Page 247 of Born of Blood and Ash

I gripped his chin, forcing his head toward me. Two wateryblue eyes locked on mine. “I want you to listen to me, Callum. If you go nearmy family again, for any reason, I will kill you. Eirini bedamned. Do you understand me?”

“Yes,” he gritted out between clenched teeth.

“Thank you.” I released his jaw and unsheathed theAncient-bone dagger.

And drove it through the center of his forehead.

He didn’t say a word or even have a chance to blink. He diedfor the…who knew what time today, his eyes open wide.

Wrenching the dagger free, I cleaned the blade on anunstained section of his tunic. “I hope he wakes up with a headache. Otherwise,this was a giant waste of time.”

“You think he was telling the truth about his reason forbeing in Lasania?” Ash asked as he released Callum’slimp body from the chains.

“Who knows?” I muttered, sheathing the dagger.

“I wouldn’t be surprised if he was telling the truth,” Attes said, entering the cell. “He’s not openlydisrespected in Dalos, but none of the gods whofrequent the Court like him. They don’t like anyone they view as being favoredby Kolis.”

“Poor him.” I turned to Attes.“Can you take him?”

Attes nodded. “I’ll drop him offsomewhere.” He flashed a grin. “Somewhere really inconvenient.”

“As long as it doesn’t interfere with the eirini,” Ash said, “you can drop him off in theLassa Sea.”

“Actually…” Attes’s smile grew ashe picked up the Revenant’s lifeless body and tossed it over his shoulder.“That sounds like a good idea.”

I woke with a jolt, essence thrumming through mybody, along with an overpowering sense of something off in the air.

Something wrong.

Something unnatural.

I opened my eyes. The cool weight of Ash’s arm remainedaround my waist, and his chest rose against my back as my vision adjusted tothe darkness of the chamber. I lay there in silence, waiting for the sensationto subside. It didn’t.

Did I have a nightmare? I had no recollection of such, butit wouldn’t be entirely surprising if I had.

Scanning our surroundings, I didn’t see anything wrong aboutthe space. I looked at the balcony doors, holding myself completely still. Iheard and saw nothing, but the sensation of some sort of…shift in the realmcontinued to rise. Hair slipped over my shoulders, falling into my face andacross my chest as I rose halfway onto my elbow.

The arm around my waist curled. “Liessa?”Ash’s voice was gruff with sleep. “Is it a nightmare?”

I was so fixed on the sensation, I didn’t have much of areaction to his assumption. “No.” I peered at the heavy curtains blocking thebalcony door. “Do you feel it?”

In an instant, Ash was sitting upright. When he spoke again,all traces of sleep were gone. “Feel what?”

“I’m not sure, but it feels like there’s something in theair that shouldn’t be—something that shouldn’t be here.” Confused, Ishoved tangled strands back from my face. “You don’t feel anything?”

“I don’t feel anything.” Ash’s chest brushed my arm.

Confused, I searched the silence and stillness of thechamber. What was I feeling?

Ash leaned in, dropping a kiss on my shoulder. “Do youstill—?” He stiffened against me, going so quiet that unease blossomed.

I twisted toward him, my stomach dipping when I saw streaksof eather lighting up his eyes in the darkness.

“Shit,” he growled, tossing the blanket aside. He swung hislegs off the bed and was on his feet in a heartbeat.

“What is it?”

“I feel it now.” Moving to the wardrobe, he pulled on a pairof breeches. Two of the wall sconces flickered to life, casting a soft glowinto the chamber. His skin had thinned.

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