37. Chapter 36

Chapter 36

A ya prowled through the woods, thinking of Elaine; if she was safe, unharmed; and if Ingrid had harmed her, how Aya planned to make the banshee beg for her life. All around her, the remaining humans shrank away; wide eyes regarding her like she was about to kill them all. If Elaine died… no, she wasn't going to think about that. She couldn't.

One mercy was Alexios and Ryker sent their people away, leaving only a handful of syrens by the water, tending as best as they could to the injured. The less people she had to deal with, the better. She paused at the tree line, watching the two men—reluctant allies at best. Loraina left her people, drifting over to the pair. Lured by the prospect of a plan, Aya joined them.

"I still cannot believe Orion is…and Ingrid…" Loraina's gaze fell to the ground. "This is a right fucking mess."

Alexios cleared his throat. "I have sent my people to start looking."

"As have I," murmured Aya. "But the dead haven't found anything."

"Yet." Alexios squeezed her hand. "We'll find her."

The crack in the sky thrummed softly, and she knew that the barrier was coming down soon—one way or another. They were no closer to a solution to either stop it (if that was even possible) or a way to heal it, which put her at odds with the deal she struck with Akaria.

"Ingrid won't get away with her part in this whole mess," Loraina finally said. "She will face justice."

"Yes, she will," Aya replied.

Ryker folded his arms across his chest. "Proper justice."

The corner of Aya's mouth curled into a predatory grin. "I would advise you not to stand between me and Ingrid."

"You are not above the law."

"Care to test that?"

He stared back, unflinching and defiant. "There are rules, Aya."

"And once I have Ingrid's head mounted on a stick, then I'll follow them like a good little necromancer."

Tobias approached, rubbing the back of his neck. Ryker's mouth clamped shut, but the hard set of his mouth told her this conversation was far from over. Good, she'd beat his ass if he tried to stop her.

"Nora asked if she might speak with you all," Tobias began. "And I said that I would ask."

He slanted her a quick look, she wants to tell them everything.

Very well.

"And she's sent word to bring Tarla here. We're going to need all the help we can get."

To say the council was surprised to learn of Nora's secret mission, and of who she was, was an understatement. When Zari swept from the trees, Ryker and Loraina stiffened. The sight of another demon was a surprise. Zari paid them no mind as they took up position at Nora's side, standing guard in much the same way Sabra did with Aya.

Ryker glowered. "Your people have spent the entire life of Purgatory in secret, hiding from the spirits—and now we are to believe you decide to expose yourself?"

Nora tilted her head. "I should think the spirits have larger concerns than my people. Besides, right now the priority is locating Elaine. With her, Ingrid will have what she needs to find and free Aurora."

Ryker tilted his head. "Then why was that human brought back if all she needed was Elaine?"

Aya cleared her throat before Nora could speak. "Yrene discovered in one of the older journals that Orion, some witches and a couple of humans were, for a brief period, responsible for tending to the prison. Ensuring it remained hidden. He was the only one named, so they brought him back to locate her. They also believed he might know how to free her."

"But he couldn't, could he?"

"Alas, no. After that, Honoria wanted him dead, but Marisol convinced her to spare him. She placed him with his people, learning everything they could from him. Curiously, Honoria kept his identity from Ingrid."

Tobias grimaced. "With Elaine's connection and what we know, Ingrid could use her to not only get to Aurora but free her."

A look of hope lit across Ryker's face. "We could use Orion. He can tell us where—"

"Afraid he can't," Aya cut in wearily. It had been one of her first questions for Orion once they'd cracked the spell around his mind. "Honoria erased the specific location. Did a damn thorough job of it too."

She didn't enjoy the hope flickering out in his eyes. His jaw clenched, as if he were fighting back words—probably some rather unsavory ones, too. Aya wouldn't blame him.

Tobias cleared his throat, drawing the attention—and a little of the ire—to him. "If you could spare any of your pack to look for Elaine, I would be in your debt."

Ryker waved off the offer. "We're all dead if we fail. Consider it done."

Loraina nodded. "I shall send my girls through the rivers. If Elaine is near water, we will know."

Lastly, Nora spoke. "Then I will speak with Tarla, see if she might lend some of her people with mine to tend to the injured. Then I suggest we regroup back at the Inner District."

As everyone started to move, Ryker cleared his throat. "What happens if we're too late…I mean, can you?"

The question hung between the group, and Aya was acutely aware of how they all looked at her; afraid, desperate, needing something from her. Even an empty promise."

Aya straightened up, pulling in the shadows around her as she answered in a voice low as a whispering breeze, thrumming with a magic like cold death. "There is something in place if required."

She soared over the blackened forest, the remnants of Arcan's attack stretched out before her, a reminder of what awaited them if she failed. A world set against them, both mortal and immortal. And she was under no illusion that if the Vesmir royal family was still in power, then they would come for her.

Let them, she thought viciously, I will slaughter every single one that comes.

Below, a figure blinked in and out of the shadows, darting along in tandem with her. Her shadow, her best friend, the other half of her rage. The one who had seen her at her worst, when she was young and violent, and prepared at sixteen to start a war to keep a demon safe.

Sabra nudged at her mind, her voice slipping through, gentle. Ryker is right to be worried.

I can do it.

There was a lingering pause.

I can sense Akaria's touch on you, so I'm assuming that's your plan?

Aya said nothing.

The dead stretched wide across Purgatory in their search. Aya sensed them across the ancient woods to the north where the wolves prowled, to the Dusk Quarter and deep within the Inner District. Wolves hunted the woods, howling through the ancient trees, until the air seemed alive with their calls. Vampires blurred through the thicket, calling out every so often before melting away into the dark.

