Page 100 of The Half King
“In abarn?” she asked.
“Well, maybe not in a barn,” he said. “But we shouldn’t wait to plan a ceremony. What if it doesn’t work? We need to give ourselves plenty of time to keep trying.”
Something about his suggestion felt wrong. Almost shameful. “Think about it,” she told him. “All of our tests so far have been to prove that we’re faithful and brave and worthy. So what message would it send if we rushed the most important part of the process? The goddess would think we’re afraid.”
“Aren’t we?” Daerick asked.
“Of course, but we can’t act on it,” she said. “The goddess doesn’t respect weakness. We have to be strong, and my instincts are telling me we need a ceremony.”
Kian told Daerick, “Her instincts have served us well so far.”
“Listen to the girl,” General Petros added.
Daerick muttered a swear. “All right. We’ll have a ceremony, and not in a barn.”
“Not in a barn,” she agreed. “It should be someplace sacred. Maybe in the palace sanctuary,” she called ahead to Father Padron, “if Your Grace will allow it.”
Father Padron nodded, wordlessly giving his permission. His silence unsettled her now more than ever. He had all but withdrawn from her life.
“Thank you,” she told him, still watching him closely. “We should begin with a prayer, and then it would make sense to give a description of each dynasty’s role in the Great Betrayal. That way, the four of you can ask the goddess to forgive the sins of your ancestors.”
“‘The four of you’?” Father Padron glanced over his shoulder at her. “Are you not participating in the ritual?”
She couldn’t tell him the truth. Luckily, she’d prepared an excuse for why Cole should represent house Solon. “I’m not a firstborn like His Majesty, Lord Calatris, and General Petros. I think Cole would make a more fitting representative for our house. As for me, I’d hoped to lead the ceremony, since the goddess entrusted me with the runes and the blade.” She forced herself to add, “What do you think, Your Grace?”
Father Padron lifted a shoulder and faced the path ahead of him. “I think that sounds as rational as anything else. Do as you wish, Cerise.”
Dread settled in her stomach. His silence was one thing, but for him to carelessly give up control was another. He was the Order’s high priest. He enjoyed the attention that came with the role. And more than that, whoever led the ceremony could potentially steer the outcome. If he really did covet the throne or if he wanted the nobles to atone through endless suffering—if it was in his best interests for the ceremony to fail—he should insist on participating in some way, if only to sabotage it.
His complete lack of concern settled like an itch between her shoulder blades. What if he knew something that she didn’t?
27
The group traveled for two more days, following their tracks back down the mountain until they reached the supply wagon they had previously abandoned. Half of the oats and all of the rendered fat had been eaten by desert creatures, but the sacks of horse feed and the satchels of herbal tea were more or less untouched, and for that, they were grateful. With a wide, even trail ahead of them, they hitched the wagon to Daerick’s mare, and the caravan continued for three more days.
Cerise spent each night in her tent with Blue, missing Kian’s company and his touch. As much as she wanted to follow him into the shadows, she had made a vow to protect the blade, and in order to do that, she had to remain inside her physical body. But that didn’t stop her from looking for ways to spend time with him. At each camp, she searched for a stone slab entrance to the Below, like Nero had shown her. She eventually found one, and the next morning at sunrise, she handed Kian a pair of linen pants, led him away from the sleeping camp, and then used her blood to transport them to the enchanted caverns Below.
Kian braced himself on his knees, winded from the transfer. After he caught his breath, he peered in wonder at the glowing walls and the moss-carpeted floor. “You described it well,” he told her. “I still can’t believe this has been here for a thousand years—a whole separate realm that nobody knew about.”
She understood the feeling. Theumbra sangiwere good at keeping secrets.
“How slowly does time pass here?” he asked.
“Hours in the Below are like moments Above.”
She reminded herself of that as she patiently waited for Kian to take in his surroundings. She had fantasized for so long about bringing him to the cavern, about lying on the cool, mossy ground and feeling him inside her again, and now it was all she could do to stand there and not shuck the pants right off of him. She unstrapped the Petros Blade from her chest and rested it on the floor.
“Then we can stay as long as we like?” he asked.
She nodded.
At that, his thoughts seemed to follow hers. He grinned as something wicked gleamed in his eyes. “How shall we spend our time, my lady of the temple?”
“I thought you’d never ask,” she said, sliding her hands up the length of his bare chest and clasping them behind his neck. She stood on tiptoe and angled her mouth toward his.
“Not so fast,” he whispered against her lips. “Remember our rule. Nothing happens unless you command it.”
She hadn’t forgotten. In fact, she had already decided what her first command would be. But for now, she only wanted to kiss him, to reconnect after nights apart, and so she rose higher onto her toes and brushed her lips against his. They melted into each other, tasting and exploring until their breaths turned choppy. When she caught herself straining her hips against him, she broke the kiss and lowered to her heels.
