Page 58 of The Stolen Throne
“No.”
I blow out a frustrated breath. “Cain. Can you please just trust me?”
At the very least, I’m not going to do anything to make Reven worse. The last thing we need is him losing it again and expending energy that I’m not so sure he has after what just happened. He needs to save any he has left in case I’m wrong.
I don’t say that out loud.
Finally, after a stomach-clenching silence, he takes a breath and pushes to his feet. He sways once he’s up, but his posture is that of a fighter, hands raised and ready to strike. Then he nods.
Whatever goddess is in my amulet, please help me protect my people if this thing has played me false.
I drop my hands to my sides, letting go of my power.
“What is she doing?” a faint voice calls out from the gathered fighters somewhere to my left. One of the Wanderers, probably.
The Elimination, for a long moment, doesn’t move at all. Then, very slowly and carefully, it drops to its belly, front paws out straight in front of it, wolf tail tucked around in close to its body, head held regally high. It reminds me of a guard dog hoping for some kitchen scraps, which is so absurd that I almost laugh. Despite an alarming growl from Reven, it lowers its head sideways to me, so it can look at me with a single massive eye.
I stare right back. The details in the sand are incredible—intricate and even delicate down to the whorls of what would be the iris of its eye. Heart in my throat, I wait. Am I about to be swallowed by this thing?
“Question one. Who are you, little Hylorae?”
Wow. I guess it really is going to ask me three questions. “That’s what you want to know?”
It draws back its lips, showing me not just the tusks but razor-sharp jagged teeth inside, rows and rows of them. All around us, I sense those watching shift, collectively readying themselves to fight again.
Right. Answer the question. “I am Mereneith Evangeline XII. Princess of Aryd. Sister to Queen Tabra, and currently standing in for her as ruler while she is…unwell.”
“Question two. Your power felt strange to me. Is it entirely yours?”
That’s a tougher question, especially with people listening. This is something I’m not ready to have others overhear. Grandmother and Omma both pounded into me the reality that Eidolon could have spies everywhere. To trust no one. We already believe there’s a traitor among us.
“I’m not sure,” I finally say, choosing my words carefully. “But if I had to guess, I would say no. Not entirely.”
A shiver passes through its body, sandy fur rippling, almost as if in anticipation.
“Question three. Do you know where the Goddess Aryd is kept?”
Kept.
I’m standing in front of a massive, shapeshifting, human-eating monster, answering a question about where a goddess might be imprisoned. Reven’s right. I attract trouble.
Also, heavens help me, I think I actually know the answer to what he’s asking. Despite the evidence in front of me, I’m still not sure if I can believe ghostly Eidolon’s story, but if it’s true, then I have a different question. What if the goddess inside the glass isn’t Aryd? The Elimination said Aryd specifically.
I take a deep, wobbly breath. Please let this be the right thing to say. “I’m not positive, but I think so.”
The Elimination gives a sound like a broken bark, a sound so wrenchingly sad, my heart pinches with instant empathy. For a Devourer. Unfortunately, the sound is also violent, and a shout goes up among my people.
“Stay back!” I yell, throwing an arm out, as if I could block any attack that way.
“I will keep my promise and depart,” the Elimination says. “But may I see her first? I have been searching and waiting, attempting to defy her glass walls to find her ever since she disappeared centuries ago. I felt her near the southern borders of Wildernyss months ago, and again in Tyndra. Another flash in Aryd, and nothing since. Not for months.”
I’m taking a chance, but I ask the question anyway. Because of that story… “Are you her consort?”
“Yes.”
There’s a wealth of pain and longing and truth in that one word.
I close my eyes. He’s a goddess-damned monster. Except I thought Reven was a monster once upon a time, too. Seeing what came out of him today, I know the entire zariphate now believes he is, if they didn’t already.
