Of Darkness and Crowns (Goddess Wars 2)

“I’m sure they’re up to something,” I say. “Either way, it’s not safe for the empress to remain here. Especially with the goddess relic.” I glance at the glowing stone. “If it needs to be with her at all times, then she needs to be far away from the Otherworlders. From Bale.”

Lilly studies my face. “You should come with us.”

I shake my head. “I swore—”

“To Prince Caben. I know,” she interrupts, sounding exasperated. “And you have. You’ve kept your word. All there’s left to do now is appoint someone in charge, Kal. And don’t lie to me. I know the truth behind the hold up.” She eyes me seriously, her red bangs framing the soft curves of her face. “You’re hoping to confront him and bring him back. But all you’re doing is angering every member of the Perinyian Council and a whole country, at that.”

I wasn’t prepared for a lecture from my best friend, and the fact that she’s right drives a searing, sharp blade through my resolve. My defenses shoot up, and I cross my arms. “There is no one here who’s proven himself able to rule in Caben’s absence.”

“Proven himself to you.” Lilly’s brows raise. “Maybe, then, it’s not your place to choose.” She reaches out and gently touches my arm. “Let someone from his own country make that call. And then trust them to be right.” She sighs at my scowl. “Hell, Kal, I don’t know. Ask the empress to select someone. You trust her wisdom, right?”

She knows me better than anyone. And she has me cornered. As she drops her hand, I roll my shoulders back and shake out my hands. “I will. I promise.” I widen my eyes when she gives me a disbelieving look. “I will. Just as soon as we get through tonight, I’ll ask Empress Iana to make the decision. Then I’ll relinquish my duty until…” I look away, toward the wall. Away from Lilly’s knowing amber eyes.

“You’re doing all that you can for him,” she says quietly.

I nod, still not looking at her. I want to believe her words, but inside, I wonder if I am. If I have. If I’ve helped Caben at all, or if I’ve only prolonged the inevitable.

When the question was raised at the very first meeting between Cavan and Perinya Council members, it was decided—due to much of my debating—that no harm would come to Prince Caben during the war. That he’d be captured, and after gaining proof Caben was still present within his body and his mind, we’d work diligently to restore him. And just as diligently to exile Bale from this plane.

The longer Bale resides within Caben, the more she sinks her evil talons into his soul, and the less likely it is that Perinya will ever get their prince back.

That I will.

A boom echoes through the chapel, the floor beneath me rumbling with the blast. I throw my hands out as the walls shake and debris rains down around us. “Secure the empress!”

As Lilly rushes to the empress’s side, Lena and Whip help her stand and begin to lead her through the corridor. Empress Iana only pauses long enough to look me in the eyes and nod. Then she’s ushered through the passageway. Kaide swaths the relic in a light material, wrapping it tightly. Then he’s following behind the other Nactue.

Bringing out my transmitter, I halt the cold metal before my lips, my breaths clipped as realization washes over me. Caben is here. As I push in the button, my hands tremble. “Councilor,” I say, my voice steady despite the pinch in my chest.

The device crackles, matching the chaos bleeding through the transmission. “Protector Kaliope, it seems as if your suspicions were correct.”

Nausea seizes my stomach. “The empress is safe,” I assure her.

“Then we proceed as planned.” A beat. “Farrah be with you.”

I bow my head and end the transmission, then quickly program another. I begin to make my way out of the chamber, my transmitter already making the connection, as I hear Kaide say, “I’m going with you.”

Turning around, I shake my head. “No. Not this time, Kaide. You’re ordered to stay and protect Empress Iana.”

Of all the Nactue, I thought it’d be Lilly who would give me the most grief about my decisions. And she does. But Kaide has taken to being my personal guard of sorts. And he doesn’t fully trust my judgment, not when it comes to the prince.

His face contorts with hard lines. “Yes, ma’am,” he says, nodding his obedience to my order. “Be strong, Kal,” he whispers before leaving through the corridor.

I’m lost in my thoughts, the walls quaking around me, when a guttural voice breaks through the fog clouding my mind. “Everything’s a go, Protector.”

Looking at my transmitter, I acknowledge Bax with a hard nod. “Keep a close eye on Councilor Herna,” I say, picking up my pace as I head into the chapel. “And make sure General Corvin understands not to harm—”

“I know, Kal,” Bax says, the paleness of his ashen face nearly translucent through the electric blue web. “Stop worrying about your prince and focus on you.” He presses his lips together. “Don’t die.”

A harsh laugh escapes me. “Message received, Bax. Same to you.” Clasping my transmitter once more to my harness, I suck in breath. Then I brace my foot against the pew blocking the chapel door and push. The pew slides aside with a loud screech.

I unlatch the doors and fling them open wide, then step into the chaos.

People are fleeing, seeking the safety shelters. It’s happening sooner than I thought, or hoped. As much as I longed for this moment, I had wished it to be away from here. On the battlefield. Maybe even in the Otherworld.

Not anywhere near the people I care for, or the innocent citizens who are only trying to live out their lives. But we don’t get to pick the moments that will forever define us. They choose us, and our only hope is to confront them with as little fear as possible. Fear of the inevitable change that follows.

As I push my way through the bodies, determination bolstering my steps, I don’t know what fear consumes me more.