Page 75 of Ties of Deception

Sebastian cleared his throat. “We don’t think you should take Purity with you to the Unseen Lands. Not after what you’ve done to her. We have a different bride to offer you. If you take her instead, you will never see Purity again, but we promise we will keep her safe and happy. She’ll never be tormented by Charity or my mother again. She’ll have peace and not have her future forced on her. She’ll be able to choose if and when she gets married.”

Constance smoothly continued. “This is your way to make amends. If she had her memories, would she truly want to be with you? If you marry the woman we’ve chosen for you, Purity will be happy and safe. If you refuse, the same thing will happen that happened to your father’s Fated. Purity will be retired and disappear. You will never see her again.”

There was a scoff. “You mean you will recycle her? Let her soul go into oblivion so you can use her body for a new Grace in a few years’ time in Hassia where nobody would recognize her?”

Sebastian’s voice was firm and unnerved. “You must make your decision now. Otherise, you’ll never find her in time to stop the priests.”

It was my turn to scoff. They were such manipulative liars. Ethen sighed as if they were boring him, but I heard a hidden pain within that wrenched my heart.

“I am the Aidis, a god of death. Threats don’t work on me.”

Constance laughed, high and bitter. “You killed her in the last life, and you’re willing to kill her again in this one? And you think you deserve love? If you marry Purity, and she eventually remembers the pain and suffering of what you did to her, what do you think will happen? You’re taking advantage of her ignorance.”

Heavy silence. I could feel him reliving my death. Those heart-wrenching sobs erupting from his devastation. He couldn’t go through that again.

“I…” I could hear the hesitation in his voice. I suspected that Constance could now too.

“She’s happy and free, Aidis. Leave her be. That’s all you ever had to do to prevent her suffering.”

I heard a heavy sigh, and his reply was quiet. “I need solid evidence of your word that if I marry another, Purity will be happy. Never retired. Never in danger.” The pain in his voice wrenched at my heart.

I couldn’t bear this any longer. I had no weapon or plan, but no good was coming from remaining hidden. I needed to stop being their bargaining piece. I opened the door as softly as I could and entered the room. It wasn’t quiet enough. Four pairs of eyes turned to face me. I hadn't realized there was a guard on the door.

My heart beat like a scattered drum as I straightened my back and glared at Ethen. My stomach dipped at the sight of him, stronger than ever before. “If you dare choose any other woman after all we went through and let Ava stop you from being at my side again, I will never, ever let you hear the end of it.”

His eyes widened in relief then shock as understanding dawned on him. “Snow…”

I gave him a small smile in confirmation.

Sebastian was behind me in an instant, his hand twisting my wrist. Then his knife pressed to my throat. The cold metal felt hard against the exposed, tender skin. My chest tightened, and I didn’t dare swallow. How had he moved so fast? I knew Ethen had mentioned he was exceptionally strong and quick, but I hadn’t expected the qualities to be this extreme. Had being around Constance for so long strengthened him in the same way as I had been weakened around Ethen as a mortal? Not to mention all the Graces he had embraced and kissed…

Ethen’s expression darkened, and his cold rage seemed to permeate the air. He didn’t speak or issue a warning, but I felt a ripple of tension across my skin. The guard at the door behind him fell to the ground, motionless. A flicker of confusion swept over Ethen’s features as Sebastian remained unharmed.

Constance raised her eyebrows. “You have very admirable control of your powers.”

Ethen took a step closer. I noticed his usual broadsword wasn’t attached to his back. They had disarmed him, just as they’d done to me. I wiggled in Sebastian’s grip trying to drop below the knife blade, but the prince’s grip on my wrist tightened as he jerked my arm higher behind my back in a painful position.

I gasped as my eyes watered. I focused on Ethen. “Constance isn’t a Grace, she’s Ismara and Ienar’s daughter. She’s able to counteract your powers.”

Ethen gave me a pained look before his gaze narrowed on her in a mixture of horror and determination. He might not have his sword, but his posture was that of a prepared fighter. “It was you. You’re the one who’s been stealing souls and resurrecting Graces in other bodies.”

Constance nodded. “You can’t challenge me. I’ve been circumventing the powers of death for many, many years. And I won’t let you harm Sebastian.”

We all paused, eyes passing over each other. I licked my lips as I struggled to calm myself, drawing on vast experiences from a lifetime of fighting for what I wanted so I could think clearly.

Sebastian’s breath tickled my ear, making me grimace. “Promise to marry the bride we have chosen for you, Aidis, or I will slit her throat.”

Ethen’s powers might be counteracted by Constance, but mine weren’t. Life couldn’t fight life.

I concentrated on the blade at my throat, funneling my rage and anger, and hoped beyond hope that this was going to work, and I wasn’t going to accidentally slice my own throat.

For a moment, nothing happened. Then the blade shattered. Shards of metal exploded outward, and I gasped in pain as metal fragments embedded themselves in my neck, cheek and chest. Ethen yelled my name.

Sebastian’s grip on my wrist loosened in shock as he also cried out in pain, withdrawing his other hand and dropping the hilt, which clattered to the marble floor. Blood ran down his fingers, and he cursed.

I used his moment of distraction to my advantage before Constance could heal him, and whirled, slamming the pomegranate into the prince’s face. It cracked in the most satisfying way as it hit his nose; red seeds and juice sprayed across his face. I darted back, lifting my hand to my throat and the searing wounds. My skin was sticky with blood, but the flow didn’t seem too worrying. Shards of metal still dug into my skin, however, and when I brushed a particularly large one, the pain was enough to make my vision flash white. My eyes watered as I lowered my hand and a wave of dizziness made me blink rapidly. I needed to focus right now. We could work out how to get it safely out later.

Constance was staring at me. “When…how…you’ve never been able to control your powers like that.”

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