“How many died?” Theon asks, drawing my attention to him.
“The numbers are still coming in, but I'd say a few hundred humans, at least. Fae and immortal?” I place my glass on the table, bobbing my head. “Around fifty or so.”
“Stars save us,” Aurora whispers, placing trembling fingertips to her lips.
The Stars won't save us. They've forsaken us.
“There are still a large number of humans unaccounted for,” Griffin adds, seating himself between Kace and Aurora. “We believe some may have escaped through the gates after they were turned.”
“Could they be in the city?” Adelphia asks, a new fear crossing her face as she clutches the hem of her gown.
“All Soulless that managed to get past the human district were destroyed,” I reply tonelessly.
With a hole to the heart. The same way the Soulless in the human district were killed. I don't know if Zander hunted them down after the attack or if he killed them all in that single strike, but any Soulless we came across while searching the city were already dead.
Zander’s power … the might behind it. I’ve never met a shifter with magic like that. Nor with gold, fluorescent blood. I should have figured there was something wrong with him when I saw his jewels for the first time. Shifters don't manifest jewels like that. No one does.
“What is she?” Adelphia asks, her expression hardening once more.
My lips flatten to a slashed line as I shake my head. “I don't know, but she's not human. None of them are who we believed them to be.” My gaze wanders over Griffin’s clenched jaw, Kace’s accusing glare, and Aurora’s pursed lips, defiance and stubbornness wafting from each of them.
Adelphia rubs her temples, her silk teal dressing gown flowing around her slippered feet as she ascends the dais to sit upon her throne. Placing her elbow on the arm of the crystal throne, she rests her chin on her fist.
Seeing her somber face, the wrinkle between her brows, and the forlorn expression on her face, I realize she doesn’t have one of her many masks in place. Even with her children, she’s never without one. It's a rare opportunity, one I refuse to allow to pass me by.
I push my chair back, each step slow yet purposeful as I move towards the foot of the dais. “What are we going to do about Brecca?”
“I don't know,” she says quietly, staring off at nothing.
“You need to send me up into the mountains.”
Her back stiffens and her eyes dart to mine. “No.”
I groan and pinch my nose, completely baffled as to how she can still refuse to see reason. “Mother, we have no other opt-”
The door suddenly slams open, banging against the wall with a thunderous crack. I spin towards the sound, my heart galloping within my chest when I see none other than Dalenna Nectallius.
“Your Majesty, I need to speak with you,” Lena says, striding purposefully towards the throne with Amara, Zander, and Tristan following at her back.
“How did you get in here?” Aerin shouts, unsheathing his sword and standing before the Queen. “Leave at once!”
Adelphia sucks in a sharp breath, her shocked gaze snapping to Theon at her side, then to me. “The wards are down.”
The unbreachable wards. The wards no one, no human, no fae, no immortal, no Gods Blessed wardbreakers can break. Only the gods themselves have the power to do so.
Yet, Lena did.
Griffin and Kace move swiftly to their sides as I move to intercept their path, placing my body as a shield between the Queen and whatever ungodly creatures stand before me.
“Get. Out,” I snarl at that cursed face.
As one, they all stop, but none of them make any move towards the door. Lena’s gaze snaps to mine, her amethyst eyes cold and unfeeling, showing no sign or care to the male with whom she shared her body only hours before. No sign of guilt for destroying that very same male hours later. Just an unfeeling void, as she herself described the gods once before.
“Step aside, Darius,” Adelphia says.
I remain unmoving.
“Now, Captain.”
I clench my jaw at the order, recognizing the finality in her tone for what it is, and take one slow step back. Then two, but no more than that. Just enough to clear Adelphia’s line of sight, but close enough to intercept these creatures if they wish to cause her harm.
“Where are my guards?” Adelphia asks.
Aurora cries out, slapping a hand to her mouth, and my gaze snaps to the doorway, seeing the guards’ slumped forms.
“They're fine,” Lena says, tossing a flippant hand over her shoulder. “They’re taking a nap.” Her gaze wanders to the Queen, speaking directly to Adelphia. “I need to speak with you.”
“You've said as much,” Adelphia replies, her tone calm and regal, her mask firmly set in place. “Since you’ve gone to so much trouble -”
“It was no trouble at all.” Lena smirks. “We just walked through the door.”
Adelphia's expression doesn't shift, but her chest expands with a steadying breath. “What do you wish to speak to me about?”
“The attack today is just the beginning,” Lena claims. “You've noticed the increased activity from the Soulless? Even before today?” Adelphia nods. “The same has been happening throughout the continent. The King of Brecca-”
“So there is a King,” Theon cuts in, a worried frown pulling at his lips.
“There is,” Lena says factually, still holding Adelphia’s gaze. “The King of Brecca has been watching you for years, biding his time while building his army and amassing weapons. Magical and otherwise.” She gives me a pointed look and my breaths stall in my lungs when she adds, “They plan to attack.”
