Page 133 of Kissed By the Gods
“Elandors Veil,” Ryot says, quiet and defiant.
“You stole it.”
It’s not a question. The priests don’t allow anyone else into the temple, not even the Elder. I shift on my feet, the snow crunching beneath my boots. A sharp knot of fear twists low in my gut. My fingers dig deeper into the crumbling book, as if I could somehow erase what’s already been done.Gods, Ryot. What have you gotten yourself into?
Ryot squares his shoulders, defiant.
The Elder steps closer, his voice dropping even lower, colder, like the icicles that hang from the trees.
“You broke your oath?”
Ryot’s hands clench into fists at his sides. His face flushes, a spot of furious color against the stark whiteness of the world. His voice quakes—not with fear, but with fury barely kept in check. “I didn't break my oath. Our oath was never to obedience. It’s to protection, to saving the world from death. I broke rules—rules meant to keep us blind and obedient.”
My heart twists painfully as I watch Ryot stand his ground. There’s no hesitation in him, no apology. And Veil help me, something inside me soars. I close the gap between us, coming to stand in between him and the Elder. I hold the mystery book to my chest, not caring nearly so much about its contents as I do about Ryot.
The Elder stands very still, his expression unreadable. Snowflakes cling to the folds of his cloak, to the lines at the corners of his eyes. For a long, agonizing heartbeat, I expect punishment to fall, but it doesn't come.
Instead, the Elder exhales, his breath curling in the air. Something flashes across his face—too fast for me to name it. Not approval, exactly. But not anger either.
“What’s the book, Ryot?”
Ryot’s chest still heaves, his fists still clenched at his sides. He's still furious—still ready to fight whatever comes next. But the fire in him eases. He jerks his chin toward the bookclutched against my chest. “It’s a journal. The journal of the first Veilstrider.”
“The one who died in the Veil?” I ask.
Ryot jerks his head. “He didn’t die in the Veil. He was murdered—stabbed through the heart while his soul was still walking in the Veil. His mother wrote his last entry, after someone killed him.”
The Elder’s mouth tightens.
“That can’t be right. When I train ... When I enter the Veil ... my body doesn't stay behind, empty and vulnerable. I go in. Vaeloria and I go in together,” I say.
I turn sharply, seeking her. Vaeloria stands a few paces away, her wings tucked tight against her sides, her silver mane rippling in the cold breeze. Her dark eyes are fixed on me. She moves closer, lowering her head until her muzzle brushes my shoulder. Shetellsme. Not words but emotions—a surge of certainty, fierce and protective, like a hand closing tight around my soul.
“Vaeloria,” I whisper, understanding washing over me. “Vaeloria is of the Veil itself—born of it, shaped by it. When I go with her, she carries me there—body and soul.”
Ryot’s mouth presses into a thin, grim line. His gaze slices to the Elder. “It’s when she’s sleeping. That’s when she’s vulnerable, when she crosses the Veil without Vaeloria.”
The Elder’s eyes narrow slightly—he knows Ryot’s right. Ryot steps past me. “She needs to be moved out of the barracks. Tonight, somewhere secure. And she needs a guard posted whenever she sleeps.”
Guarded? In my sleep? I’m still scrambling to wrap my thoughts around this new reality when the Elder speaks.
“If we do that, people will wonder why.”
Ryot pales, actually pales.
“We can move her to my room,” he says quickly, desperately. “We can find a reasonable excuse about her Veil training.”
I open my mouth, anger bubbling fast and sharp. They’re talking about me like I’m not even standing here.
“I don’t need to be moved or guarded,” I snap. “I’ve been fine this entire time. No one needs to watch me while I sleep—because that would be weird—and I’m perfectly capable of taking care of myself.”
Ryot’s hands find my shoulders and he gives me a little shake. “Not if you’re not present in your own godsdamn body, you’re not!”
I jerk out of his grip, bristling. “It’s fine. I haven’t been veilstriding in my sleep. Not once all winter. I’m too exhausted.”
He stares at me like I sprouted feathers. “And that makes it better?" he demands. His hands fly up, exasperated. “‘Don’t worry, Ryot, I’m too exhausted to function normally.’ Are you fucking kidding me right now?”
Before I can snap back, the Elder cuts in.
