Page 218 of Born of Blood and Ash

“Yes,” Aios and I said at the sametime, even though I was kind of hoping the same thing.

The Primal pouted. “I expected that response from her.” Shenodded at Aios. “But you used to be more fun.”

I arched a brow. “How would you know if I was more fun? Youdon’t really know me, Bele.”

“Oh, I know you.” She wrapped her arms around Aios’s waist and moved to stand behind her. “My absurdityrecognizes your absurdity.”

Fingers halting on my braid, I stared at her.

“Or it used to.” Bele rested her chin on Aios’sshoulder. She squinted her eyes at me. “Wait a second. Your absurdity is stillin there. It’s just leashed.”

“I don’t know if I should feel complimented or insulted,” Idrawled.

“Well,” Bele began.

“Or just really confused,” I added.

Aios lightly smacked the armaround her waist. “What Bele is trying to say is that she sensesyour…temperament.”

“It comes with the Court lineage. The whole Hunt and DivineJustice thing,” Bele explained. “Sensing one’s temperament—”

“Allows you to be a better hunter,” I finished for her,either my foresight or my knowledge kicking in.

“And to deliver divine justice,” Bele said as Aios smoothed a hand across her arm. “Sensing someone’snatural temperament helps to know if someone’s act was a one-off or somethingin their nature.”

“Makes sense.” Twisting the end of my braid, I shifted myweight from one foot to the other. “So, my absurdity? What exactlydoes that mean? And what does it tell you?”

“It means you’re someone who would shadowstepto a whole-ass different Court without ever shadowsteppinganywhere by yourself before.”

“I knew I would be fine,” I denied.

Both of Bele’s brows rose. “Sure,” she said, and I rolled myeyes. “Anyway, you’re impulsive.”

Knee-jerk reactions. Ash would agree with her.

“You’re easily distracted.” Bele’s words snapped myattention back to her. She smirked. “Hot-tempered. Violent if provoked. And,sometimes, even when you’re not all that provoked.”

“I feel attacked,” I muttered.

Streaks of eather flared in Bele’seyes. “You’re wild and reckless in a way that borders on having a death wish,”she continued, her voice carrying a hum of power. “You have a vengeful nature.”

My nose scrunched. “You can stop now.”

“Good luck with that,” Aiosmurmured, leaning into Bele. “She’s in the zone.”

She was definitely somewhere…creepy. Her stare wasunblinking, and a faint luminous glow filled the veins of her cheeks as shefixated on me—or looked into me. “You don’t think enough, yet you’rean overthinker. You can switch from joy to rage in a snap. The only thingpredictable about you is that you’re unpredictable.”

Our gazes met. The silky threads of power in her voice andthe swirling wisps of eather were eerily mesmerizing.

“But you’re also loyal and dedicated. Caring. You have astrong sense of what is wrong and what is right, even if you operate in themiddle.” Bele blinked, and the eather dimmed. Whenshe spoke again, the tendrils of power were gone. “Your nature is injuxtaposition with itself. A certain brand of absurdity just like mine—poorpeople skills included.” She winked before nipping at Aios’sneck, causing the goddess to squeak. “But as I said before, you’ve got a lot ofthat leashed right now.”

I honestly had no idea what to say to any of that. What shesaid felt really spot-on, but for some reason, I was uncomfortable with whatshe’d sensed. She’d missed an adjective in her long list. Monstrous. But maybethat was the part I had leashed. And if so, shouldn’t that make me happy? Ishould be less impulsive, or in Bele’s words, less my own personal brand ofabsurd—

I stopped myself. “Why am I even standing here talking aboutthis with you?”

“I was wondering the same thing,” Bele said.

“Gods, you’re annoying.” I smiled at Aios.“You are not.”

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