Page 191 of Lady for Embers

Sybil scoffed. “As if you and Nuri did not do the same of Scarlett. That was your entire purpose. It was why I gave you to him in the ?rst place.”

“One of the manythingsyou gave me, right?”

“You ungrateful little bitch,” Sybil snarled. “If you would have done what you were told, he would have rewarded us both when he rules this world.”

“Ifhe rules this world,” Juliette corrected. She tapped her temple once. “So many outcomes I have seen. They are all different, but one thing remains constant throughout them all.” Sybil stared back at her daughter. “Your only reward is death.”

“Enough of this,” Lord Tyndell ordered. His brow furrowed before his gaze slid to Scarlett. “You cannot hold shields around all of their minds all night, my dear. You will slip eventually.”

“I don’t need to hold them all night,” Scarlett retorted, drawing her sword. “Only long enough to kill you.”

Chaos erupted as Lord Tyndell and Sybil both pulled weapons, advancing in clean and precise movements. Lord Tyndell went to Cyrus and Eliza, while Sybil went to Briar, who was guarding Hale.

Juliette and Scarlett exchanged looks before they began advancing on Nuri.

“Two on one?” Nuri said, drawing her scimitars.

“It will be like training,” Juliette replied, pulling her own blade that was sheathed down her back.

“Just like old times,” Scarlett added.

She let Juliette make the ?rst move so she could turn to Cassius.

“Get Drake to this table, Cass. Call me when you do so I can instruct him on the proper way to trace the Mark,” she ordered, her voice low.

Cassius nodded, and she turned back to see Nuri blocking a swing from Juliette. She stepped in, swinging her sword, and Nuri dropped to a knee, a scimitar meeting her blade with a clang.

“How did you know to be here?” Scarlett gasped as Nuri ?ipped backwards, getting into a defensive stance once more.

“I had a vision,” Juliette answered, whirling and striking high while Scarlett went low. Nuri managed to duck and jump at the same time, spinning out of the way when she landed. “I saw you’d need help.”

“How did you get here?”

Scarlett parried a swing from Nuri. “A grif?n,” Juliette answered.

“Jealous,” Scarlett grunted, de?ecting another blow. She could use magic for this, end it quickly enough, but she needed to keep Nuri busy until Drake was at that table. Not to mention she was focusing on keeping shields around everyone’s minds so Lord Tyndell couldn’t mess with them.

Once the magical wards were down though, the Fae would be able to put up their own shields.

Juliette snorted. “Says the woman who rode a dragon out of Baylorin.”

“A real dragon?” Nuri asked, dancing backwards as Juliette and Scarlett advanced again.

“A spirit animal,” Juliette answered, swinging once more.

“You guys always get to do the fun things,” Nuri whined, kicking out as she spun away. “This is why I should get the new mortal.”

“Neither of you is getting the new mortal,” Scarlett snapped, looking over her shoulder to see that Drake was almost there. “Cover me?”

Juliette nodded. “That’s why I’m here.”

That was unsettling and convenient all at once.

Scarlett ran for the center of the chamber, leaping atop the stone table, trying not to move the map. Cassius and Drake madeit in the next moment, and as soon as they did, Scarlett pulled her shadow panther apart, creating four more to prowl about while a ring of star?re encased them all. It was a lot of magic, too much power, but if they failed at this, she knew there would not be a second chance.

She could tell Razik was conserving power, catching onto the fact that he was likely going to be the one that would Travel them all out of here. This was going to take all of her magic and then some. She would end up drawing from Cassius at some point.

Cassius had already cut the tip of Drake’s ?nger, and as Scarlett gritted her teeth against the strain of maintaining her magic in so many different places, she said, “Start at the top of the center line and go down, just like we’ve been practicing. Whatever you do, donotlift your ?nger until the Mark is complete. Do you understand, Drake?”

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