Lunia’s eyes widen, and my mouth parts. I glance at Nuri, fear creeping over me. “Nuri?” I say.
He steps forward and again, Xarion commands him to wave. He does not.
“Hades,” I curse. “Command me.” And when Xarion asks the same of me, without thought, I wave.
Phoenix blows a breath through his tense lips. “We’ll figure this out once we’re clear of the war.” Sheathing his sword, he nods to Lunia.
She turns a mirror hanging along the rock wall outward. It catches the light of the glass bulb, sending a beam high above our heads. It reflects off another mirror, then another. They’re positioned accordingly to ref
ract the light and brighten the stretch of tunnel.
Our path shows a long, straight trek through the underbelly of the city.
Pushing my fears of the two Narcos who cannot be commanded to the back of my mind, I remind myself that Phoenix is one of my best friends. That the war above does not affect us the same way. Once we’re safely at the Red Sea’s port, we can figure out how Octavian was able to break the Narcos’ binds and turn them against their masters—but we must get there first.
“All right,” I say, running my blood-stained blade over the bottom of my shift. “We are all in this together”—I eye Nuri—“and from here, we are Pharaoh Caesarion’s guardians. We get him to that port.”
My friends nod their heads and anchor their swords in their sashes. Then we embark on our journey.
Maybe our last journey from the great city of Alexandria.
I’m unsure how many hours have passed, but we must be nearing the end of the tunnel. The mirrors stopped a while ago, and the air is less dense.
Our party has kept all thoughts of what transpired in the city to themselves, silently mulling it over in their minds. I refuse to take on the blame fully. Now that the adrenaline has left my body, and my mind can rationalize clearly, there was no sure way for me to know of—or stop—the Narcos’ uprising.
I have no connection to the Narcolym other than that we’re all guardians. It’s not as if I could question their knowledge of Candra’s scheme, not without alerting them to it in the first place. Aggravated, I yank my tangled snarls of hair into a bun and pin it back.
And, I have to admit, with as close as Phoenix is to Xarion, the Narcos wouldn’t have included him in their rebellion. He couldn’t have known.
We have to move forward. We guard the last hope to the Egyptian throne. The future of the Ptolemies. I don’t see Octavian ending the queen, but he will take her power. He wants her alive to suffer humility once he sacks the city. I can’t say the same for her husband, though, but I try to assure Xarion, in a delicate way, that Octavian will spare his mother and siblings.
“I know this,” Xarion says. “It was never about punishing Antonius for leaving Octavia for my mother. It’s always been about ending the threat my life means to him.” He sighs. “My mother’s strong. Once she’s able to get word to me, she’ll have a plan.”
I touch his shoulder. “I believe this, too.” And I do. Cleopatra is renowned for her smarts and cunning in both leadership and warfare. Octavian will not rule over Egypt for long.
After hours of travel, we finally glimpse light ahead. The moon.
“Let’s make camp here,” Phoenix says, shrugging off his sack.
Besides the fact that it’s a bad idea to walk the desert by day, I’m annoyed Phoenix has taken up the role of leader. “You know that’s not wise,” I say. “We need to travel at night. Not only will we be better hidden, but the heat is too insufferable during the day.”
“Do you really think that matters to the Leymak? They travel through the aether.” He flaps out his bedroll. “Light or dark, day or night, it makes no difference to them. And, I’m tired.”
Glancing around at the exhausted faces, I give in and jerk off my bag. “Only a few hours,” I say, before Phoenix thinks he can make all the decisions from here on. “We leave at least two hours before the sun rises.”
Grunting, he throws himself down on his roll and turns his back to me. Lunia rolls her eyes. It’s such a Lunia thing to do that I can’t help smiling. Even though our world has been changed, possibly forever, it’s comforting to know we’re still us. Phoenix is still a stubborn ass, and Lunia is still carefree. Even though she must be distraught over leaving Seb behind, she’s strong. She’s always been able to control her emotions. The exact opposite of Phoenix.
Watching Xarion arrange his sleeping area, I can’t imagine how Lunia can leave Seb. There’s nothing that could persuade me away from him. But then, he’s my duty. Raised and trained to one day be his guardian, I’ve always protected him in some form throughout the years.
I’ve never considered any other option.
Lunia settles down on her roll, her fate decided. She’s taken up her obligation to guard her master, and though her heart’s with Seb, this is her place. With me. I reach over and squeeze her hand, and she grips it back.
I unroll my blankets and stretch out, wondering how I’ll sleep when Candra is undoubtedly searching for Xarion right now. A shiver crawls up my spine, and I shake off the unease.
Pale light reaches into the entrance of the tunnel. I stretch my hand toward the beam, let it bathe my skin, and Xarion’s hand slips into mine. Our fingers lock on to each other.
Then I shut my eyes and try to block out the cries haunting my dreams.