Page 246 of Born of Blood and Ash

“So?” Tension bracketed the corners of his mouth. “I didn’tthink you would show up. I figured you’d be busy making…bad choices.”

Someone who sounded like Atteschuckled under his breath.

I eyed the Revenant. My foresight was silent, so I looked atNektas, remembering how sensitive the draken’s senses were. “What do you think?”

“All I smell is the stench of pain and death,” he said.“It’s masking everything else.”

Callum wheezed out a laugh. “You make it…sound like I smellbad.”

I pressed my lips together. Part of me thought Callum wastelling the truth, and that was kind of sad. “Why weren’t you by Kolis’s side?”

“He’s been…in a mood.” Callum tracked Ash as the Primalresumed his prowling. “I bet you can guess why.”

Attes had said that Kolis hadn’tshown up at Court, most likely holing up in the Sanctuary alone. But…

“It seems rather strange that you’d take a vacation whileKolis is about to lose his authority,” I pointed out.

“Seems rather strange to me that…” Callum drew in a raggedbreath. “That you think Kolis will lose anything.”

Ash stepped on Callum’s broken hand.

The Revenant howled, kicking his head back. “Fuck.”

“He is going to lose everything,” I said.

Breathing heavily, Callum turned his head toward me. “Iwant…my sister’s soul.”

“Why?” Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Attes move toward the cell. “So she can be reborn andterrorized by Kolis? Held captive?” My anger rose. “Stripped of all choice andfree will? Assaulted? That’s what you want? Fuck you.”

His nostrils flared as he looked away.

I had to rein in my anger. We were running out of time, andthere was something I needed to know. “Why did you tell my mother how a Primalcan be killed?”

“That is a very interesting question,” Attesnoted.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Callum answered.

“Bullshit,” I spat. “You told my mother that a Primal can bekilled by someone they love. Something no mortal knew until you opened yourmouth.”

Callum’s eyes closed. “I didn’t say shit.”

Spinning, Ash drove his foot down on Callum’s left thigh.The sickening crack of bone, and the Revenant’s hoarse shout, echoed throughthe underground lair.

“Clearly, you’re worried about Kolis finding out what youdid. He’s not your problem right now, though. We are. So, do you want torethink that answer?” I suggested.

The Revenant’s flesh was pasty and damp with sweat.“There’s…nothing to rethink.”

Callum’s other thigh snapped, followed by his right hand andleft arm. By the time Rhain warned us about the time, every bone in his limbshad been shattered.

And still, the bastard kept up with the lie.

The realization that I wasn’t going to get an answer fromhim drove me to my feet. Rhain had started to pace nervously in the hall.

“Sera,” Ash warned softly.

“I know.” Anger rippled through me as I once more knelt byCallum’s head. “You still conscious?”

“How can I not be?” Each breath was ragged. “When…someonekeeps breaking my bones.”

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