Page 44 of A Court of Truth and Thorns
With a flick of his boot, Bahir kicks my dagger off the edge. “I wonder whether you can do better than that, little mage. And whether you are worth breaking to bridle.”
Rune shifts his weight in a way I know too well, his fingers tightening around the hilt of his sword.
“Don’t,” I yell at him, my eyes on the black powder he hugs to his body.
“She’s right, princeling,” Bahir croons. “Some of that powder is still dry enough. Jar the keg around and itwillspark. Your entrails will rain down on Delta before you get close enough to nick me with your toy.”
Rune grinds his jaw. “We know the Eye is unstable without the whisperers,” he says, his voice too reasonable for the madness around us. Time. He is giving me time. I slide carefully sideways toward Bahir’s blind spot. Rune tilts his blade, catching the light on its gleaming surface. “You must know it too, Bahir. You must want control of Dansil’s people, not their corpses.”
“I want nothing,” Bahir snaps. “I am but a vessel of the Goddess’s will.”
I slide another inch. Then another.
“My mistake,” says Rune, “but wouldn’t your Goddess, too, prefer her disciples alive?”
Another shift of weight. I’m three paces from Bahir’s free hand. I slip another dagger into my palm. Another few heartbeats and, if Bahir keeps his head still, I’ll slip past the edge of his vision.
“Bahir!” Rune’s voice booms as if shouting across a field of battle. “Help us save your Goddess’s people!”
“I think you’vehelpedquite enough.” Bahir throws his hand out toward me. A spear of flame materializes at my throat, its tip scorching my skin.
I freeze.
“Set the powder down, boy,” Bahir instructs Rune. “And uncover it.”
“No!” I yell. Rune’s eyes lock on my throat and the crisp burn spreading across my skin. “No,” I say again.
But he tightens his jaw and obeys Bahir’s command. “Let her go,” he demands.
“Now, remove the fuse,” says Bahir. When Rune hesitates, the glowing spear at my throat traces the line of my jaw.
I stiffen against the pain, the stench of burned flesh filling my nostrils. Rune removes the fuse, which falls away harmlessly from the quickly soaking powder. My heart sinks.
Rune turns his face to Bahir. “Let her go.”
“I’ve not yet determined her to be a lost cause,” Bahir purrs.
Rune’s face darkens. He steps toward Bahir, his chest out. “You need the whisperers back to stabilize the Eye. Kalianna plotted their course. Send her to fetch them and keep me as collateral.”
My eyes widen, my face snapping to Rune’s. “Have you lost your mind?”
“Children!” Bahir holds up his hand, the spear at my throat not wavering a hair. “No need for squabbles. I believe my men are bright enough to follow ribbons without your expertise.” Reaching into his pocket, Bahir pulls out one of my markers.
My breath catches, my lungs unable to fill themselves as I stare at the bit of cloth in his fingers.
“Come out, my lady,” Bahir calls, holding out his ringed hand.
Violet steps out from behind the Eye. Taking the offered hand, she kisses the ring before intertwining her small fingers with his. The dark band around her eyes, a sibling to Bahir’s, hides little of her face. “I admit I little believed Princess Raza at first.” Violet tilts her head, studying Rune’s pale face. “It was such an unlikely story. But when I learned there was an attack on the abbey, it seemed wise to seek the Messenger’s guidance.”
I shake my head, no words coming to my tongue.
“Renounce the Dark God,” Violet’s young voice rings through the air. “Accept the Goddess into your heart, Lady Kalianna. Cleanse yourself of your sins, Prince Rune. Choose to live. Choose to save your soul.”
“Open your eyes, Violet,” I hiss. “The Order kills people. Ask your Messenger about the Drought.”
The spear at my throat dips to brand my collarbone, and I howl.
Violet’s hand tightens in Bahir’s. “It’s a necessary price for our fertile fields and kind weather. Those who’ve accepted the Goddess into their hearts and borne their children beneath the Order’s sanctuary suffer no ill effects. Only those who refuse to hear the Messenger’s word suffer the Goddess’s wrath.”
