Page 270 of Between Two Kings

“He wants to kill me.”

Tem knew from the look on Apollo’s face that she was right. Before he could reply, Leo stood.

“Tem,” he said. “I cannot hear about one more person who wants to kill you tonight.”

“It’s fine, Leo.”

“How is it fine?”

“Because…” Tem trailed off, trying to think of something that would placate him. There was nothing. She abandoned that train of thought, turning back to Apollo to say, “Where’s Caspen?”

Apollo’s lips flattened into a tense line. “He is running, Temperance.”

Although the update was terrible, Tem felt a strange sense of comfort in the fact that Caspen had confided in Apollo in the first place. It meant that all was well between brothers. That, at least, was some good news.

“Will he come back?”

Apollo’s gaze flicked to Leo’s. “I assume you consummated the crest?”

“Yes.”

“Then yes. He will be back. He will not have a choice.”

The implication of his words hung in the air. Tem stepped closer.

“He said there was another way. Was that true?”

Apollo’s golden eyes held hers. There was nothing but torment in them. “It is true there is another way.”

“What is it?”

Before he could answer, another scream pierced the air. This one sounded closer.

“Apollo,” Tem insisted. “Tell me. What is it?”

But Apollo had gone still. “He is here.”

There was no need to specify. Tem could feel Rowe on the outskirts of her mind, reaching for her. Already, he was homing in. Already, he was hunting.

Apollo touched her waist. “You must go.”

“I’m not going anywhere. I’m the only one who can stop Rowe.”

The moment the words were out of her mouth, Tem realized they were true. Caspen, the Serpent King, was supposed to be the most powerful basilisk under the mountain. But Rowe had bitten him during the tournament, and he’d been siphoning that power ever since. That left only one basilisk who could face him. Her.

“No,” Apollo said.

“No?”

“He is extremely powerful, Temperance. And he is dangerous.”

“I’m extremely powerful.”

There was a pause in which both Apollo and Leo stared at her as if they were seeing her for the very first time. Tem let them look.

“I’m a Hybreed,” Tem continued. “And I have consummated the crest. That means I can transition.”

She knew without testing her theory that it was true. Power thrummed through her entire body, seeping into her fingertips. Up until now, she hadn’t realized she’d been operating at such a deficit, that such a fundamental part of her was missing. But she was whole once more, and she would not waste it.