Page 127 of The War of Wings
Liara’s hands fell to her hips again. “Well, that answers how you ended up in my realm.”
“It does?”
“You can enter the Holy Realms so long as a Saint’s relic has been bestowed upon you. Now, come along,” she said, brushing past me. “I have some questions for you. And I could use a glass of wine.”
Chapter 50
Cal
“I don’t have time to talk,” I said as Liara led me to a room off the main foyer. The entire back wall was a bar, the shelves behind it laden with at least a hundred bottles of liquor and wine. Liara’s fingers skimmed over them until she plucked a bottle of red wine from its spot.
“You don’t have much of a choice,” she answered with a shrug before she reached for a goblet beneath the bar. “Drink?”
“I don’t dr–”
“Whiskey it is. Cyen?” Cyen’s spindly finger pointed to a bottle a quarter of the way down the bar and he hummed when Liara grabbed it. “Cyen has the best taste in liquor.”
“The best poison is the sweetest,” he rasped, watching as Liara produced four more goblets from behind the bar and filled each with a brow-raising pour.
Liara slid the goblet toward me, but it remained untouched. “I didn’t come here to drink.”
“We’ve met, you know,” Liara remarked, disregarding my statement. “Well, indirectly.”
My brows furrowed as she distributed the other goblets to the Blood Saints sidling up to the bar. “What do you mean?”
“Contrary to popular belief, we Saints do not pull as many threads in the Human Realm as many think we do. But Soren, Saint of Heaven, and I have a unique ability to peek in, if you will. Take little glimpses here and there. It’s how we decide where a human goes upon their death.”
“We’ve used that to our advantage here,” Faldyr said with a curt nod. “Any time we peek in, it opens a pathway, so it’s been done sparingly, and it hasn’t been done for years now.”
“The storm that seemingly came out of nowhere the day your brother Tobyas fell from the cliff?” Idros said, and my eyes flew open. “The storm had already formed, but I gave it a nudge when I received Noros’ prayer. Well, he wasn’t Noros anymore. And the day Petra’s house caught fire, as well. Noros prayed then, too.”
“Petra’s sword skills may have received some help from me,” Faldyr added.
Cyen tipped his head back, slugging down his whiskey like it was water before he gestured to Liara for another pour. “And knowing Onera,” he started, “she’s cast her will once or twice.”
I shook my head. This was not the subject I wanted to discuss. “I came here with one purpose. I need to get to the Darkness Beyond.”
“You mentioned that. Are you sure that’s theonlypurpose of your visit?” Her eyes trailed to my hand, where Aegrabane hung at my side.
“I… Yes.” Should there be another purpose? “I’m going to kill Malosym.”
A chuckle sounded from all sides of me, incredulous looks following close behind. I felt like a fucking child.
“You truly believe you can end his life?” Liara asked.
I drew Keeperslight from its sheath, surprised to find that it, too, had its own humming energy, though it was different from Aegrabane’s.
Faldyr stepped forward, his thick, salt-and-pepper eyebrows furrowed as he stared at the blade. “What the hell is that?”
I raised it in my grip, the unassuming blade gleaming in the low amber light. “This blade is imbued with the power of the Daughter of Katia. It’s called Keeperslight.”
Silence fell as the four faces staring at me went slack. It was Idros who stepped forward first, his hands extended and brows raised. “May I?”
I handed the blade over, my eyes firmly set on where the steel met his palms. Idros stared at it in wonder, his eyes narrowing as they trailed up and down the length of the sword.
He passed the blade off to Faldyr, who wasted no time standing back and readying the sword in his grip. With lightning fast movement he swung the sword through the air and a trail of flames sparked to life, licking over the steel before winking out. With wide eyes, he stared at Liara. “He’s telling the truth.”
“Of course I’m telling the truth,” I snapped, impatience flaring to life. “I just traveled by driva all the way from Araqina and through the Iron Rise. Now, can you help me get to the Darkness Beyond or not?”
