Page 68 of Immortal

Captain Rao scowled. “Miss Lin, matters of combat are my domain.”

“Much as you relish violence, Captain Rao—this is not the time for it. Lord Dalian entrusted this task to me. I determine our course of action. Cross me again, and I’ll report you for insubordination, for disobeying our leader’s instructions.”

Lord Dalian? Was he the ruler of the Wuxin?

Captain Rao’s face darkened, but he fell silent. Miss Lin faced me now, her gaze dropping to my blade. “Where did you get this sword? It’s a powerful weapon.”

“I’ll tell you nothing.” I raised my chin defiantly, trying to steady my hands. Did Zhangwei regret giving me the sword after I’d cut him with it? How furious he must be. Furious enough to let me die?

As Captain Rao moved menacingly toward me, Miss Lin called out, “Lord Dalian wants her alive. Unharmed.”

“What if we remove her tongue from her mouth?” Captain Rao offered as he raised his dagger again.

“Then you can explain her inability to speak to Lord Dalian.”

Captain Rao flinched. Whoever he was, their leader must be terrifying indeed.

Miss Lin gestured toward me. “Mortal, if you surrender and come with us, no one else will be harmed.”

Her tone was soft, her smile warm, but I would be a fool to believe anything they said. “What do you want with me?”

“Answers.”

“If I don’t have them?”

“If you don’t share them,” she corrected me, her voice hardening, “you’ll wish you had.” She shrugged, her smile widening. “Meet us with an open mind; you might find an ally in us. Not all of us are like him.” Her gaze slid to Captain Rao, then back to me.

A chill glazed my skin, a prickling sensation that faded abruptly. Was she trying to secure something in me—something she had no right to? Had Zhangwei’s shield protected me? I wouldn’t let myself wonder where he was, though part of me couldn’t help worrying as I recalled his pallor and the ice of his skin. Miss Lin lied well. A stranger might believe her, one who didn’t know about the Wuxin, who hadn’t just seen them rip out a young man’s heart. His family would weep over his body tonight.

Could such monsters be reasoned with? Could I ally myself with such brutal killers? Never—but I had to pretend to. “Do you swear you won’t harm me or my people?”

“Not unless you act foolishly.”

“Will I be a guest or a prisoner?” I asked like I was considering it, when the very thought sickened me.

Miss Lin inclined her head. “You will be accorded the honors of a guest, as long as you abide by the rules of one.” She was shrewd, not giving anything without taking something in turn, weaving threats within silk.

“You can’t go.” Chengyin pushed his way to me, his own sword drawn. “What if they hurt you? What if they never let you go?”

Captain Rao snorted, his head tilted to one side. “Who are you to speak for your ruler?”

Chengyin straightened. “Her betrothed.”

Fortunately, only a handful of my soldiers heard him. They exchanged guarded looks, knowing better than to question it now. As Captain Rao’s eyes gleamed, fear burrowed into my chest. I wanted to silence Chengyin, to conceal him from the Wuxin’s avaricious eyes—just as my friend was trying to help me, claiming a position he did not want.

“If I refuse, they will kill us all,” I told Chengyin in a low voice. “If I’m forced to go with them, send word to the God of War.” He would come for me, if only to retrieve the lotus.

I didn’t give Chengyin a chance to reply, turning toward the Wuxin. If I delayed, my false veneer of bravery would crack. They shifted, forming a pathway, my spirits leaden as I took a step forward—

The air crackled, bolts of flame slamming into the ground before me. Fire erupted, scorching and bright, forming a blazing barrier between the Wuxin and me. As a gale surged through the garden, dust scattered like a storm, my hands flying up to protect my eyes.

Zhangwei emerged from the trees. His sword was drawn, shining like ice. Even without his armor, danger emanated from him—no sign of any weakness, though I knew the toll this took on him. Had he been gathering his strength for this confrontation? At the sight of him, a strange feeling caught at me, a shred of remembrance. It was like the first night I’d met the God of War . . . and here he was again, burning my home. Such terror I’d felt then, such despair and loathing—yet now, there was only this fullness in my heart.

“The Wuxin were banished to the Netherworld. Do you not fear retribution by returning?” His voice was not the one I was accustomed to: cold, unearthly, seething with power and wrath. The voice of the God of War.

Captain Rao’s cheeks mottled. “Banished upon whose orders? The Queen of the Golden Desert’s command means nothing to us. The day is drawing closer when you immortals will kneel to us.”

“Never.” Zhangwei’s face seemed hewn from stone. “Tianxia is our domain, under our protection. Leave now.”