ButIdid not stop.Theclank of armor followed me, spurring me on.Itfelt like knives cut between my ribs, but still,Iran.
Iwas close now, so close.Irounded the corner, feet slapping against the floor asItried to stay ahead of the guards, when everything went red.Thereshe was, hanging above the door to the laboratory.Mymother, nailed to the wall, her arms and legs outstretched.
Shemust have been preserved somehow, for her dead body still had flesh clinging to her bones, but huge chunks had come loose, hanging off it in grisly strips.Herbones were visible and beginning to turn black with rot.Herhead lolled and the gash across her chest had only grown wider as the flesh was eaten away, thick black clots of congealed blood still stuck to her.Halfof her face was gone, the skull visible beneath, but her black hair hung like a spider's web over her one remaining eye that had turned white.
Myheart stopped, and my breath as well.Thatcrushing sensationIhad fought for so long smashed into my chest like a boulder launched from a trebuchet.Mylegs gave out andIcollapsed to the floor.EverythingIhad suppressed these last months flooded back to me.Everymemory and imageIhad drowned in the ocean of my mind rose to the surface, like the eldritch horrors of the deep.Isaw it again, my mother’s eyes going dull as blood pumped from her heart.Hadeon’slaughter at my father’s screams.Jun, wrapped inHadeon’sarms as he kissed him.Jun, lying lifeless on the bed upstairs.Thefaces of every manIhad killed, all rose up from the depths, their clammy hand pulling me down into that ice cold water.Icouldn’t breathe,Iwas drowning—Iwas dying.
Getup!Runyou idiot!ButIcouldn’t move, andIhardly noticed as the very real hands of the soldiers clamped around me and everything went mercifully black.
Chapter65
Tori
Thesensations were all too familiar.Mywrists burned with iron, and my shoulders ached from my dead weight hanging off of them.Igot my feet under me, at least relieving my shoulders.Myhands were chained together above my head, tied to a chain thicker than my thigh.
“Notgetting out this time, gorgeous.”Isnapped my head up, and there wasLuxos, leaning against the dungeon wall with his arms crossed.Iscreamed and ran at him.Butthe chain only allowed me a few steps beforeIsnapped back.Ibared my teeth at him.
Luxosraised himself off the wall, “Theysaid you were a feral little thing.Youowe me the life of quite a few of my men.Iintend to exact my retribution in blood.”
“I’dlike to see you fucking try, coward.Itwasn’t me who ran away from those ruins.”I’dstruck a nerve, and he ground his teeth as he approached me.Butbefore he could get close enough,Hadeonhimself walked into the room.
“Luxos, what didItell you about getting started without me?”Luxosbacked down, stepping behind the emperor.
“YourEminence, always a pleasure to see you.”
“Oh, my hellcat, you do like to keep things interesting, don’t you?”Heraised his hand and lightning shot into me, but it wasn’t as painful as it had been before.Thegem was negating his power, butIhad to keep that from him.Iscreamed, if a bit over dramatically.
“Now, why don’t you tell me why you were slashing your way through my dungeons.”
Ihad failed our plan, but there was still hope.Hadeonwas here with me, andIhad an advantage.Ijust needed to play this right.
“Iwas looking forJun.”Hestepped forward and sunk his fist into my stomach.Thatactually hurt.
“Liar.Let’snot play these games,Idon’t have the patience for it.”Hegrabbed the necklace around my neck, pulling it down soIwas trapped between it and my chains.Itried not to fight,Icouldn’t let him break it, but my bad shoulder and arm twitched with pain as it was pulled, andIflinched away.Theclasp on the necklace broke, andHadeontossed it away.
Mystomach plummeted.Thatwas my last hope.Hehit me again with lightning, and this timeIfelt its full force, and my scream was real.Butit wasn’t just for the pain.Ihad failed, and it had been my fault.Whenit had mattered most,I’dfrozen like the pathetic thingIwas.Weak, so weak.
“Iknow what you were looking for,Princess.Whydo you thinkLuxoswas ready for you?”
Hehad me there.Istill hadn’t recovered my breath, and darkness was starting to cloud my vision.Ihadn’t meant to say it out loud, butIdid.
“Howdid you know?Howdid you knowIwould be there?”Theemperor raised his hand and motioned toLuxosby the door.Heretreated, but returned quickly, pulling a woman along by her arm.
Hersoft brown curls swept back from small, pointed ears, and her golden eyes wouldn’t meet mine.
“Ciara?”Shedidn’t look at me, just kept her eyes on her feet.
“Yes, my own littleCiara.She’squite the spy, isn’t she?Sosweet, so soft.Onewould never suspect.”Hewalked over to her, pinching her chin in his fingers, andIcould see his nails cutting in, “Yes, almost as soft as her mother was.Shehas been feeding me quite the wealth of information these last few months.”
Itcouldn’t be, not theCiaraIknew, who was kind and gossiped with me and…shared my secrets.Shehad known about my hidden weapons, about our plans.Andhe was right, she had fooled me.Iwas twice the fool because it was the same disguiseIsometimes used.Demure, soft, afraid.
Icould barely stand to look at her.Ihad failed, butCiarahad made sure it would happen.
“Ciara, how could you?Youknow what he’s capable of!”Shestill wouldn’t look at me.Tearsflooded my eyes.Itwas all ruined.Ourplan, we wouldn’t get this chance again,Hadeonwould see to that.Myheart ached.Didhe haveAbraxasalready?
“YousaidIwouldn’t have to see her,”Ciaramumbled.Hadeonsaid nothing. “Whereis my husband?YousaidIcould have him, you said this would be enough.”Shelooked atHadeonwith pleading eyes, and gods damn me,Iunderstood.
Hemotioned with his hand again.Anotherguard dragged in the human man.Ihad seen him before.Hehad been one of the slaves withHadeonat the midsummer ball, the nightCiarahad been beside herself.Ireally was a fool, and now we all would pay the price.
