Page 76 of Blood Feast

“Ha! You’ll certainly have the last word when fighting with this.” Kia lifted it, weighing it in her hands, her magic probingthe artifact. “Mak, this is a marvel! It deserves to be studied, not outlawed!”

Mak slumped with his elbows on his knees. “Phaedros can write a treatise about it when we’re all banished with him.”

“No one is getting banished on my watch,” Kia said. “Don’t despair. Heretics never changed the world without breaking things.”

Lyros interrupted, “Right now, we need to break these Blood Shackles off Mak and Cassia so we can make it over the border.”

Kia handed Final Word back to Lio and rolled up her sleeves. “Show me how this spell works.”

He joined her on the bench across from Mak and Cassia, and blood magic flared in the night as they went to work.

Lio hovered behind his Grace, longing to put a hand on her shoulder for comfort. But he sensed she wanted time to sort through her emotions. He had learned that when she was in this state, all he could do was give her the space she needed.

Lio sighed and retreated to the railing. He watched the lights of Selas give one last glitter in the darkness of polar night as home disappeared behind the horizon.

Kia had been workingfor hours when Cassia felt a snap in her blood. The Shackles finally gave way. The magical weight lifted from her, and she heaved a breath.

Kia flopped back on the bench, her face ashen and fangs out, but her aura was triumphant. Lyros rubbed his Grace’s wrists, and Mak accepted this in silence.

Cassia’s gaze drifted to Lio. He still stood at the railing, but now he was looking at her instead of the dark, empty sea. Her aura instinctively flowed toward him. She sensed him simply waiting, listening. He would be at her side in an instant if she asked.

He was too far away. And she had only herself to blame.

“All right,” Kia said. “The shackles are off, and it will be twilight in Tenebra by now. Time for you all to go.”

Nodora looked toward the southern horizon, although the border was too distant to be seen from here. “I wish we could wait for word from Xandra.”

“So do I.” Mak finally spoke. “We don’t even know if her plan worked. If Nike turns herself in after all...”

Lyros shook his head. “It will be better if Xandra keeps her distracted until we’re well over the border.”

Mak gathered his composure. “Right.”

“You all have our gratitude,” Cassia said.

The Union was heavy with everyone’s regrets. Lio sent reassurance to all of them, and selfishly, Cassia soaked it up like a thirsty scrub in the Maaqul.

“It’s all right,” he said. “This is how it must be. For now. We can worry about clearing our names after the war is over.”

Nodora wiped her eyes. “We’ll keep working to exonerate you. We will make it our cause in the Firstblood Circle.”

There was a cold fire in Kia’s gaze. “This will only inspire our partisans. The Eighth Circle, taking up arms like the First Circle, persecuted by those too afraid to rebel!”

“I’ll write your first ballad myself,” Nodora promised.

“Yes,” Kia swore, “the name of the Black Roses will be in everyone’s hearts.”

Nodora swallowed hard. “And we’ll visit Zoe every night.”

Cassia covered her face with her hands. Lio’s despair mingled with her own. Zoe. Their greatest regret of all.

Zoe’s worst nightmare was that her loved ones would leave her, never to return. Cassia and Lio had promised her that would never happen to her again. But this time, it might not be in their power to come back.

They hadn’t even said goodbye.

Strong arms, warm with fire magic, wrapped around Cassia.

“I will make sure Zoe is all right,” Solia swore. “I’ll have someone step me to Orthros to check on her every chance I get.”

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