Page 66 of The Crown of Nyx

“Perhaps my visit came a little too soon,” Damon called, sounding too damned amused. “But we have onehour before we make this deal permanent, my Queen. The masses are flooding the throne room. There is excitement in the air. And if you want the demons to go to war for you, then you should prepare yourself.”

And with that, he disappeared. I didn’t even need to look to know he’d used the shadows to transport himself elsewhere. The tattoos did that for me. They seemed to dim with his disappearance.

“Talk,” I whispered. “Why would you attack him? Especially when we need him.”

Orion snorted, shaking his head. “There are any number of demons capable of ferrying us where we need to go.”

“Really?” I raised a brow sarcastically. “And do you know if any of them have actuallyseenthe Old World? Who can take us to the places Nyx once walked?”

The Fae male pressed his lips together and shook his head. “We should not trust him.”

“Why? Give me one good reason.”

“His meetings with Dante.” He bowed his head, eyes narrowing. “Did you forget I know some of his dealings?”

Meetings. I tried to control my breathing as I stepped away from Orion. My stomach churned uncomfortably as I moved to another part of the room. The sky outside the massive window darkened to a bloody red, and somehow, the music from the city grew louder, harsher.

“I would never question you,” Orion said, stopping me in my tracks. “Never. You have always been my Queen, and everything I have ever done has been to protect you—toserveyou. When I failed at being your mate, I became your sword. And what I have learned in being that makes me aware that your enemies are closer than you think.”

His words were like a splash of cold water. “And do you think he’s an enemy?” I asked, turning back to him, voice softening.

Everyone else watched, their own opinions on the tips of their tongues. They wanted to interject, but remained silent instead. The only one I wasn’t certain of was Hawk, who leaned against the back wall with his arms crossed.

Orion’s jaw ticked as he shook his head. “I know he wants more than he’s telling you.”

“This is not the time to be vague,” Maeve said, her team leader persona in place. I noticed the reddening of her irises, the quiet rage radiating from her. “If we must find a reason to get Ivy out before the deal is completed, then you need to tell us the truth. Now.”

My heart pounded as I turned my full attention back to Ry. I tried to push my desperation down the bond at him. To let him know how badly I needed him to tell me what he knew. We had to be done with the secrets. Done with hiding valuable information. We all needed to be on the same page.

Orion sighed. “My father claimed Dante met with the Elysian King on more than one occasion. At first, I considered it a lie. We know the king only meets with the Queen and very few others in person. But after Dante revealed himself, I wondered if it was possible. If perhaps he’d had gone with Queen Greer during her meetings with him. Had established a connection with him that way.”

“But you have no proof other than his claims,” Adrian interjected. Orion glanced at him sharply, jaw clenching.

Adrian was right. Hyperion could have been lying about the meetings, but I doubted Orion would be sayinganything if he didn’t believe there was a kernel of truth in what he thought.

“What else?” I asked softly, drawing his eyes back to me.

The Fae prince scrubbed a hand over his face and released a long, slow breath. “I have some…glamours and blocks I need to work through.”

My stomach dropped. “What?”

Orion’s eyes darkened as they met mine. “Most of us in the upper echelons had a number of them placed on us so if we were taken, we would not be able to say a word.”

From the other side of the room, Elias grunted. “We gathered as much during our interrogations.”

A cold chill ran down my spine at the impact of whatinterrogationsmeant. I wasn’t sure why it rattled me. Of course, I knew there were things my mates would do.Hadto do. To survive—to keep me safe. I shouldn’t be disillusioned to it at all. And yet I couldn’t help but feel…taken aback, maybe, as his words really settled in the air.

It wasn’t just Elias’s words that rattled me. But Orion’s, too.

“We don’t have much time,” Hawk said, his voice almost jarring. He pushed off the wall and moved to the centre of the room. “He’ll be back to take Ivy any minute. Whatcanyou tell us?”

Orion’s desperation and frustration came down the bond, sharp like lightning. I had to bite the inside of my cheek as his eyes burned with the same emotion. “Please. Just know that I do not trust him.”

I pursed my lips. Like Hawk said, we were running out of time, and we had little choices left.

“We need him to take us to the Old World. To guide us through it,” I said, keeping my voice low. “If we had another option, then I would consider it. But we can’trisk him actually joining Dante. We can’t lose him and the support of the demons.”

“She’s right,” Rowan said, his voice hard. I turned to where he sat on the edge of the love seat, his head in his hands. “If he is a danger, then maybe it’s best he’s in our midst. We just have to keep him in the dark.”

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