The safehouse was currently occupied by a few other soldiers that belonged to Tomas, and they were there merely to offer protection to the king. Word was still trickling back from the fighting. There were whispers that General Morgan might have actually succeeded in taking the Armory while Tomas had made a serious dent in the soldiers guarding the Royal Towers.
No one was heading to this safehouse anytime soon. They couldn’t risk leading New Rosanthe straight to Caelan. And Rayne had to admit that he preferred the relative privacy they’d found after two days of being surrounded by Erya soldiers. Levi’s attack had left them all anxious when it came to Caelan’s safety. No one could be trusted, and it was a horrible, gnawing feeling that left nerves raw and souls aching.
It was likely they would spend at least a night here, recuperating and planning. There was supposedly enough space for them to all have their own rooms—something they’d not experienced since leaving the boat from Sirelis. He was secretly hoping Eno would come “check on him” during the night, though.
But shouldn’t he check on Eno, just so it wasn’t always Eno making the first move?
Rayne sighed loudly and dropped his head against the back of the sofa. This was not what he should be thinking about. They had much bigger concerns than his sex life. Even if all he craved was the feel of Eno’s body wrapped around his as they fell asleep. He was becoming addicted to the man.
“So, you’re conscious,” Drayce commented, stating the obvious as he grinned at Caelan. “That’s a definite improvement over Kaes.”
But Caelan didn’t grin or crack a joke as Rayne expected. His prince’s expression remained grim while one hand strayed across his ribs, seeming to absently rub at them. Maybe the thing they needed to remember was that Caelan had come close to dying in both meetings. He’d nearly drowned with the God of Storms, and the Goddess of Life had almost crushed his torso.
“The gods…are strange,” Caelan started and stopped again, his frown growing deeper. “I know we can’t judge them based on our understanding of normal, but still…”
Rayne leaned forward, resting his forearms on his knees. “What are you thinking?”
Caelan slowly shook his head. “Nothing really. It’s more of a vague feeling that I can’t quite put my finger on.” He rubbed his forehead with the heel of his palm and the frown eased. “I wish Amara had given me something to go on with Tula, but now I wonder if she would have noticed anything. Did she ever have any interactions with Kaes? Probably not.”
They waited in silence for Caelan to say something more, but he didn’t. Whatever was bothering him about the gods couldn’t be put into words just yet. Maybe it was simply that the gods and goddesses of this world were beyond their understanding as weak, little humans. Their minds were bound to misinterpret things.
“Tula explained that the Goddess of the Hunt is close to escaping her prison, and the woman I saw with Emperor Suen is bonded to the goddess,” Caelan explained.
“Bonded? You mean like bonded bonded? Like you and Tula?” Drayce demanded.
Caelan nodded. “Bonded. She has the power of Zyros, the Goddess of the Hunt. So, stopping the Empire isn’t enough. We have to stop that woman.”
The wood floor creaked under Eno’s feet as he shifted his weight and crossed his arms over his chest. “Shouldn’t be too much of a problem considering you’re now bonded to two gods and this woman is bonded to only one? That’s basic math. We’ve got the advantage.”
Rayne watched the clouds darken over Caelan’s face. It wasn’t as simple as Eno wanted to believe it to be.
“No. Tula was very clear that I don’t have enough power to defeat her right now. She said that I needed her to be able to reach the Dead God.”
“What?” Drayce shrieked, jumping off the couch arm. Even Eno staggered backward a step. Rayne could only be grateful that he was already sitting, because his legs would have given out.
“They’re sending you to Zastrad?” Rayne choked out.
“This is bullshit. No one goes into Zastrad,” Eno grumbled, pacing away from where they were sitting. His heavy footsteps boomed across the floor as he wove around the small coffee table to the far window. He didn’t linger there as the thick maroon curtains were pulled shut for their own protection.
A small smirk twisted up one corner of Caelan’s mouth. “Well, it’s not like going into the Ordas. Everything was trying to kill us there.”
Eno swung toward him, one eyebrow raised at him. “And you think they won’t be attempting to kill you in Zastrad?”
“The fact is, we don’t know what to expect in Zastrad with any real accuracy,” Rayne cut in before the conversation could get out of hand. “Intelligence out of the country is spotty at best. They shun most technology and are single-mindedly devoted to their worship of the Dead God, Nyx. Their entire culture and system of ruling is focused on their religion.”