It should've given her hope. Groups that were scarcely allies unified in the search for her witch. Yet with every second that passed and the sun rising over the horizon, stretching out fingers of sunlight over the woods, Aya's anxiety only deepened. Magic thrummed restlessly in her veins, pushing against her skin, seeking a release.

Anything? She asked for the fifth time to Sabra, who to her credit, maintained the same gentle reply.

Nothing yet.

She eventually circled back to the old ruins and landed. A deep ache throbbed between her shoulders, radiating along her spine. She wasn't accustomed to flying so much, and she was barely used to the weight of wings on her back. A pang of longing lanced through her chest, wishing Elaine was with her, that she was okay and smiling. Aya burned to hear her laugh again, scolding her for something Aya had done.

Lost in thoughts, she barely registered Sabra's presence until she was only a few feet away. Her lips parted to speak when Zari appeared, walking in sync with Sabra. Those piercing dark eyes regarded Aya with an unreadable expression. Aya didn't know if they wanted to kill her—or if they still simply loathed the bond Aya had with Sabra.

The air crackled between them, two dangerous souls sizing the other up. Instinctively, Aya tugged on the shadows.

Zari's face softened, and at once, the fight bled from Aya. Even Sabra relaxed a little, seeming at ease that, for the present moment, neither Aya nor Zari was about to start a fight. Bloodshed was tabled.

"I'm sorry," Zari murmured.

Aya straightened up, releasing the shadows back to the trees. "You're not the first to try and kill me. Probably won't be the last."

"I did it because I wanted to break the bond," Zari continued, their voice low, uncertain almost. "I didn't understand it. I thought you—"

"Wanted to fuck her?"

"Aya," Sabra snapped, exasperated.

A tiny laugh escaped Aya. "I'm sorry. That was crude of me, but I know what you mean Zari. To confirm, however, I would fight until my last breath for Sabra, to make sure she had whatever home she wanted. But I do not love her as I do Elaine. She is my forever."

"I see that now." Zari offered a small smile but said nothing more.

Aya glimpsed a whole world within Zari's eyes; a demon with a great history within them, secrets as vast as the ocean, and a loyalty for Sabra Aya was beginning to understand. Perhaps they were going to fit in with their chaotic little family.

She dipped her head, signaling a truce, before she headed for the main temple. She reached the open doors but before she could step inside, Zari glided past. The demon stalked over to one of the old torches mounted on the wall and ripped it off. Wordlessly, they passed their hand over the tip and flames sparked to life.

As the fire chased back the deep shadows, Zari whistled softly.

"Your world changes so much so quickly," they reflected. "This used to be a place of worship."

"To what god?"

"Oh, the humans back then didn't pray to them," Zari replied. "These folks used to give thanks to the spirits who protected them. Was rather strange when I first came here but then again, much of this place is baffling to me."

Sabra chuckled. "You get used to it. Purgatory has all kinds of charms."

Zari's gaze slid over them, lingering upon Sabra in skepticism, before it lifted to Aya. A moment passed between them, a kind of kinship, and she swore she heard the silent words in her ear.

So, she still has questionable taste? Zari seemed to be saying.

Aya shrugged and headed down toward the room with the murals. Her boots clicked along the stone, echoing like a mocking drum. The same dark presence of Akaria's magic slid over her skin, thickening as she entered the space. A cold, white breath bloomed before her lips, a rapid chill claiming the space. Hairs lifted along her arms.

Something wasn't right.

She eyed the time-worn murals and the gaping hole, revealing the secret chamber on the other side. The flickering glow of Zari's torch and Aya's sharpened sight through the gloom yielded nothing to explain the itchiness against her skin.

"Do you sense that?" she asked.

"Feels the same as before," Sabra replied warily. "Why?"

Her frown only deepened as she inched forward, wings ruffling against her back. A little voice at the edge of her mind, the instinct she trusted so implicitly, whispered to her to turn back. That she was in danger.

"Zari, do you remember anything who—"

"Ah!"

"Zari!"

She turned just as Zari dropped to the ground, clutching at her head. A whimpering noise, like a broken animal, cracked from them. Sabra dropped down beside them, Aya closing in, when Zari stilled suddenly. Their hands dropped.

Shadows darkened in a flash, the room turning glacial, as Zari slowly lifted their head. A sharp tug yanked in Aya's chest, and like a knife to the heart, she cried out, dropping to her knees. The cold understanding surged through her limbs. She battled to lift the warning from her throat, trapped there by a hard grip around it.

"Zari, Zari, what's wrong?" Sabra reached for them.

Aya's lips parted, a silent scream clawing at her mouth, and she tried to call down their bond, yanking as hard as she could. Sabra paid her no mind as time slowed, her fingers reaching for Zari's upper arm.

It's not her! Aya wanted to scream. It's not her, it's—

Zari's hand shot out, grabbing Sabra by the throat. Aya tried to move but her body was stone, her muscles no longer hers to command. In a flash, she was helpless, forced to watch as Zari threw Sabra into the wall. Stone cracked on impact. The sickening crunch of bone echoed off the walls as Sabra dropped, blood smearing in her wake.

Sabra!

Blood thundered in her ears, drowning out her own haggard breaths as they racked her body. The anger flooded back in, an unbridled storm unleashed, surging through her limbs. Cold darkness licked against her palms.

A shadow fell over her.

Aya dragged her focus to the demon staring down at her. Only, it wasn't Zari. Not anymore. A different voice bled through. One she knew all too well.

"I'm sorry, Aya, there has been a change of plans."

Akaria.