Page 51 of Of Daggers and Deceit

Zander became fixated on many things, but his obsession with beauty outlasted them all. He so desperately surrounded himself with things he found beautiful, one of the few things I so often tried to wield.

This entire city was curated to please our Goddess Omni, in the hopes he would receive guidance from her when they met in his dreams. On nights like tonight, with his more potent connection, I knew he would be asleep for longer, especially after he inhaled his special herbal smoke to facilitate his connection.

I jumped to the ground with a thud and bolted down the path leading towards the edge of the desert. The tube station drew near, now dark and still for the night, and I used the opportunity to lean against it to pause and catch my breath.

Tonight, I’d taken a calculated risk. I’d weighed it up against the slow progress of my relationship with Zander and his lack of trust in me, the looming threat of Raya’s foretold death hanging over my head. Even if I didn’t truly understand or know what that experience was or meant, I couldn’t ignore it. If I didn’t act and something happened to Raya, I would never survive it. It would destroy me. It would mean everything I’d ever done was worthless. It would mean I was worthless.

“What are you doing?” A velvety voice startled me, and a dark figure stepped out from the shadows of the tube.

I inhaled a sharp breath, slowly allowing myself to breathe again when I recognised Sly. Why hadn’t I heard him? Not good enough, Riley.

“You scared me,” I said, placing my hand over my racing heart. An ache was forming there, and I rubbed my hand in circles to soothe its intensity.

“You didn’t answer my question. What are you doing?” he asked curiously, carefully watching my expression. He was cautious. I hadn’t told him.

“I needed some air and a walk around. Have you been following me all night?”

He took another short step forward, his blue eyes piercing me. “Yes. You didn’t tell me you were leaving.”

I ignored his comment.

“Why?” It was a demand disguised as a question. I was surprised he’d even seen me; I’d waited for him to leave for the Inner Ring’s broader perimeter check before I’d made my descent.

When I didn’t answer, he continued. “I was worried, and I wanted to see where you would go. I just didn’t think you would be so rash as to head towards the desert on the night our shield thinned, least of all with no one to protect you.” His brow furrowed as he spoke in confusion and disbelief.

I smiled darkly, drawing one of my hands behind my back to tap lightly on my gun in reassurance whilst I slowly edged towards him. “What makes you think someone like me was stupid enough to come unprepared?” I mocked him in return, confirming the area was empty around us. The shield hadn’t thinned just yet but everyone had long since bunkered down.

Then I lunged at him.

I wouldn’t be pulling my gun on him. I wasn’t here to kill him. He needed to be shown that I was not just an object of desire, but someone with power and cunning. A female who could hold her own.

Hook, jab, kick, elbow. We traded blows back and forth, him mostly on the defensive but pushing me forward until I was teetering on the edge of the platform before it dropped down to the tube tracks.

I laughed at the pinched expression on his face; clearly, I was still in okay form, as he worked hard to block the fury of my blows. I pushed him back until I stumbled. He blocked my roundhouse kick with no effort and then disappeared.

I looked around in disbelief, spinning left and right, my fists still raised to cover my face and my eyes tracking the space around me.

There was nothing. He was gone, and everything was quiet again.

I frowned, carefully keeping my fists raised whilst I rotated on the spot to scan my surroundings. Something was distinctly off. An Omega couldn’t just disappear like that.

After several long moments where I saw and sensed nothing, I knew I had to decide to keep moving. I could see in the distance that the time for action was close.

My arms dropped to hang at my sides, and I turned back towards the archway, the desert now visible between its stone walls.

Strong arms grabbed me suddenly from behind, dragging me backwards. I knew who it was; there was no mistaking his scent. I kicked out, trying to use my weight to throw him off balance, but he moved us, tackling me to the ground, pinning me beneath him.

“Yield,” he ordered.

“How did you do that?” I huffed out, blowing strands of my hair up off my face. His grip on my body was both determined and unrelenting.

“Yield.” Sly’s voice was a low and deadly rumble, causing my body to relax beneath him and an unwanted flutter to spring to life in my core. Goosebumps rose on my skin.

“You didn’t answer my question. How did you do that?” I was impatient tonight, eager to put this task behind me.

His chest vibrated against my back when he chuckled in response. “I’ll tell you a secret if you tell me one of yours.”

A dangerous proposition for a female who held many. “You first.” His grip relaxed around my body, and I rolled off him and lifted myself up to face him.

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