The War of Two Queens (Blood and Ash 4)

“We have him, but you need to lift the curse first,” I said.

“Or what?” Callum answered.

Delano’s head lowered as his lip curled back, and a low growl rumbled from him. I reached for the notam, calming him—soothing the others as they prowled across the Temple floor, their instincts riled by so many vamprys and Revenants.

“Or we set his casket on fire,” Casteel responded coolly. “And then kill you.”

“You keep saying that,” the Revenant replied, “yet here I remain.”

Casteel turned his head to Callum, and his lips curled in a shadow of a smile. “And here I stand.”

“The curse will be lifted once I see that you have Malec with you and he still lives,” Isbeth interjected before Callum could. “I need proof that you have fulfilled your end of the bargain before I complete mine.”

I glanced at Casteel. He gave me a curt nod, and through the notam, I reached out to Rune, who waited with the others. The wolven’s response was swift. “He comes.”

Isbeth’s stare left mine, traveling to the steps as Casteel said, “He remains asleep.”

“Of course,” she responded with a quick glance. My head cut to my left as Millicent quietly moved forward. “He will until given blood.”

I watched Millicent move forward even more, tensing.

“He will sleep deeply until then,” Isbeth continued. “Nothing in either realm could wake him at this point.”

“And yet, you believe that he will wake upon being fed and then give you what you seek?” Casteel queried as I inched forward, partially blocking him and Kieran.

“I know he will,” Isbeth said.

I saw the moment Malik and the others arrived at the top of the Temple steps. Isbeth’s hands unlocked. One fluttered to her chest as they traveled between the kneeling, faceless gods. Millicent’s steps faltered, and her concern rose, pressing down on my shoulders.

They placed the casket before where we stood, and then Malik and the others stepped back. I moved forward, reaching into the pouch at my hip. My fingers slid over the horse as I withdrew the ring. I placed it on top of the flat surface of the casket, beside the bone chains. Isbeth lifted a hand. Several knights moved forward, their dark, soulless eyes the only parts of them visible as they retrieved the casket, carrying it to the altar as Millicent approached me.

Delano eyed her warily as her pale eyes flicked briefly to Malik and then to me. “Where is the blond?” she questioned quietly. “The one called Reaver. Your draken.”

“You worried about where he may be lurking?” Casteel countered as Isbeth turned her back on us.

Millicent didn’t look at him. “No.” Her eyes remained on me, and as close as we were, it was hard not to notice that we were the same height. “But you should be.”

My brows rose while the knights began pulling the bone chains from the casket. “And why is that?”

She looked over her shoulder at the clatter of bones hitting the Temple floor. “Because she didn’t ask about where he is,” she answered, and Kieran’s head snapped in her direction. “One would think she’d be concerned about the one thing that could take out a large portion of those on the Temple grounds.”

I glanced at the altar. Isbeth was sliding the Atlantian diamond back onto her finger—I wasn’t even sure why I’d bothered to return it—as a knight jammed the tip of his sword into the seam of the casket. Wood groaned. It was unlikely that Isbeth was currently aware of where Millicent was at the moment. She was solely focused on the casket, having moved to the other side of the altar. Callum watched, though.

“Nor did she mention the fact that you’re about fifty thousand less than you were when you crossed the Niel Valley,” Millicent went on, her gaze lowered. Another knight worked at the center of the lid, and I heard another cracking, popping sound. “She is fully aware that they are no longer with you, which could only mean that they have been sent somewhere else.”

Focusing on Millicent, a hundred different things rose to the tip of my tongue. There was so much I wanted to know, but all I said was, “I know.”

Millicent’s gaze flew to mine, and I knew she understood what I meant. That I knew who she was.

One side of her lips twitched and rose and then flattened. “Then you should also know that there is something very wrong about all of this.”

Tiny bumps spread out along my arms as the knights freed the top of the casket and lifted the lid. Millicent turned back as they placed it on the floor. The knights all stepped back. Only Isbeth moved forward, and she did so slowly, almost fearfully.

Malik had made his way to Kieran’s side. He didn’t look at Millicent, but I knew he spoke to her when he whispered, “Are you well?”