Page 33 of Crown of Chaos

“That’s quite a bit of blood, Brander,” Killian hissed. “What can I do to assist?”

“Tell me what you found at the borderland?” Brander asked, and Knox turned, waiting for the answer. “Did it appear that witches fought there?” he demanded when Killian didn’t reply quickly enough.

“Yes. There were dead witches strewn in front of the keep, but nothing lived within the walls, either. The entire place looked like a war had been fought, and lost. The corpses inside, they’d been dead for quite some time. It didn’t make sense, but it’s starting to come together,” Killian stated. “The corpses outside the keep had carved symbols on their skulls. The bodies on the battlements had the same symbols carved into their chests. I’m guessing that’s where Aria was before she came here?”

“Was there anything else there? I need you to think, Killian. Did you smell hemlock or anything that would be harmful to the babes or Aria at the scene?” Brander demanded.

“No, I didn’t. The only thing there was death.” Killian turned, facing Greer, who moved from the table toward the barrier.

“Done,” Greer announced. “Peasant, drink,” he demanded, and seconds later, the bag of Greer’s blood dropped into Esme’s hand. She stared up in confusion and then shook it off. “The library will allow us to pass things to one another. The only thing it won’t do is let anyone alive through it,” he explained to her puzzled look.

Esme pushed the plastic end between my lips, but I swung my head to the side in refusal. She forced the edge of the tube into my mouth, and I took a strong pull before gagging on the coppery tang that dripped down my throat. When I tore away from it again, Esme growled while adjusting me to press it past my lips.

“How can you be my best friend if you’re dead, asshole? Will you please drink it, Aria?” she pleaded, her voice thick with emotion. She’d given up acting tough. “I just need you to stay alive, okay? So, just do it for me. Normally, I’d say that I don’t care if you died, but I do. I care, are you happy? So, just drink the shit and live so we don’t lose another person tonight. Don’t let that bitch rewrite your story. This isn’t the end, you get that? If you choose to be stubborn, I’ll force this crap down your throat.”

“You could have just left it at best friends,” I offered weakly, feeling her shake with a mixture of laughter and tears.

“You’re insufferable sometimes.” She leaned over and sniffed my hair while I drank the bag’s contents. “What is up with the shampoo you use?” She wrinkled her nose, frowning against my cheek as she made sure I finished.

“Are you sniffing me right now?” I asked, but then I screamed as my body jerked in agony. As the contraction grew worse, a sob slipped from me. I whimpered as Knox and his men started purring softly, trying to comfort me. “I am not doing this!”

“You are,” Knox muttered mid-purr, which sounded off. It was as if he was forcing himself to do it even though he was in as much pain as I was. “It isn’t something you can stop or undo. You’re strong enough to do what you must and survive. I need you to live, wife.”

“I can’t?I won’t lose our children, too, Knox. If they stay where they are, they’ll be safe. I have to hold them in a little longer,” I said through the sobs racking my body. “I want them.”

“Your water broke, Aria,” Brander said softly. “The babes are coming, and it can’t be stopped. They can no longer live inside you. I’m sorry, but that’s the truth. They’re being delivered with or without your permission.” I knew he wasn’t attempting to hurt me, but his words cut deep. “What do you see, Soraya?”

“Blood.” She sighed, sitting on her heels to stare between my thighs. “There is so much blood. I can’t help you,” she stated, trying to back away. Siobhan caught her, keeping her in place.

Esme rattled in warning, and it reverberated through the chamber. The men swung their eyes to her, and she realized her mistake too late and made a distinct sound in her throat. It wasn’t even remotely close to the one she’d allowed to escape.

“Did you guys hear that? There’s another one like her,” Lore declared before he softly rattled to Esme, who grunted in reply. “Hey, pretty girl. I’m Lore, and you are?” He purred from deep in his chest, but I held on to the one Knox released.

“Are you serious right now? Do you really think now is the time to beat your chest and for us to get to know one another?” Esme asked irritably, rolling her eyes so hard I was sure she’d rang a bell at the back of her skull. “Men are such insensitive pricks,” she muttered beneath her breath, but Lore didn’t seem phased by her dismissal.

Another wave of pain began almost as soon as the first one faded, and I groaned as my spine lifted off the floor. “It hurts,” I cried, uncaring how weak I sounded. Esme tightened her hold, purring louder against my ear to calm me.

“Look at me, Aria,” Knox pleaded, coaxing my focus back to him. “I’m right here. I’m not going anywhere, pretty girl. I will be right by your side through it all. But you have to breathe slowly or you’ll hyperventilate.”

“Soraya, face me,” Brander ordered in a soft, soothing tone. “I am going to walk you through the deliveries. I realize you’re nervous, but you can handle this. All you have to do is listen to me and remember that you’re not doing this alone.”

“Esme, you can stare at me. I’m pretty, right?” Lore asked, wiggling his brows, and she snorted.

I screamed as fresh pain twisted my body toward Knox, who clenched his hands into fists. I fought to quiet the pained noises while I prayed for some relief. Knox swallowed loudly and offered me a tight smile. Rolling up his sleeves, he shook out of his shock. Stabbing his fingers through his hair, he released a rumble of purring that sent a wave of comfort sliding through me. Leaning even closer to the barrier, he silently reassured me with his noises while I whimpered and clung to the sensation they created inside my mind.

“I can’t,” Soraya told Brander. “When shit breaks or turns bad, I run away. I’m not a healer. I’m not even a fixer-upper! I mean, my flight instincts kick in when things get even a slightly hard to handle, and this is terrifying.”

“There’s nowhere for you to run, Soraya. You don’t have time to run away because the babies are nearly here, whether or not we like it. So, take a deep breath and let it out, then look at Aria, and watch for the next contraction. The babes are so tiny that it won’t take long for them to be delivered, and you’re going to need to catch them.”

Soraya wiped at the angry tears on her cheeks. “Fine, tell me what to do, Brander. Next time, we bring the healer with us to a fight, Aria.”

I snorted through my tears and nodded as Esme used a cloth to wipe away the sweat on my brow. My hair was soaked, and the pain was getting worse with every contraction.

Turning, I saw Knox staring at my slight belly. He looked as if he could will our babes to remain within, to survive the same monster who had single-handedly destroyed his world and continued to add bodies to the pile.

Chapter Seventeen

I’d been pushing for overan hour with hardly any reprieve from the contractions. Sweat dripped from my brow, soaking my gown, turning the material sheer. My strength was waning, and every moment that passed drained me even more. The pain was too much, and everything inside me felt wrong, as if my very cells knew that whatever Hecate hit me with was vile. Ember had been adding strength, but she had gone silent within me, and now it was a struggle to keep my eyelids open.

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