Page 147 of Fate of the Sun King

“I don’t know,” I whisper, but I can barely get the words out. They come out garbled and feeble, like the blatant lie they are. A stab through the meat of my stomach causes my nostrils to flare as I clamp down on a scream.

“You’re lying to me,” Atlas hisses. “You’ve been lying to me.” I shake my head, but another pain shoots behind my eye, and I bend over, clutching my face, agony burning over my scalp.

“You’re lying!” Atlas roars. He yanks me back up by the collar, his nose inches from mine. “Tell me the truth! Where is she? Have you seen her?!”

I press my mouth together, the words attempting to fly out of me like a cannon shot. I’ve never wanted to betray Lor, but now that I know Tyr’s life is on the line, the stakes have changed. Whom do I betray?

Atlas shoves me against the wall, his fist pressing into my throat with such force, I grow lightheaded.

“Where. Is. She?” Atlas demands, his teeth bared. The flash of mania in his eyes says he wants to kill me right now. I can’t answer as a fist closes under my ribs, and my mouth gapes open.

He lets out a sound of frustration and tugs me against him. Then with his hand gripped in my collar, he wrenches open the door. All the warders still wait outside with expectant expressions. Atlas shoves me into Jareth, who catches me as I stumble towards him.

“This traitor is lying,” Atlas says. “Are the rest of you holding out on me too?”

They all exchange wary glances. I’m so glad I kept this information to myself.

“Answer me!” Atlas screams, and another warder answers.

“I’m sorry, we don’t know what you’re talking about,” Rhyle says, which makes Atlas roar. There are no other servants in the passage, but someone must hear this commotion.

“Come with me,” Atlas spits, already storming away. “All of you.”

The ten of us exchange another look, but we do as our king asks and follow him through the palace. I already know where we’re headed, and I try to run ahead, hoping to stave off whatever is coming next.

“Atlas,” I say, but he cuts me off.

“Don’t speak to me. Don’t ever fucking speak to me again, Gabriel. You’ve been lying to me all this time. After everything I’ve done for you, this is how you repay me?”

I nearly bite through my tongue. Done for me? The only thing I’ve ever been is his punching bag and his fucking slave.

We arrive at the tower door, and another warder unlocks it before we all ascend the stairs. I don’t want to follow, but I’m terrified of what Atlas will do to Tyr without my intervention.

Atlas strides over to his brother, who lies on his stomach, and grabs him by a fistful of hair, dragging Tyr to his knees. My heart clenches at the confusion in his expression.

“Order them to tell me where Lor is hiding,” he says. “Directly. And then tell them they’re to retrieve her immediately.”

Tyr’s gaze flicks between Atlas and me. He hasn’t said a word in weeks.

“Atlas,” I say. “He stopped speaking. You know that.”

Atlas shakes his head.

“Oh no, you fucking don’t, big brother.”

Before I have a chance to react, Atlas is on me. He circles an arm around my chest and holds a dagger to my neck. The other warders cry out in anger, but Atlas hisses, “If any of you come near me, I’ll kill him.” He presses the blade to my skin—it’s so sharp that I feel a warm trickle of blood seep down the line of my throat.

Then he glares at Tyr. “If you do not give the order, I will spill his blood all over your fucking bed and force you to sleep in it. Do you understand me?”

Atlas’s voice has risen to a fever pitch, taking on a frantic edge. I sense his control slipping away. I try not to struggle, genuinely worried Atlas might nick an artery.

He presses the blade in harder, and I feel another trickle of blood ooze down my neck. Everyone in the room leans forward as Atlas backs us into the corner.

“I mean it,” he says. “Tyr!”

Tyr holds out his hands and levers himself off the bed, making slow, deliberate movements. I watch him, my heart breaking in two. He’s been a shell of a man for so very long, but watching him like this, so frail and broken, while we all stand in this room with a fake king who’s losing his mind grinds a piece of me down forever.

“Don’t!” I try to gasp, but Atlas grips me harder, cutting off my air.