Page 57 of D'Vaire or Nothing
“Folly,” Death hissed.
Eternity patted her best friend’s arm. “Don’t lose your temper here. We will scream and rage at the castle.”
The unmistakable signature of Folly’s magic was embedded in the tissues of the spriggan. Justice stood and snatched the blade from behind her. The cool metal landed on her forehead, and she breathed out a shaky breath, then she drove it into the sandy dirt next to her boots. It wasn’t easy to hold in her anger.
Justice hated corruption. But what pissed her off more was the lack of trail Folly had left for them. There was a nearly shattered corpse and nothing else.
“She didn’t kill him here. This was her dumping spot,” Courage muttered as she surveyed the quiet road used for deliveries. It was a Friday evening, and although a nearby resort bustled with people, the darkened street wouldn’t be full again until Monday morning.
“No, she siphoned every drop of his power,” Fate growled. “Literally squeezed it out of the man.”
“The terror is left in his soul,” Death revealed. “I felt it as he entered theebirlloba. Do what you will here with whatever crumbs she failed to leave for us. I must return to my realm and attend to Jowan.”
Justice laid her hand on Death’s arm, preventing her from shimmering away for a moment. “Let us know if we can be of any assistance. We will return to theebirllobashortly.”
Death offered a quick nod, and Justice released her so she could attend to Jowan.
“At least Death will offer him some happiness,” Life said quietly. “He had no joy in his long existence. His sentence was unjust, and he sat in a cage for many millennia.”
“How is it we thought ourselves above true malice and evil when our creator thought it acceptable to cage people who’d committed no crimes?” Justice asked. As the eldest of the goddesses, she’d spent the most time with their mother. Yet she hardly knew her. Where was she? Why had she gone? Did sheever intend to return? Was she aware of Folly’s depravity? And the worst question of them all, did she care?
“I know not what I can say to calm you,” Eternity remarked. “Any wrongdoing infuriates you, and we find ourselves confronted with misdeeds at every turn. There are still those missing from their cages. While Death is tending to Jowan, I want to quickly discuss Tivadras.”
“The pegasus?” Courage asked. She brushed imaginary dust from her gown. “We may as well discuss it. Folly has left us nothing here.”
“Tivadras,” Fate said. “I recall him fondly. Every day, I swear he came up with a new prank.”
Justice sighed and yanked her sword from the dirt. “Those pranks angered people, especially Mother. It is why he was imprisoned.”
“Imagine locking someone up for fifteen thousand Earth years because they enjoyed a lark,” Courage commented with a shake of her head. “I was unaware that was his crime.”
“Death won’t speak of him because he befriended her,” Eternity said. “She’s had precious few friends in her life. Tivadras confided in her. He wanted a mate. I think he believed he would be banished to another realm or planet where he might catch the eye of a goddess like Fate.”
Fate pursed her lips. “A man of frivolity. Fantastically handsome, if I recall. A good heart. Someone who could see the value of a lovely goddess like Death. Yes, finding him a mate would’ve been an effortless task.”
“I think we should keep an eye out for him,” Eternity said. “But be warned. If I find him, I refuse to allow him to be put in a cage again. What I want is for him to have his dream.”
“I will find him the perfect mate should we track him down,” Fate vowed with a bright smile.
“It is against the rules to allow someone deemed a criminal to roam free,” Justice said, though her heart wasn’t in the words.
Courage bent, and her magic glowed around the broken body of Jowan. “I will send Jowan to theTier’llomenso he can be inspected thoroughly by every goddess. He is the lone clue Folly left behind. Tell me, Justice. If we had found Jowan here in this realm before Folly, what would you have done? A man whose crime actually belonged to his creator? Would you have rounded him up like the genuine offenders we have locked up in what we hope are now impenetrable cages?”
Caught between the rules her mother had given her and the fairness imprinted on her soul, Justice stood in a dark alley and understood clearly the struggle Skeleton Lord Albrecht Ruarc-Daray had faced the day he broke free of his spell. In a single moment, he’d changed history because he could no longer abide aiding a woman on the wrong side of honor. Justice hadn’t been ordered to murder innocents or watched her mate be beheaded, but she was a goddess. One crafted for a singular purpose. It was growing apparent that Justice hadn’t known her mother or her intentions. Or the validity of her own design.
It was quite a crisis for a goddess charged with ensuring integrity and lawfulness prevailed. Justice realized in a flash that she was overcomplicating the issue. In the end, her focus needed to be on the rightness of any decision. Jowan hadn’t broken any rules. His sentence was offensive.
“Jowan deserved a life outside a cage,” Justice stated quietly but with firm resolve.
“Look at you, Justice. Like me, you’re going wild this weekend,” Fate enthused.
“You don’t understand the meaning of the wordwild,” Eternity mused. “You’re both fulfilling your purpose to the utmost of your abilities. That’s admirable, not wild.”
“She paired two couples; if that’s the top of her skills, then it’s no wonder so many people are lacking mates,” Life drawled.
“A statement that could’ve easily been delivered by Death,” Eternity crowed. “Excellent job. Shall we return to theebirllobaand check on our sister of the underworld?”
“Yes, we will tell her of our plan for Tivadras,” Justice said. “It will ease her worry; she carries too much of it already.”
