Page 85 of Empire of Death
Callum turned to me. “Are you ready,Xivin?”
I looked at my brother, who didn’t appear terrified or even surprised by the presence of the god of the underworld, in his armor and with his broadsword across his back. “You’ve seen him before…”
Hawk held my gaze but gave no confirmation of my suspicion.
I turned to Callum, knowing he wouldn’t lie to me. “You’ve spoken to him before.”
“I made it clear that I serve you. Instead of letting him live in fear of my intentions, I assured him how pure they are.” He held my stare with such authority that it was clear the discussion was over. “Time is not on our side,Xivin.” He extended his hand to me, so I could go to him when I was ready to leave.
Hawk gave no objection, as if he understood the relationship, when there was no way he possibly could.
I moved to Callum, and the second his hand was on my arm, I felt the pull between us, the inherent magnetism. It made me think of our night in the bathtub and how he held me while I slept all night, keeping the water warm for me.
“Where?”
“Far to the north. There are mountains and snow. Just above the Viamin Kingdom.”
He seemed to understand exactly where that was because the world spun in a flash, and then my boots hit the hard snow. I stood outside a stone castle at the bottom of an endless set of wide stairs. The wind howled, and the pines bent slightly in the wind. Gusts of snow flew by, despite the protection of the walls of the city.
I headed up the stairs and approached the double doors to the castle.
Two guards were there, and they immediately unsheathed their blades for battle like I was an enemy here to take down the castle entirely on my own.
“I’m looking for General Viper. Is he here?”
At that moment, the enormous double doors opened behind the soldiers, and just by chance, he stepped into the cold, covered in his black and red armor, a crest of a snake in the center of his chest. With dilated pupils and a slit down the middle of his dark eyes, he stared me down. First, with hostility, and then surprise once he recognized me. “Stand down.” He moved directly between the two soldiers, who stepped out of the way like the parting sea. He stopped before me, eyes flicking back and forth between mine like he needed a moment to verify it was really me. A flicker of emotion entered his gaze, a desire thatI remembered seeing during our nights together in front of the fire. “I knew you’d come back?—”
“My kingdom is at war, and I come to ask for aid.” My heart raced so quickly in my chest that I could hear it pound in my ears. Made it almost difficult to hear. “The Barbarians carry blades of cursed gold that leave their victims unable to heal. My father was cut down in battle, and only by the power of our dragons is he able to cling to life. The Barbarians have conquered my ally, and they have vampires in their army that my men can’t defeat. I understand this isn’t your war, that we’re so far away that the outcome doesn’t affect you, but I believe if these assholes are the victors, it will affect you…someday.” I got it all out before he could interrupt me, so he could understand that I’d come for one specific reason…and one specific reason alone. He was as handsome as I remembered, but my desire for him had been extinguished by the love for another man. I’d thought bedding a vampire was foolish, but a relationship with him now made way more sense than being with the god of the underworld.
He absorbed all of that in a silence that lasted minutes. His eyes hardened when he realized I didn’t seek his heart, but his army. There wasn’t anger in the stare, but disappointment so clear that I was certain Callum could see it too. “I’m sorry about your father and your kingdom.”
“Thank you.”
“I can present this to my king, but we had our own war recently, and we’ve been in recovery ever since.”
“He’s your brother, isn’t he?”
“Yes.”
“Then could you ask him as your brother, not your king?”
He inhaled a slow breath as his eyes dropped momentarily. “I would for my woman…but not anyone less.”
It was a fair thing to say, so I didn’t react to it. I knew Callum was there and could easily piece all of this together in a flash. My skin felt red because of how hot it was. I felt like I’d betrayed the man in my heart just by acknowledging my past. “This enemy is intent on world domination. I hope our fleet of dragons is enough to defeat them, but their cannons cause wounds that don’t heal…and they could take out my dragons. They conquered my biggest ally before I could get there, and I’m not going to pretend I’m not scared because I am.”
Viper stared at me with his reptilian eyes, his thoughts and emotions concealed from me. The silence continued, and it was unclear if he was actually considering my request…or thinking about something else. “I will petition the king on your behalf. In the meantime, I’ll have the servants prepare your quarters?—”
“I’m not staying, but thank you for the offer.”
“You just got here, Lily. You must be exhausted.”
“War encroaches on my borders. I can’t be this far away from my kingdom when it’s in peril. Time is not on my side, so if you could speak to your brother as quickly as possible, I would appreciate it.”
“I don’t even know where your kingdom is.”
“I can draw you a map…if you choose to come.”
His eyes flicked back and forth quickly when he realized it was already time to say goodbye, even though he’d just said hello.
