Page 115 of Until the End of Ever
"Are we sure it's a good idea?" Gideon grumbled. "I mean, maybe Lucky should stay behind. She's?—"
"Nineteen," Lucky interjected. "And if you think you can make me miss this, potentially fucking with Lucian's future? You're even stupider than you look, which is saying a lot, surfer boy."
"Hey!" Gideon protested. "I thought you liked me."
"Before you treated me like a fragile kid, I did."
“It’s not about your age. I was going to point out you trip over perfectly flat surfaces,” he argued.
While he had a point, I shook my head.
"We all need to go," I interrupted. "For Lucian. The prophecy was clear: five beyond death.” The fifth could have been Cassius, but I had a gut feeling that Lucky ought to be with us, just like she was there for my inheritance ritual. “And we'llallcome back."
I couldn't promise that, but saying it out loud felt good.
"All right," Cassius said, standing outside the circle. "Each minute in the underworld counts for around three in this world, which means that if your father buys Lucian three full working days, you have just over one day. I will lead you right to the gates. The rest is up to you."
50
LUCIAN
All my thoughts remained on Kleos, an ache under my skin constantly reminding me of her absence. I needed her. Our distance was a physical thing, gnawing my insides. And yet, I was glad she stayed away, still certain she was the target. Hurting me was just a bonus for the council.
Damian had left for the session he wouldn't be allowed to vote in hours ago. No news, I supposed, was good news in this specific case, but the four walls of this rooms were making me claustrophobic.
I could walk out. I could return home and barricade the entrance. I could start the war that has threatened to brewed between the underside and the vale since my grandmother was murdered thirty years ago. And I'd gladly do so if not for one thing: Kleos.
Protecting her, caring for her, ensuring her world was safe.
I didn't know how to do that. If they killed me, there was a chance she wouldn't survive it after we'd joined our souls. The bond was brand new, not even technically consummated, as sexafterthe spell was what counted in the eyes of the Fates. She could perhaps walk out of it alive. Alive, but not whole, forever incapable of binding to anyone else. Always mine.
It would be oh so easy to simply go, guards aside.
My power reached out, feeling the energies around me, in order to assess those I'd have to get past.Selena Lawrence andRupert Samuels were a non-issue, but I sensed something strange past them. Mortal coils, mortal strengths and abilities, but underneath, ataint, both bright and somewhat sinuous.
They must be the enthused men the kid mentioned, watching, waiting. For me to make a run for it, or for Kleos to break me out? Either way, I decided it wasn't the time to act.
I straightened up as a new energy joined those I felt in the corridor, confident steps approaching.
One of my eyebrows lifted an inch or two as I watchedLeander Valesco fill the entryway.
I'd noticed just how little Zenya looked like Kleos. Seeing him from up close for the first time, I noted the opposite about Leander. She had his forehead, nose, and cheekbones, and though her eyes had more depth, his were the same shape.
"Magister Valesco."
"Prince Regis," he countered.
I brushed invisible lint off my shoulders. "We've done away with titles since before I was born."
"Really? I've heard you referred to as the prince of darkness a time or two." The old man walked in, dragging a chair to face mine with a deep sigh. "It took some doing, a lot of compromises, a favor or two, but I stopped the council. The magistrates will gather to judge your case on Friday morning at nine."
I blinked."You did that?"
"Indeed.” He looked positively exhausted. “Took the last three hours, but I have the final seal agreeing that neither side of the council currently has the quorum necessary to judge you."
I'd expected Damian to miraculously come to the rescue. Having each other's back was what Regises, what unders did. "Why?"
The older man shrugged. "I'd like my daughter to speak to me again. And preferably not to murder me. I wouldn't wish the Furies to hunt her for patricide." He tried for a smile, but I could tell his face wasn't used to it. "I've made many mistakes in my life. Letting an innocent man die won't be one of them. Particularly an innocent man loved by my child."
