Page 74 of Voices in the Stars
I just stared at him, blinking, waiting for the rest of the joke tocome. When he said nothing else, I brought a hand up, rubbing at my throbbing head.
“I wish more things could be solved with stern words,” I muttered. “How would killing you help? I would think having a god on our side would be better.”
“The son of a god,” Kier corrected. “I told you: I don’t have the abilities my brothers or sisters have. If one of them showed up, you would be in much better shape. All I can do is talk to the dead and help them move on. You, though, your fire will be a great help.”
“I hate to break it to you, but I have nothing right now,” I commented with a sigh, rubbing where the flame should’ve been in my chest. Traces twisted deep down, still too far for me to access.
His eyes squinted as he looked over me, widening once they landed on my neck. I shifted so my hair fell across that shoulder.
“He let them feed on you?” The shock rang clear in his words.
I couldn’t bring myself to correct him. My gaze landed on the ground, staying there even as I felt his stare burning into me.
“He did it.”
He didn’t say it as a question, so I didn’t bother trying to make myself confirm it. Saying it out loud made everything real. It made the last several days too real in my mind. The constant pain was one thing. Tears started trickling down my face. I squeezed my eyes shut, willing them to stop.
My shoulders sagged as the exhaustion came crashing back into me. Whatever energy I had been running on finally ceased. My eyes cracked open in time to see the room move around me. Hands grabbed by shoulders, stopping me before I fell to the ground. I let Kier guide me to the back corner of the room. If he was going to hurt me, he apparently would have done it a while ago. I was running out of the steam needed to stay awake.
There was a straw bed set up in the corner of the room. It had a pillow that was stained with feathers poking out of its many holes. Something small with too many legs crawled in between the strands of straw. A chill ran down my back, but it wasn’t enough to stop me from laying down. Straw poked at every inch of exposed skin. Everything itched and the crawling thing definitelyjust touched my arm.
Yet, it was the most comfortable I had been in days. Kier was sitting between me and the door. His eyes weren’t leaving it as he ran his thumb over the gems inlaid in the dagger. Despite his crazy plans, this was the most honesty I’d had since leaving Donnaway. As I started drifting away again, I felt safe down here, as weird as that was to admit to myself.
His voice echoed around the corridor outside. It alone was enough to feel the fire start churning inside. Now that some of the exhaustion had faded, all I could think about was him. The countless people he’d killed. The ones he still planned on murdering. All the pain and suffering he had caused me and Atlas. It was enough. I had had enough. My fists clenched as he got closer. I was ready to end this.
The smell of smoke filled our room as fire burned the tips of my fingers. I lay in the bed, waiting to hear him get closer. His footsteps echoed alongside another set. Someone was with him. That wasn’t enough to stop me now, though. Whoever would be with him deserved it as well. My eyes cracked open as I heard them right outside our door. I sat up, ready for a fight.
Only to be pushed back down with a hand on my forehead. I glared over at Kier, who looked like Sal once more.
“What are you doing?” I growled.
“Not yet,” he hissed, glancing at the door behind him. “Don’t move and stay quiet.”
Something slid over my skin with his words. I glanced down. There was a slight shimmer over my body, the same I had seen back in the skies at Donnaway before I disappeared into the shadows. My heartbeat pounded in my ears as I watched the door. The door across from us quietly squeaked open. There were more hushed talking before ours opened next.
“Maybe he’d like his sailor friend.” Ivy pointed at Kier disguised as Sal.
I held my breath as her and Eris walked in. My heart raced as I triedto keep my breathing even. Kier kept his head down even as she walked up to him, bending down to look over him. Her nose crinkled as she quickly stood back up. The gold dagger glinted from where it was pressed between his back and the stone wall. My eyes couldn’t settle between the two as Ivy looked around the room. Her gaze skating across me as she turned back to Eris.
“Or not. This one smells awful,” she commented.
“Does it matter? Find something new for him since he killed his bitch,” Eris remarked as he walked back out the door.
She huffed, glancing back at Kier. Her gaze squinted as she looked over him once more. The rhythmic rise and fall of his chest stopped as Kier held his breath. One of the hands that was clenching his thigh slid closer to his back as we both waited for her to move.
We didn’t have to wait long until she turned away, following her father out of the room. I jumped as the door slammed shut. Kier raising his hand toward me kept me from moving any further.
Their steps trailed down the hall before another door squeaked open. Voices cried and called out to them. My eyes closed as those cries turned into screams. I fisted my dress as the door slammed shut, the screams getting quieter as whoever it was got dragged out of this dungeon.
When Kier dropped his hand, I jumped up, ignoring him as I went running out of our room. The voices around me blended into an indistinguishable scream as I ignored the pain jostling through my body. With each step, the fire burned brighter. It twisted its way through me, healing faster than I was reinjuring myself until all I could feel was the hatred burning.
They’d hurt enough people. This wasn’t just about me or Atlas anymore. I’d seen it countless times, the results of all the pain they’d caused. Yet, listening to them drag someone off to their death? It felt like the pieces were finally coming together. If I didn’t do something, everyone down here would die. Without Atlas, his friends would die. Everyone in Kilrest was at risk, and everyone beyond that would continue to be tormented.
Eris was walking out of the hatch when I made it to them. Ivy had a Fera by the arm as they were dragged up the stairs. She threw themthrough the open door. I slowed down as she looked over at me, her eyes widening for half a moment, mouth parting slightly. It didn’t last long before a twisted smile pulled her features. I was staring at a monster pretending to be human. She gave me a small wave before walking out, slamming the hatch shut once more. I did nothing to stop the yell that ripped through me.
Turning back, I almost walked directly into Kier, his Sal appearance gone once again. His brows were furrowed as he stared at the metal hatch.
“What do I need to do to end this?” I asked between clenched teeth.
