only stared at him, jaw clenched, as he filled the empty space in the vial with my blood. Did he mean Nereza?

“Almost anything,” I said, although I wasn’t sure if those words were true. Perhaps I didn’t have a limit. The Supreme placed the cork back in the vial and turned away from me. My grip was strong as I grabbed his shoulder. “Now, send them over or you and I will greet the gods together. Here and now.”

With a flick of his wrist, he signaled to Nereza. Though visibly irritated, she moved closer, and her shadows carried Ryo and Rain behind her. I sucked in a quick breath as the pain from Ryo’s jostling seared through my body. The Supreme’s head canted to the side. He’d heard the gasp, but he couldn’t possibly know what it meant. Could he?

Nereza cautiously made her way over, and we waited in silence. Two women, presumably Nereza’s daughters, walked behind Rain and Ryo. Not for the first time, I wondered where the Scythe and the Scar had gone off to. When they’d told us about fearing their sister, the Silence, at our coronation, Rain and I had decided that it was none of our business. But now, with their mother leading an army against us, they were nowhere to be found.

One of the women, whose flaming red hair reminded me of Mairin, carried a sword, and she pantomimed swinging it toward Rainier’s neck. She’d die slowly, if I ever had the chance. The other woman was unarmed, but undoubtedly just as deadly.

“You will leave and allow us to tend our wounded?” I asked.

“Yes,” the Supreme answered. “There is no need to kill innocents who will someday soon bow down to me.”

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