Page 157 of Commanding Flame and Shield
Should I have blinked, or flinched in that moment, I would have missed it.
Would have missed the way Adrastos materialized from the shadows between Agamemnon and Alvara. The way he threw the full force of his strength into blocking that executioner’s blow. Would have missed the way the reverberation sang up the steel so violently that Agamemnon staggered back several steps, his weapon falling to the earth beside Alvara’s.
“Enough.” Adrastos’ voice was calm, quiet, steady. Lethal. He stared down a seething Agamemnon, who made to open his mouth, but thought wiser of it as Adrastos’ anger flared in palpable shadows. No. Shadowflames. Fire made of the darkness he came from.
The soldiers fell to their knees around us, kneeling, I realized, to theKingof Renown. Not Commander. They bowed their heads. Deeply.
“General, I gave you very specific orders. I will deal with you later.” With a snap of his fingers, Adrastos banished his brother. The brute vanished as quickly as Adrastos had appeared. To Lord knew where.
“And you!” He whirled on Alvara, who was kneeling in the mud, expression smug. There wasn’t a part of her, save her black painted eyes, not spattered in blood. Most of it, mercifully, was not her own. Even the deep black of her suit did nothing to conceal the dark stains. Gore was caked in thick globs through her dark hair. She lifted her chin, defiant, as the King turned on her, rage seeping through him. Real. True, and unchecked anger poured from him in a flood of power. I barely saw as he raised his arm, but the smack that met Alvara’s face startled through me. My snarl broke the air, and I didn’t care that the steel bit into my skin. Didn’t care that more hot liquid welled and slid down my neck.
Adrastos crouched down, knees bent as he cocked his head to the side. A red welt was already burgeoning across her cheekbone. She raised her face to him, unflinching. But he wrapped his long fingers around her bloody jaw. His eyes went distant for only a heartbeat before he snapped them back…like he could control his reading.
“You know, little cousin,” he growled the words. “I gave youveryspecific instructions. All of which, explicitly require that younotdie.” The last words came through clenched teeth.
“Get your hands off her!” I growled at him. He rumbled a low laugh, but tossed her face to the side, and to my surprise, did. He whirled on me, and that cruel smile played across his lips.
“Ahh, Mr. Porter. Glad toformallymeet you. Wish it was under…more tasteful circumstances. But alas, your mate opted for atheatricalre-introduction.” I just glared up at him. He flicked his wrist, as though swatting away a fly, and the beasts holding me released my arms. But not without shoving me forward towards the gore splattered earth. I caught myself and rose to my feet. “I can see the sentiment is not shared.” He gave a long, dramatic sigh, and tossed aside his shield. It met the earth with a metallic clang that split the air.
Adrastos closed his eyes, and pinched the bridge of his nose, sighing a long breath through it. He didn’t see as Alvara wobbled to her feet. Didn’t see as she drew one of her countless blades and twirled it between her fingers. Didn’t see as she turned the precise point…towards her own ribcage, angled up, perfectly poised to claim her own heart.
“Ally.” My voice cracked as I stared her down. She didn’t look up from the silver dagger in her hands. Didn’t look up as her lip quivered. As her fingers began trembling. It was the tone in my voice that caused Adrastos to raise his head and survey her. Undiluted fear filled those muddy eyes as he slowly lowered his hand.
“You wouldn’t,” he breathed, eyes narrowing. As shock filled the shadows in them, Alvara said nothing, but she tightened the hold on her dagger, and raised her face to him. Chin tall, her lips pulled up at the corners as her eyes filled with righteous defiance. Victory, cool and calculated, flashed across her face. “According toyourtexts, there is no coming back, from that particular sin.”
She took a deep breath, and the silver tip pierced through the first layer of that dragon scale armor with a softchink. My breath caught. So did Adrastos’.
“I’d wager, my God will understand the circumstances.”
