Page 21 of The Revered and the Pariah

An icy storm billowed just beneath the surface of her skin as Arianna marched through her family’s estate with Rion and Talon trailing her. Eoghan had opted to stay with the cabin, just to be sure no one tampered with it in their absence.

The royal city, Ruadhán. It was a mysterious place rumored to float high above the land. A civilization where all four nations worked together to create a haven for The Divine to enact her will.

Yet, if they represented such serenity, where had they been during the war? Why hadn’t they intervened or helped those displaced and left to rot?

If they were so noble, why hadn’t they put a stop to every war before this one?

Servants and warriors both paused to watch the trio pass. Some smiled at her, but upon seeing her mate they all ducked their heads and either grimaced or outright fled.

Arianna couldn’t stop the way her magic spun around her body with warriors so near to her mate. This wasn’t the infirmary wing. This was where the council members dwelled. Where their High Lord ran the country of Móirín. Every warrior in these walls would give their life for her father. And Rion was enemy number one.

She didn’t want to see any of them. Her father, the council, those more than willing to take Rion’s life.

It was difficult to remember exactly who’d been present at Rion’s execution, but Arianna remembered a few.

And she loathed them with every fiber of her being.

A growl rumbled through her chest and she didn’t miss the way the nearby warriors stepped back. Good, they should know their places where her mate was concerned.

They continued down the outside corridor that ran parallel to a massive waterfall. The droplets collected against her skin as they passed several pavilions and the giant fountain that depicted a phoenix and dragon.

These falls had cooled her face weeks ago when she’d first entered Levea with nothing but sadness in her heart. But she wasn’t sad now and they did nothing to quell the anger threatening to burst free.

Arianna wished she had more time to sort through her feelings about her father. She’d wanted to wait until the bond settled when her emotions wouldn’t be so high, but it didn’t appear as though Ruadhán was giving her a choice.

She could always tell them to leave.

Arianna inwardly sighed. Did she have a right to be angry with her father? At the time of Rion’s execution, Avalon had thought Rion responsible for his mate’s death. Ellie had informed him otherwise, though Arianna hadn’t bothered to listen to the details. She should have. She should be doing more for her people, for the entire city as The Divine. Yet, some healing was all she’d managed. She’d been selfish, the instinct to protect her mate overriding everything else—

Her father’s scent wafted toward her and Arianna’s anger soared, ripping a snarl from her that had everyone in the vicinity running.

“Calm down,” Talon urged, but the anger burned through her veins like wildfire.

Calm, right, she needed to be calm to actually speak to her father so she wouldn’t just march in and rip his godsforsaken head off. She needed to discover what he’d told the royal city and figure out her role.

“What do you know?” she asked Talon, hoping to distract herself as they crossed the last hall before entering the building. Only two doors stood between her and the High Lord.

“Just that the royal city has summoned you. Avalon said you’d come to him when the time was right.”

She growled again. Which meant he let them come. Or maybe those in Ruadhán were just as impatient as her father and didn’t care what she had to say. Would they try to drag her against her will? One look at Rion told her that wouldn’t happen, though she seriously doubted Talon would let anyone touch her against her will either.

Her mind returned to her father. One issue at a time. Her father hadn’t summoned her or sought her out in the time she’d been with Rion, either because he understood the mating bond or she’d humiliated him so much that he didn’t want to see her. Maybe this was as much of a strain for him as it was for her.

But . . . would her father hate her forever? He was the only parent she had left and the thought sobered her just a bit. What if Rion was a problem they’d never be able to work past?

“I’ve read a lot of books on the royal city,” Talon said. “From what I’ve gathered about their past, I’d err on the side of diplomacy where they’re concerned.”

“Because they were so diplomatic by letting a war rage on for a decade.”

Talon sighed. “I know.” He’d been there to witness it just as much as she had. Rion, too. They’d all glimpsed different parts of the darkness war brought on, and it had changed them all. Arianna had just recently begun to wonder how much.

They entered a large foyer and Arianna paused to stare at the door that led to her father’s study. Two sentinels stood on either side, as they always did when he wasn’t preoccupied with meetings.

She took a deep breath, tapped her foot, then glanced toward her mate. She didn’t want her father anywhere near him, but she also didn’t want to be separated from him either.

“It’s probably not a good idea for you to come in there with me,” Arianna said, unable to tear her gaze away from the guards. An emotion flew down the bond, but Arianna couldn’t discern whether it was anger, fear, hatred, or a combination of all three.

“For you or Avalon?” Talon asked.

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