Eagerly, he nods. “Absolutely, General. You have my loyalty.”
I manage to hide the satisfaction that floods through me. “That’ll be all.”
Ezkai Emil opens the door for him to leave. Before he does, Nobleman Juti presses his fist above his heart and bows at his waist.
Once he leaves and Ezkai Emil closes the door, I allow myself to sink into the soft leather of the chair and close my eyes.
“Fuck me.” I breathe out the words.
“General?” Ezkai Emil asks, an edge of worry in his voice.
“I just need a moment,” I whisper, without moving. “Just a moment.”
I’m totally wiped out. I hope this is enough to save Jax.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
VERA
Ilose track of the number of cuts Reizei orders before I pass out from the agony of pain. Spirits of the gods must be merciful after all. But from the way my body aches no matter how I sit or lie, I can guess he’s done enough damage.
As I sit in the corner of my dark cell, I try hard not to press my back against the wall. But with every breath, the ragged cloth tunic and pants I wear brush against my skin. I can’t escape it.
At least they bandaged the wound on my hand. If Reizei thinks lack of a pinky finger will break me, he’ll be greatly disappointed.
How much time passes, I’ve got no clue. Once in a while, the little window at the bottom of the iron door to my cell opens. Someone shoves a tray with food and water through it. Sometimes thick grey gruel. Sometimes stale bread. Twice I’ve gotten lucky and received some molded hard cheese. I do my business in the small pot I find in one of the corners.
They treat me like an animal, thinking it will break me. But they have no clue where I come from. What I’ve been through. This…is nothing.
I only realize it’s been days or maybe weeks since anyone visited me when each breath stops irritating my scars.
Time loses importance here. So does everything else. Well, everything except…
“Are you giving up?” Kitajo’s voice forces me to look up.
Even in the dark, I can make out his large shape, those painfully familiar facial features I loved so much. Still do.
I scoff. “I’m offended you’re even asking me this.”
A soft chuckle coming from him sends a pleasant chill down my spine.
“There she is,” he purrs. “You were beginning to sound meek. Very unlike you.”
I rest my chin on my knees and smirk. “Meek? You were never this brave to insult me to my face again and again when you were still alive.”
“I had to calculate my odds,” he says playfully. “As any good military leader does when faced with a challenge.”
“Is that what I was?” I cock my head to the side. He inches closer to me. “A challenge to conquer?”
Kitajo’s moon-pale face is close enough to me now that I can make out his sharp cheekbones and strong nose. Golden speckles in his dark-as-night eyes.
When he speaks, his warm breath skitters over my lips. “You are everything, my dearest. The reason the sun rises in the mornings, and the reason it sets at the end of the day. The reason storms rage across all seven seas. Why the moonlight feels so good when it shines upon me every night, and why the stars that litter the sky look like the most stunning sight. You’re the reason I live, and breathe. Why my heart beats strong in my chest.”
He had told me this before, a few months before his assassination. I laughed at how sentimental he was back then. Teased him for losing his wits as a General.
This time, I smile at him instead. I soak in the words, and lavish in the warmth they give me.
I know he’s not real. Just some illusion my mind conjures due to sensory deprivation. Maybe he’s a sign I’m losing my mind. I don’t care. I savor every moment either way.
