Page 83 of Master of Storms
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Marduk foundIshtar sitting in a window nook, watching the courtyard stir below her. No matter where they were, she seemed to find private little corners where she could watch the world go by. She was no longer trapped in a cave, but he wasn’t entirely certain she’d truly rejoined the world.
They’d spent years apart, but these past few months had been easy.
It felt somewhat akin to sharing a soul. They didn’t even have to speak. He could merely rest his shoulder against hers, and the simple effort of existing became uncomplicated.
She was home in a way that he’d never felt before. She was peace. She was a breath of calming air. And he’d been so busy of late, that he hadn’t truly had a chance to talk to her.
“Do you mind if I sit?”
Ishtar shook her head and gestured to the stone beside her.
“Can you sense anything?” he asked. “Any enormous spikes of Chaos magic?”
“Many.” Her brows drew together. “There’s a beating pulse of power beneath the entire castle, though I don’t know if it is a relic, or merelythe echo of thousands of Chaos-workings over the centuries.”
“I can sense three.”
“I can sense hundreds.”
A sigh escaped him. “I knew it couldn’t be that easy.”
“The queen consort asked me to dine with her,” Ishtar said. “She may tell me more about the key. She’s very nice.”
“Andromeda is a powerfuldrekiqueen who is mated to a ruthless king. She may be very nice. She may also be working hand in hand with Draco, and I don’t trust him at all.” He kissed her forehead. “I wouldn’t mention it, if I were you.”
“I just want to help.”
“You are helping.”
Ishtar drew her knees to her chest. “Rurik was angry that I opened the portal, wasn’t he?”
“Ishtar….” He blew out a breath. “He’s not angry at you. Never you. You were locked away in a bloody cave. Tyndyr took advantage of you. He lied to you and used your power to start a war. None of this is your fault.”
“I just don’t want to make anyone angry.”
“You don’t. And you’re helping, more than you could ever know. Árdís is so new to her power that she can barely wield it. I can sense Chaos, but I’m no practitioner. You’re our secret weapon, angel. If anyone is going to find the key, it’s going to be you.”
Her sudden hug caught him by surprise. She almost strangled him. Marduk blinked, and then hugged her back.
“Thank you,” she whispered.
“I do, however, think you should take someone with you when you visit Andromeda.”
She peered at his face as if trying to decipher an ancient text. “Do you think I cannot handle myself?”
“No. I used to worry about you, but if anyone tries to hurt you, you can simply vanish yourself.” He’d never get used to it. One moment Ishtar was there—flaring like a supernova in the back of his mind—and the next, she was gone. The bond between them went silent, and it felt like she’d been ripped from his life. “I just want you to be careful. You want to trust them, I know you do, because you’ve never been around others with similar powers, but theZilittu—”
“Can’t be trusted.”
“Maybe you can take Solveig.” If anyone was going to put theZilittuqueen through an inquisition, it was going to be her.
Ishtar toyed with the hem of her skirt. “I don’t think I would like that."
His gaze cut to her.
He’d noticed that Ishtar avoided Solveig. The princess had been unfailingly polite to his sister—or they would have had words—but Ishtar tended to grow quieter around those she didn’t trust.
