Page 12 of Gods' Battleground

“Yeah, he’s hilarious.” I sighed, worried that Jace was right. Maybe Vertigo was too far gone to be of any help to me. “But let’s get back to Bella,” I told her. “You had a vision of her.”

“Yes...” Vertigo said cautiously.

“You know where she is?”

She tapped her chin thoughtfully. “Yes.”

Hope bubbled in my chest. “Tell me.Please,” I tacked on hastily.

Angels weren’t supposed to use phrases like ‘please’ or ‘thank you’, and neither were deities. They considered social niceties to be a sign of weakness. But Calli had raised me to be polite to people—even the people we handcuffed and hauled away to jail.

“Could tell you,” Vertigo said. “But first…”

I waited.

“I’ll tell you everything I know about the witch Bella,” she said, “but only if you promise me the magic cuffs stay on.” She shook her bound hands. “That is my wish. I don’t want to hear the voices anymore. So many years of hearing and hearing and hearing everything…I want it to stop. They hurt. They make me dizzy. Voices and voices and voices—overlapping, overwhelming, drowning.” Wincing, she gripped her head with her hands.

“Your name, Vertigo, it doesn’t just mean what your powers do to others,” I realized. “It’s also about what they do to you.”

Vertigo nodded. “Yes.”

“Your powers cripple you.” I frowned. “They hurt you.”

A tear slid down Vertigo’s cheek. “Yes.”

“Your powers are your true prison, not Faris.”

“And only you can free me, Leda Pandora,” she said, hope shining in her eyes.

“Ok.” I nodded. “I agree to your terms.”

I sensed Jace stiffening beside me, and I could feel his unease. Angels didn’t go against the gods’ wishes. It just wasn’t done. Yeah, well, I was much more than an angel now.

“I won’t turn you over to Faris, Vertigo.” I met her gaze, allowing her to read the truth in my eyes. “And you can keep the handcuffs on for as long as you want.”

Vertigo’s shoulders relaxed. A happy, vacant smile spread across her face.

“Hey, wait.” I snapped my fingers in front of her eyes. “You can go to your happy place later. First, tell me about Bella.”

“Bella the witch is on a world called Midnight, home of the Night Prince.” Her voice shook when she spoke his name. “A man with a cruel reputation and a bloody history.”

“I’ve never heard of the Night Prince,” I said. “Or of a world called Midnight.”

“That’s because it lies beyond the gods’ and demons’ empires,” Vertigo told me. “It’s a place both distant and secret.”

“Where is this place?”

“The world of Midnight lies in theVeil.” She said the word like it was haunted. “Bella will try to break into the Night Prince’s treasury alone. That is how she will die.”

I emitted a strangled cough. “Die?”

“That’s what I have seen.”

I squeezed my hands into fists. “Not if I change it.”

“Change it?” Vertigo asked, her voice lilting. She closed her eyes. “Yes, there is still time to change it.”

“What is Bella doing on Midnight?” I asked the telepath. “And why is she trying to steal from a dangerous criminal like the Night Prince? My sister is not a thief.”

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