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“Posey is going to pick her teeth with your bones. She has the dagger and the scepter, and when she wants to make a move, she’s going to. And you’re all going to live to regret it.” Galen glances around as if taking inventory, and I realize that Kai and Helene are absent. “I have to wonder if she’s not already made a move, and you all have no idea.”
My stomach contracts, but I tell myself it’s just the baby moving.
“If she’s so powerful, why is she still alone, turning her citizens into stone? The gates to the Underworld are open, so what is she going to do with all those souls still stuck in the dagger?” I ask, already knowing the answer, but I’m curious to learn if he knows she’s consuming souls. It’s possible that Octavia told him, but it’s also possible he has no idea.
Galen blows out a puff of annoyed air. “Why would I tell you?”
He drops into a seat, conjuring a drink. Dion turns the wine in the glass so Galen is left sputtering at the vinegar.
“Youdon’tknow,” I hedge, stepping toward him. Dave stays glued to my side as I move around everyone. After being locked up with him for months, I’ve gotten to know Galen better than I ever wanted to. The man was never afraid to gloat when he had the winning hand, and he knows he doesn’t this time.
“Of course, I do. I was her partner.” He’s still posturing, but now he’s also sweating.
“Her partner in what? I was the steak she was tossing to keep the guard dog busy. She didn’t need you, so she gave you something shiny to keep you out of the way. She needed the souls, and she needed you to get them. You have no idea what her plan was. Your existence is utterly useless to me.” This realization makes my face twist in disgust. We didn’t bring him back solely because he could have information, but it would have been a boon if he did. Maybe it’s for the best that I need never interact with him again. If he’s useless, we can lock him up and throw away the proverbial key.
Galen slams his hands down on the table, but I’m faster from all my practice, and a vine shoots up to wrap around his neck. He laughs, pulling on it. “You think this is going to hurt me?”
“No, but I’m hoping it will shut you up long enough for me to think,” I snap, rubbing my eyes. Bringing Galen back will be for nothing if he was just Posey’s pawn. I didn’t believe he was truly her second-in-command, but I had hoped for at least a general of some kind. And honestly, Octavia has proven herself unwilling to help past pointing us in the right direction for opening the gates of the Underworld.
“We still have one of the daggers. If he’s this useless, we might as well kill him again,” Finn suggests.
Galen blanches at that.
“I’d like to try my hand at battling the God of War,” Bria says, flipping a dagger in her hand. Galen glares at her. Those two often went head-to-head regarding who was the better warrior.
“No, we still have to see if my mother has any more helpful information. Her knowledge as the Goddess Supreme should finally come in handy.” Essos crosses his arms, studying the panic on Galen’s face.
“You think that’s the real reason Posey killed Titus?” Cat suggests.
“Because Titus could take her down? Maybe. He would at least have more knowledge on ways we could fight her,” Xavier muses.
“I can help!” Galen gasps out, clawing at the vine. I loosen it to let him talk. He starts an overdramatic coughing fit that no one acknowledges.
“How?” I prompt.
“I may not know her plan, but I am the God of War, of strategy. I can help you defeat her, but I want assurances. I want to meet my sons, and I want to live,” Galen demands.
“Let’s hear the genius plan first, and then we can discuss your terms,” Cat pipes up. Xavier’s eyes flash to her, appraising and proud.
“You still can’t kill her. Whoever kills her will have to take her place as a Fate. She’s counting on your selfishness to protect her. I know that much. I do know that she was planning to consume the souls for power, but she can’t do it all at once. It would be like trying to eat too much at once. But she started to consume them long before the wedding.”
“Which wedding?” I grumble. I try not to fidget, my lower back hurting from standing on my feet without support. These are the things no one warns you about when it comes to pregnancy. Or maybe they do, and I just never paid attention.
Essos passes me and plops into a seat before pulling me possessively onto his lap. Galen watches us, an angry scowl twisting his mouth. Out of the corner of my eye, I see Essos’s mouth quirk up in a smirk before he starts to rub absent circles on my stomach with one hand and massage my shoulder with the other. I moan when his thumb finds a knot that has been causing me all sorts of problems.
“Ours, pet,” Galen says with a self-satisfied smirk. I don’t know what he’s thinking he’s won, since it ended poorly for him.
“Do you need an invitation to continue?” Dion asks, his tone indicating he’s bored, but his posture says otherwise. He’s tense everywhere else, a coil ready to spring.
“You need to get her off balance. I’m guessing you tried to steal the dagger from her? That’s how Phineas lost his sight? She was expecting that. Posey expects you to go for the scepter and the dagger. I doubt either leave her person.”
“How did you know Posey was a Fate?” I ask, narrowing my eyes at him.
Galen turns red. Another lie, it seems. I’d have to guess that Octavia told him, because there isnoway that Posey did.
Essos tenses under me. I can’t look at him. I can’t give away that they tried exactly that, and yes, Galen is right about Finn losing his sight to a decoy.
“Thanks for thatgeniusinsight. We never could have cracked the case without you,” Xavier deadpans.
