Page 45 of A Dawn of Gods & Fury

Lucretia’s gaze wafts around the circle of elders, but when it returns to me, she offers me only silence.

My irritation swells. I try a different angle. “How strong is Malachi?”

“Not as strong in this form. Far stronger than your precious king.”

Another nonanswer. I’m wasting valuable time. “Aoife and Malachi were here once. Who defeated them and did the nymphs help?” They must have had something to do with it.

“It is not a simple—”

“I’m not asking you,” I snap at Lucretia who is going to keep me chasing my tail for her own amusement. I turn my attention to the wisp elder, meeting her eyes. “You demanded an audience, so here I am. Your Daughter of Many and Queen for All.” I throw out my hands. A challenge, maybe.

Humor flashes in the wisp elder’s eyes and finally—finally!—her lips part in a mischievous grin.

We do not trouble ourselves with their wars.

I cringe against the shrill voice that erupts inside my head. It’s nothing like the childish giggles I’ve grown used to, but more like a blade dragged across glass.

Lucretia tsks. “I warned you.”

But my anger only flares. “Then why bother coming back?”

She stares at me.

“Why bother—”

Because you summoned us.

The raspy voice squeezes my eardrums. I cry out against the crippling pain, pressing my palms against my ears, but it grants little relief. Only when the throb subsides can I search for its source.

The Cindrae elder reveals pointed teeth much like Oredai’s.

“I didn’t summon you,” I counter without thinking and then brace myself against his response.

But it’s Lucretia who answers. “You opened the door to Ulysede.”

“I didn’t know what that meant.” I hear how weak that excuse is the moment it leaves my lips.

“Your ignorance changes nothing.”

“Thank you, Lucretia, for your scintillating opinion that I didn’t ask for,” I snap. “I’m asking for the nymphs’ help as the Queen for All. Why won’t they give it to me?”

“If Her Highness is unsatisfied with the aid provided by my masters, perhaps she should summon Aminadav or Vin’nyla for counsel.”

“So they can know what Malachi and Aoife are up to, and crack the earth again? Are you insane?” Though a conversation with them might be less painful than this.

Lucretia’s head tips back with her laughter. “You think they do not know where Malachi and Aoife are? You think they have not begun retaliating?”

A chorus of wicked laughter explodes in my mind, buckling my knees until they meet the grass. The pressure is agonizing, and I struggle to not scream as drops of blood splatter near where my hands press against the ground. More blood trickles from my nose until I taste a metallic tinge on my lips.

I’m seconds from blacking out when Jarek’s words stir in my mind.

Remember who you are and do not hesitate to remind anyone who forgets.

They haven’t forgotten who I am. They’re toying with me.

My rage ignites and with it a swell of affinities. I grasp onto all four, weaving them until the silver cord coils, ready to lash out like a viper. “Enough!” I shriek.

The crippling sound cuts off instantly.

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