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But it didn’t change what she had to do. Her own reaction to it, or the idea of it, didn’t change what she had to do.
Sienna sucked in the best breath she could, well aware he’d feel her shaking, and pushed herself back from him. It took most of her strength just to get his lock on her to ease, and she hated losing the solidity of his embrace every bit as much as she enjoyed the way his palms slid along her sides.
She was a little afraid to look up, into his eyes. She didn’t want him to see her tears. She didn’t want to see if what she was about to do would hurt him somehow.
Piper needs me.
Her struggling breath caught in her throat at the sight of the concerned frown on his lips and the unguarded worry in his haunting eyes. She wanted to kiss him—knew this might be her last chance—but she also knew she was a mess. She could feel the blood crusted to her lips. So she held herself still. “Thank you,” she managed to say without wheezing. Speaking with a shattered nose was hard. “And I know nothing’s reallyokayright now, but … Piper needs me.” She had to stop to make a horrendous gasping sound that made her want to punch her kidnappers in the face again.
Fenn took advantage of her pause to interrupt, frown deepening. “I’m not letting you—”
She reached up and cupped his jaw in her hands. “I won’t be your burden.” A smaller gasp made it easier to quickly articulate her point. “My sister, my responsibility.” She did her best to smile, feeling the dried-on blood cracking and splitting and knowing the expression was probably more reminiscent of some monstrous grimace. There was a surprising amount of emotion bubbling in her chest. It felt like she still had a lot she should say, a lot she would have liked to say if there was time.
She refrained, for Piper’s sake, and stepped away. Turned her back completely on the visibly unhappy man who’d come to her rescue and faced the pair who’d caused all the upset. She still couldn’t stand Florence, let alone the idea of giving that spoiled, self-absorbed witch what she wanted. But she was done stooping to her enemy’s level.
Lycus smirked at her. “I see one of you has some sense.”
Sienna didn’t bother restraining her glare. “Let Piper go.”
He didn’t blink. “Call off your hounds first.”
Sienna started to snap back, but a distracting flicker of scarlet in her peripheral vision caught her attention and she couldn’t help but glance to the side instead. Her words died in her throat.
Wisps of vibrant red smoke were fading around Sulien’s legs as he stood several feet away from where he’d been moments earlier. And he held a very unconscious Piper in his arms, her head lolled against his shoulder. Sulien looked past Sienna and the grin that tipped his lips was smug. “Looks like you lost your leverage, Roman.”
Florence made a clicking, scoffing sound as if she were annoyed.
Lycus chuckled. “Or I could just take what I want.”
Sienna swallowed hard, immediately remembering the way he’d appeared out of thin air to grab her. Simply having Piper in their arms didn’t mean she was safe, or that the threat was dealt with. She cut a sidelong glare at Lycus before looking at Sulien again and projecting her messed up voice for him. “Please, take Piper home.” Hopefully Rajan’s barrier would be enough. Hopefully Lycus really was more interested in her.
Sulien inclined his head, but looked past her and said, “There’s some kinda altar-looking thing in the other room.” Then he and Piper faded away, disappearing from sight in a matter of seconds.
Sienna’s eyes widened and she turned to face Lycus, barely in time to see him lurching into her personal space again. His lips were contorted in a sneer. Her heart slammed against her ribs.
“Cute,” Lycus snarled at her as his fingers grazed her sleeve a heartbeat before a solid ebony scythe curved around his neck from behind. His eyes blew wide and he froze in place, for the first time letting his confident façade slip.
Florence made a sound of discomfort somewhere beyond Sienna’s line of sight.
“Wait, Fenn,” Cassian said before the magical blade could do more than press into Lycus’s flesh. “I want to know about that altar.”
Sienna moved away from the man who’d abducted both her and her sister and glanced over in Cassian’s direction. She saw Fenn had stepped closer and he held one arm partially outstretched, fingers splayed. She also saw an identical scythe had curved around Florence.
Fenn didn’t take his glare from Lycus. “Make it quick.”
Lycus scoffed despite the weapon at his throat. The fear was gone from his expression, as if his momentary reprieve had calmed his mind. “You think I’ll reveal anything to you two? You think you have the advantage?”
Sienna could only watch, so far out of her league it was laughable, as Cassian curled his fingers in front of himself and an old-fashioned scale appeared in his grasp. She watched as Florence’s bright blue eyes went wide, the glare falling from her face, while Lycus betrayed nothing more than a glimmer of frustration.
“You rely too much on your divine heritage,” Cassian said. Tendrils of energy, dark like the negative of a photograph, began seeping from Lycus and gathering above the plates on Cassian’s scale. Whatever backlighting gave the energy its glowy-edged effect was filtered out, separating from the rest to pile onto the second plate. Creating an imbalance.
“Wh-what do you think you’re doing?” Florence demanded as the opposing spheres expanded.
Cassian never blinked. “Teaching this demi-god some humility.”
If her mouth hadn’t already been open due to necessity, Sienna was sure she would have gaped.Demi-god?That was a thing? If that was a thing, how was she not screwed?
Lycus barked out a laugh, though the sound was marginally strained. “Are you really so desperate to see my plan?”
