Page 83 of The Blade in the Ashes
“What now?” I breathed, not daring to move.
He glanced up at me with lifted brows.
Shrugging, I rocked back on my heels. “Do you have a signature phrase or something that you say when you find the treasure?”
Nikolai opened and closed his mouth a few times as if he wasn’t sure he’d understood my question. Then, without warning, he tipped his head back towards the sky and laughed unabashedly.
“Do I look like the kind of gentleman who would shouteureka?”
On instinct, I sent magic rushing to my cheeks to hide the embarrassed blush.
“Well.” I reached into the space under the floorboards and pulled out the package. “I guess it’s something you could think about for the future.”
“I’ll certainly take that under consideration, little bird.”
I kept my touch light as I unfolded the oilcloth, carefully aware that the books hidden inside might contain delicate pages hundreds of years old. The two tomes both had thick leather spines and carefully carved titles.
“An Anthology of Godly Weapons,”I read the title of the first aloud, before flicking through the pages, glancing over the descriptions of the various weapons of the Gods.
“That sounds useful,” Nikolai said, allowing me to flick through the book.
There was a section devoted to every God and their specific Godly weapon. Descriptions ranged from general descriptions of the size and shape of the weapons to the battles in which they had been used.
“Wait.” Nikolai’s fingers fell over mine, stilling me on one of the last pages. He scanned over the winding hand-written script. “In completing a Forging, blood of the divine must be shed and bound by pure flame.”
I snorted. “Sounds like another one of those ridiculous prophecies.”
Nikolai’s hand still rested atop mine, his grip uncomfortably tight as he met my gaze. “Or instructions.”
I frowned, glancing back at the page once more. “Instructions for what?”
He gently took the book out of my hands, closed it and set it back in the oilcloth. “Perhaps your friend Theadora will know.”
There was a glint of lightness in his voice, something like hope. I watched him as he lifted the second book.
“Rise of the True Queen.” Nikolai frowned, turning it over. “Why would this be valuable?”
My stomach flipped as I stared down at the book.
Running my tongue over my teeth, I stood, snatching my dagger back and returning it to its rightful place on my hip. I turned in an instant, not wanting to think about that book or the story inside it for a second longer. Nikolai wrapped it in the oilcloth and lifted them both, following me out of the home as I answered his question numbly.
“Because Caldrius’ first wife was stolen by Zion. He's the true king which would make her...”
My voice trailed off and he didn't bother finishing my sentence.
I didn’t waste any time throwing my leg over my horse and seating myself firmly. The moon was already hanging high in the sky, but my adrenaline was still coursing too intensely from the fire to even consider stopping to rest for the night. No, we could manage another few hours of riding. The sooner we got to Rhanport, the better.
“Do you think that’s what they were looking for?” I asked him as he put the books inside his saddlebag. I wasn't sure which book I was referencing.
“It’s possible," he sighed, turning contemplative. “Maybe there’s something in one of those books that Caldrius and Hyrax don’t want us to know.”
Or there were details in both of the books that they wanted to keep hidden.
ChapterTwenty-Four
Thea
The long spires of Hyrax Manor stretched high, piercing through the grey clouds that painted a dreary sky. A heavy mist hung in the air around us, as if the day couldn’t decide if it wanted to rain or not.
