Chapter 51

51

L iliana vacillated between sobbing uncontrollably in my arms and trembling like a newborn deer. Slowly, I stripped out of my armor, tossing it away before hooking my leg over hers and holding her closer. A healer stopped by to make sure we were okay, but I waved her off. She returned with a blanket, and once she departed for the second time, I pushed Liliana up and peeled the metal from her body, then wrapped the thick fur around her.

“I’m the worst sister in the history of északi,” she hiccuped, tightening her grip on the soft brown and gray fur.

“You’re not. He worried about you the whole time you were separated. He never stopped loving you or held it against you that you stayed behind. You are as loyal as Vadim is…” My throat thickened, and I swallowed down my own grief to comfort the female I was desperately in love with, “...was, and he knew your loyalties were with Izidora first.”

She turned into me, burying her face in my shoulder. I wrapped my arms tight around her and pulled her backward until we nestled together on the cot. “And you,” she whimpered, clearing her throat before continuing, “you are hurting too. I’m so selfish.”

“Shh,” I murmured, stroking her matted, braided hair. We were both filthy, but the wound in my heart was so fresh I didn’t give a fuck about it.

Kriztof.

Zekari.

Krigin.

Vadim.

All gone. All my brothers, gone.

And Kazimir?

He was next.

Would both Viktor and I be left standing at the end of this?

Or would one, or both, of us be dead?

Vadim’s last request filled my ears. “You have to kill him.”

Had he and Viktor had a change of heart?

“Yes,” Liliana whispered, and I realized then that I had voiced my thoughts out loud. “He told me I was right and that he should have listened to me last year, when we were all still together. Vadim said that he, Viktor, and Kaztar were working to put Kazimir in harm’s way… so he would be killed.”

I gritted my teeth and pushed myself to sit. “Then we have to honor his last wish and ensure that happens.”

Liliana joined me, her seafoam green eyes red rimmed and watery. “What do you mean?”

I swiped a tear that tracked down her cheek, cleaning away a mix of blood and sweat with it. “We can save thousands of lives by killing Kazimir. If he dies, Viktor and Kaztar will stop the battle.”

A slight squaring of Liliana’s shoulders told me I’d lit something in her – something that mirrored the anger rising to mask my grief like a wall of smoke. “What are we lying here for? We have to tell Izidora and Ruslan.”

“Get dressed,” I told her, already rushing around her to grab my own armor.

She didn’t protest, hurriedly fastening the metal plates all over her body. Before she could race into the sunshine, I grabbed her hand and pulled her to me, capturing her mouth for a kiss. Her scent overwhelmed me, the sweet berries and hint of spice cutting through the pain and relieving a tiny ache in my heart. “I love you, Liliana. You are the most incredible female I’ve ever met, and I am choosing you right now like I will choose you every day for the rest of our lives.”

“Stop,” she whimpered, her eyes flooding again.

“No, I need to say it, because I may never get a chance to,” I snapped, a little too forcefully. My grip on her hip tightened, and she sucked in a sharp breath. Her eyes went from brilliant green to black as her pupils dilated.

“Have me, have Drazen, have more than us. I don’t care. I choose you, no matter what.”

“Thank you,” she whispered, and then I sucked her bottom lip into my mouth, nipping it with my teeth and eliciting another delicious whimper from her. With wild eyes, we broke apart, breathless.

“Let’s go.”

The sun rose above the mountain peaks, and we soared among them, searching for a trio of black, chestnut, and white hair. They had gone to the western front, opposite of us, and from deep within Zherzha Pass, we flew in that direction. I made the mistake of glancing down, only to spot the ruby river flowing forcefully in the ravine thousands and thousands of feet below. My stomach churned again as we flew over a mess of tangled bodies piled up and pinned between heavy boulders and snow-dusted pine trees.

Miniature skirmishes played out at varying altitudes, and groups of fighters popped in and out of existence as they moved across the field.

“There!” Liliana shouted over the wind, pointing further to our left.

She banked, and I followed her, racing toward Ruslan, Zuriel, and Izidora. The three fought fiercely with an amalgamation of warriors – Iron Fae, Félvér, and Telivér – against a large group of Night Fae.

Liliana and I dropped from the sky, joining the fray.

“Why are you over here?” Ruslan snapped, ripping through the tough leathers of a Night Fae with only his giant Dragon talons.

But then Izidora noticed us. “Oh, shit, what’s wrong?”

Liliana shook her head, throat working as she was unable to speak.

“Cover me!” Izidora shouted, dropping back and taking us with her. The soldiers closed ranks and continued to swing at their opponents.

Her eyes darted between Liliana and me. “Tell me.”

“Vadim… he’s dead,” Liliana choked out, and Izidora swept her into a tight embrace, making soothing noises as she reached for my hand. I let her take it, and the grief ebbed as she siphoned it away.

Ruslan was by our side moments later. Clenching my teeth around what remained of my grief, I conveyed what Vadim had said. “If we kill Kazimir, the battle is over. Viktor and Kaztar will surrender.”

“You’re certain?” he growled, his eyes narrowing on me.

Would he ever trust me?

“He’s telling the truth,” Liliana defended me, though her voice was slightly muffled in Izidora’s neck.

“Then we need to find him. And fast,” Izidora pronounced, straightening. Her eyes held a fire reminiscent of our first encounter, when she had fought against us despite the fact that we were trying to rescue her from her chains.

The female before me was formidable, a dark, powerful aura surrounding her, and by the firm set of her jaw, I knew she was not to be messed with – not when it came to this. After everything that had happened to her, she deserved to take whatever vengeance she sought.

I certainly wasn’t going to interfere with that.

“How can we help?” I asked, my heart sinking to the pit of my stomach, even as I meant the words passing my lips.

“I will maintain a mental connection with everyone,” Zuriel offered, nearly making me jump at his sudden appearance. “Simply shout in your mind that you have found him, and I will dispatch the others.”

Ruslan crooked a brow at him. “Not only can you read minds, but you can read them across the entire battlefield?”

The Angel shrugged. “I block everyone out, most of the time.”

“We’ll talk about your powers in extensive, truthful detail when this is over,” Ruslan snarled, cracking his neck, then his knuckles.

“Of course,” Zuriel replied, but there was a sadness to his tone I couldn’t quite place.

The others had finished off the Night Fae during our discussion, leaving us momentarily protected on the top of the cliff. Ruslan assigned us directions to travel and ordered us to relay the information to all commanders we came across. The Demons took off first, flying fast and hard toward the center of the battle, while Liliana and I returned to our earlier section in the east.

Ruslan, Izidora, and Zuriel carved a path high above, eventually disappearing from view.

As we wove among the clouds, I gave Liliana’s hand a reassuring squeeze.

We’d make it out alive, at least.

The emotional wounds would take longer to heal.