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I don’t oblige her demand. Instead, I hold the barrier. I do make the doors transparent so Essos has to watch what comes next. Maybe he will finally go get help if he sees that I’m going to beat her.
I might be in a vulnerable position on my knees before Posey, but I am not the weak one here. I have both hands wrapped around the wrist that holds my neck and am defiantly watching Posey. I can hear the others trying to throw everything they have at the door to get in, but I won’t let them. One glance confirms that even Galen is helping try to break the door in. I hold them at the door. Essos was right about my powers. I had cut myself off from their true depth. It feels like my chest cracks open as I dive into what it really means to be the daughter of not one, but two Titans. In a blink-and-you-miss-it moment, my hands flare with a golden light before returning to normal.
Posey raises the God Killer to plunge it into my heart again, and I can feel the tip of the blade against my skin, in the same spot that Galen had stabbed me, but I catch her hand, stopping the progression of the blade before it can sink too deep. I sweep out my leg with as much force as I can, knocking Posey off her feet while gripping the hand that holds the dagger tightly. I barely move my head in time to avoid being gouged in the face by the dagger. I feel the pointed edge slide against the skin of my cheek, right over the last time she cut me with it. I roll my body with hers so I’m straddling her hips as I gather every last bit of my physical strength.
I twist and twist Posey’s arm until she releases the blade, not unlike I did the last time we faced off, and I snatch it out of the air before it clatters to the ground.
“You ruined everything!” Posey screams. “Again!”The pounding at the door has stopped, I hope because Essos is finally seeking the help he needs because he can see that I will be victorious. Vines snake out from around my wrists to wrap around where the gem is attached to the hilt. I’m surprised at the ease with which I am able to snap the gem free, but I can’t question it, not now, not when time is of the essence. Swirling inside are billions of souls siphoned from the Underworld. These people aremypeople. They were ripped from their Afterlives and controlled by this bitch.
Posey is climbing to her feet, watching me. “What are you doing?” Her voice is anguished as she looks on in horror. She starts to cough before dry heaving as black smoke oozes from her mouth. Posey looks torn between being sick and watching what I’m doing.
“Stick around and find out.” Before I drop the stone to the floor, I try to shift my weight onto my shattered knee, but can feel that it won’t hold me so I have no choice but to raise my bad leg. It’s going to hurt, I know it’s going to hurt, but I have to do it anyway. Posey realizes what I’m going to do.
“No!” she screams, diving for the stone, but I bring my heel down as hard as I can, shattering it. It’s not just my strength that I’m using to break the gem, but the weight of all the grief of the souls in the Underworld whose stories I listened to. I hoarded and held on to their pain, even as it weighed me down, for just this moment. I yowl in pain as it overwhelms me and I think for a moment I might black out from the agony.
The concussive force of the gem breaking sends both of us flying back, me into the door where Essos can only watch what is happening, and Posey into the opposite wall. I have just enough time to drop the barrier so when I hit the doors, I feel them open as the force of my body slams into them. Warm arms fold around me before we hit the floor, skidding back a few more feet until we hit another wall with a thud.
Essos’s arms are tight around me, holding me. I can see the rest of our family and friends equally scattered by the force. Xavier rises first, marching into the room toward his wife, who is writhing on the ground, crying in pain.
“Daphne.” Essos’s voice cuts through my mental fog and he’s turning me to get a good look at me.
“I’m okay,” I assure him, even as my whole body screams. If it’s not the physical pain, it’s the magical exhaustion and the emotional torment of knowing what Posey did to us and why.
“You’re bleeding. I don’t think that qualifies as all right.” Essos reaches for my cheek and my chest, where the dagger pierced my flesh. They’re not deep and since I won’t be able to heal the cuts the way I usually would, I’ll probably need stitches. Essos doesn’t look as pale as he did before and I hope maybe he was healed, at least a little while I was out. Maybe I made the wound out to be much worse than it actually was.
“I guess Tink should have made this armor cover all the important bits,” I quip, gesturing at how the armor had only covered up to the neckline of my dress. You live and you learn.
Essos clenches his jaw. “I guess so.” His head lifts to where Xavier holds his wife by the hair, dragging her toward the group of us. Any supporters she had have fled. Essos gets to his feet, staggering for a second before righting himself. We both hit the wall pretty hard, and I look at him with alarm, but he waves me off. Smart man that he is, he doesn’t tell me to stay down or he tell me to rest. He just focuses on the issue at hand.
“Is the baby…” He can barely voice his concern, and I nod.
“Probably a little seasick, but our little pomegranate is just fine.”
Essos helps me to my feet, resting a hand on the swell of my stomach to feel it for himself. He’s favoring the arm the dagger struck near, and I know that he’s going to have to be looked over by Callie since that’s not going to heal on its own.
“I’d wager she’s a little larger than that by now. How did you know that breaking the gem would work?”
“I didn’t know. I had no idea if it would work.”
Essos gives me a level glare. “Don’teverlock me out like that again. We are ateamand your fights are my fights. I couldn’t bear not knowing what was happening. I could just hear your anguish, feel it. I don’t know how, but I just could feel your heart breaking and…” And then he kisses me, cupping my face and pressing his lips to mine greedily
“I know. I’m sorry I put you through that, but I’m not sorry it worked.”
“Let’s finish this. For real,” Essos says, and we turn to where Posey is a huddled mess before Xavier.
I take the moment to check our allies. For the most part, they’re unscathed. Galen looks the worst, but I think that’s just because the God of War and Suffering was having fun. I don’t know what happened on the other side of the door when I locked them all out, but they’re all standing and that’s what matters. I pull the new dagger from its holster on my thigh and flip it around, enjoying the look of fear in Posey’s eyes.
Estelle, Sybil, and Zara transport in beside Xavier.
“Now you show up,” Xavier scoffs.
Zara lets go of Sybil and Estelle and approaches. I think she’s going to hug me, but instead, she takes the Power Eater dagger from my hand. Her steps are sure as she walks toward Xavier and Posey, and I expect her to hand it to Xavier. He’s even holding his hand out for it, but before anyone can stop her, she plunges it into Posey’s heart.
“What are you doing!” Helene and I shout, watching as Posey looks at the weapon then at Zara, confused. Xavier looks too shocked to even react. When Posey’s eyes gloss over, Zara removes the dagger. Around us, the world starts to shake.
I look to Xavier, who looks just as confused as thunder rumbles above us.
Zara twists to meet my eye. “Trust me.” Those are her last words before she plunges the knife, still slick with Posey’s blood, into her own heart.
