Page 3 of Blood of Two Crowns

“He’s not there. Somnus went and got him. And it’d be pointless anyway. The River Oblivion wiped his memory completely. He won’t remember me or our thousands of years worth of memories, let alone his entire realm. Thankfully, the effect isn’t permanent for a god. We just have to wait for his memories to return.”

“How long will that take?”

Lathrimos shrugged, chin wobbling as though it were the crumbling cornerstone of his emotional foundation.

“Years. Maybe even decades. Who knows? This has never happened before, as far as I know.”

My eyes drifted back to Mareina.

“Do you know what she needs? How to heal her? Make her wake up?”

Lathrimos only threw her a cursory glance, making my hackles rise. “She’ll be fine. She just… Her soul is tied to this realm. Being outside of it is draining.”

“She’s lived her entire life outside of this realm.”

“She’s a goddess. Not a mortal. It won’t kill her not to be here, but she certainly won’t be at full power if she doesn’t spend significant time here.”

Mareina was already, inarguably, one of the most powerful beings in Atratus. We’d fought in a war together. I’d witnessed her power and fury in all its jaw-dropping glory.

How much more powerful could she get?

The thought made my beast growl his excitement.

“Not to mention, she needs to be here. Especially with Mors being…indisposed.The entire realm will disintegrate without at least one of them here.”

His words yanked my gaze back to his.

“What?”

The male looked at me like I’d just sprouted a few extra heads.

“Just as it is with any other god, the realm is tied to their life force. They sustain it. Just as a tree requires soil and rain. Without those things, the tree will gradually wither away and die.”

“How long can she or Mors be gone for before that starts to happen?”

Lathrimos furrowed his brow thoughtfully, scratching his bristly beard. “It wouldn’t happen overnight. It would take perhaps years, but it would be an inevitability without them.”

How the shit is Mareina supposed to rule a kingdomandan entire realm?

“I mean, you didn’t plan on going anywhere, did you?”

I huffed a laugh.“You’d literally have to kill me.”

Lathrimos gave me an appreciative smirk. “That’d be no small feat, killing a creature like you.”

I stilled with apprehension. In my 200-plus years of existence, I hadn’t revealed my true nature to a single soul. I hadonly ever allowed myself to shift when my beast became most desperate and well away from any prying eyes. It was too great a risk of potentially being seen. My kind was a distant and tragic memory in this realm.

“Gift of an Archestratim. Discernment. You can’t lie, hide, or glamor anything from us. It’s a curse at times. The truth is often a burden.”

Chapter

Two

NAKOA

Zurie’s lips curled into a smug grin. As if sheweren’tcovered in dungeon grime and wearing a palladium collar. “I’ll make a bargain with you. Vow to bring me no harm, allow me to continue living in my palace and maintain access to my coffers, and in exchange, I’ll assist you in ruling Atratus, provide a smooth transition for you in becoming King,andI’ll introduce you to your father.”

How delusional can one person be?

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