“I would beverysure of that before you take that bet,Ally.” Adrastos stepped towards her, but she pressed the poniard into the scales and a tiny groan of pain escaped her as it reached her pale skin. He froze, dark eyes wide, and shadowed in what could only be described as betrayal, fingers twitching. Even his breath seemed to freeze.
“Ally,” I cautioned, voice steadier. But my hands were trembling as I shook my head. Adrastos’ eyes didn’t leave her. I could almost see the debate raging in his mind. Could almost see the way he calculated which of them was faster. “I love you,” the words were a desperate whisper, and I allowed the plea there to break through. Adrastos whipped his face to me, inky hair fanning out around his shoulders. Sizing me up. Searching my mind for any sign she was bluffing. When he found none, his eyes glazed over. Glazed over into the other world, as Alvara’s so often did. When they focused again, he whirled on Alvara.
“You would abandon your coven? Your pets? To this mess?”
A gentle, one-shouldered shrug. “You tell me.”
He heaved a long, heavy sigh before muttering, “Jesus Christ. I suppose it was timesomeonemanaged to surprise me.” He pinched the bridge of his nose again, took a long breath, and then, with a flourish, sketched a pointed bow. “Well, cousin, you certainly know how to prove a point in ten minutes or less.” He gestured to the smoldering crater in the earth, the ash where there had once been tents. “Your terms.” The steely command in the growled words threw me. Caught me off guard. And I realized the two clairvoyants had indeed, at last, outplayed their volley. In her own selfless, masochistic way, she had outmaneuvered him. Dark as her path might be, she had won.
“Return August’s family, unharmed.”
“I’m afraid I can’t do that until you both agree. My brother will only trade his prizes for your fealty.” She dug the honed tip into the delicate ivory skin between ribs, and red blossomed, leaking down the shaft of it as her teeth clicked together audibly. Adrastos sucked down a sharp intake of air.
“Ally.” It seemed to be the only word my mouth remembered how to say.
“Leave us,” the King demanded. At once, his soldiers did. Obediently, they marched away, leaving the three of us standing, alone, on the blood-soaked dirt. A long minute passed, as the dozens of men marched away. As the ground stilled beneath my feet, I dared to hedge closer to Alvara. Adrastos’ eyes flashed as he took her in, read her resolve, perhaps in her eyes, perhaps her mind had opened to him. Or perhaps whatever he saw in the other world they vanished to was enough to prove she wasn’t bluffing. Adrastos sighed, long and pointed.
“He’ll never agree to a one-on-one duel, Alvara. There’s no point in asking. And if I honored your request, and you won, Agamemnonwouldn’thonor it. Besides, the hostages aren’t even here. I can assure you, if you kill me now, he’ll never see them again.” He jerked his chin my direction. “What’s the other option?” She raised her brows, and he rolled his eyes as they went hazy again. When they focused, he narrowed his gaze on her a bit. “The bloody skirmish?”
The corner of her full lips tugged upwards, and she surveyed him. “On my terms.”
“Ally,” my warning barely seemed to register with her.
“Which are…?” Adrastos narrowed his eyes, as they again glazed into the otherworld between them. “You've lost your damn mind. A level playing field?” He demanded through a joyless, hollow laugh. She gave him a cold nod. And I remembered. Remembered her saying the only threads in which we were victorious, we fought without magic. Because the Reaper would steal ours away anyways, while leaving theirs intact. Adrastos raised a solitary brow before drawling, “Agamemnon will never agree.”
“Then we keep our gifts. But…given my little demonstration this morning, I’m sure we can agree it will be in your best interest if you sacrifice yours too.” A cold, calculating smile stretched over her features, matching her icy tone.
Adrastos shook his head, but I could have sworn admiration shown in his eyes. Through the anger. Through the fear. He liked her, cared for her, perhaps, in his own sadistic way. She had counted on it. He pried his eyes away to survey the smoldering killing field. Alvara’s temper…so briefly unleashed.
