Page 24 of The Revered and the Pariah

Ellie hummed as they ambled down the cobblestone path toward the stairs where a pair of sentinels stood. Weapons and armor glistened in the sun and Rion braced himself. One movement. One flick of their wrist and a dagger could be in his back. There was no room for error or distraction.

“Good morning,” Ellie chirped, but their bodies were so stiff Rion wasn’t sure the pair were breathing. A male to his left. A female to his right.

They both carried swords at their sides and knives were already clutched in their palms. He watched their gazes drift from Ellie and snap back to him, likely wondering if they should risk her wrath and end The Demon if they could. They wouldn’t.

It was then that Rion noticed it. Ellie often acted childish, but in that moment, Rion saw the way her body shifted. He scented her magic rise, the droplets forming so close to her skin, an untrained eye would never see it. And he watched the way her gaze scanned over the pair, as if she could see through to every movement of their bodies.

The guards didn’t move and Rion waited until they were halfway down the stairs before speaking.

“What was that?”

“What was what?” She kept her back to him, taking the stairs two at a time.

“Back there.”

She cocked her head back to look at him in the playful sort of way she always did to others. As if he wasn’t different. As if he wasn’t a monster. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

He opened his mouth and closed it again. Well, how was he supposed to respond to that? He’d seen Arianna on the battlefield. Relished in her flawless movements that only came from years of training. Yet Arianna claimed her younger sister had always bested her.

But Arianna hadn’t been the one lying unconscious, barely clinging to life during Fiadh’s siege. Thank the gods.

The trees thinned as they neared the base of the stairs and the area opened into a large courtyard full of fountains, budding trees, newly turned over soil, and those same circling waterways that wove their way through the city.

Fae, half-breeds, and humans roamed the streets dressed for the cool weather. They conversed and laughed with one another in a way he’d rarely seen. No fear drifted through the air and the only sound of chains came from those wearing jewelry around their neck and wrists.

So different from Brónach. So peaceful. He’d advocated to release the slaves once and his brother had thought the idea absurd. Yet if those from Brónach saw what he saw now, perhaps they’d change their minds.

But he was no stranger to how ghosts from the past could haunt the minds of the living. They were taught to hate humans just as much as they were taught to fear those born with his type of magic.

“You think too much,” Ellie said, leading him past another set of guards. Her shoulders shifted again and her magic reappeared telling him she knew exactly what she was doing. “Arianna does the same thing.” Talon had said something similar once. “Care to share your thoughts?”

He supposed leaving her in silence would make for a very awkward time together. “I was just observing how different Móirín is from Brónach.” He let his gaze follow a Fae and half-breed with their fingers interlocked, smiling at one another as if nothing could dampen their spirits. “We don’t have humans and the half-breeds aren’t free to . . . wander.”

Ellie slowed her steps and followed his gaze. “Do you have anything against them?”

Rion recalled Kirian. A brave male who’d stood guard over Ellie’s body. A male willing to die to protect the one he loved. “No.”

“Good.” They passed the final set of guards at the main gate and Rion’s magic crawled beneath his skin, begging for release as those in the vicinity realized who walked beside their future High Lady.

Women and children ducked from the streets and males pulled their families from harm’s reach, ushering them along.

Ellie didn’t react, though he could tell from the way her gaze darted around that she was watching.

He followed her down the cobblestone street, passing a collection of shops marked with colorful storefronts before pausing at a door. A bell sounded when she opened it, but before Rion stepped onto the threshold, fear hit him hard, the scent burning like harsh smoke. He took one look at the frightened female inside and stepped back.

“I’ll wait out here.”

Ellie gave him a sorrowful look. “Just promise you won’t go anywhere.” He nodded and she ducked inside, returning less than a minute later with a bag in hand. “All done. Let’s get out of here.”

Happily. They were drawing too much attention for his comfort. Not for himself—he could handle a few civilians—but Ellie could get injured and he didn’t want his first time out with Arianna’s little sister to result in bloodshed.

The pair walked back toward the estate then past it, the same guards watching his every move. The bustling street thinned until the shops turned into homes and homes turned to land and rock and water. It wasn’t until Ellie veered from the main road that Rion paused.

“Where are we going?”

“Somewhere we can talk.” The hair raised on the back of his neck and she seemed to note his discomfort. What would he do if Arianna’s younger sister attacked him? There weren’t any witnesses out here. It would be their future High Lady’s word against his. He’d been so preoccupied with others gunning for him that he hadn’t paused to consider this might be a trap as well.

Shit. He needed to avoid going any further with her, get back out into the open at the very least.

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