Chapter Forty-Four

W hen Evienne exited the side door of the Centrale Dellumine into the dark alley the sounds of a city celebrating greeted her. The music and laughter of Ichorna’s people felt garish in comparison to the intense silence of her focus.Fury pulsed through her in time with her heart, her pain a song echoing through her mind.

She walked calmly through the streets, drifting in and out of the pools of mage light that painted the streets in a warm glow. No one spared her a glance despite her disheveled appearance and bloodied hand, too preoccupied with the revelry around them.

With the millennium celebration in full swing, she must have been locked in that room for a full day. She could only imagine what they had done to Orion; she didn’t have a single second to waste.

She had another gift at her disposal—one she would have to use for the first time now if she had any hope of getting her Còmhanam out of this alive. She would need to glance to make it in time.

Evienne let every moment she had spent with Orion flood into her mind, feeling the sense of rightness that always burrowed into her soul when he was near. She thought of his striking eyes, so full of caring and intelligence. She thought of the warm sound of his laugh, the feel of his thick fur beneath her fingertips, the feeling of his voice in her mind.She ignored the burning sensation of the blood in her veins.

One moment, she was on the crowded street; the next breath she took filled her nostrils with the scent of damp, stale water and a tinge of blood. Her eyes adjusted to the darkness to find Orion sitting against the wall, eyes wide and trained on her in shock.

“Evi, how are you here?” His voice was a whisper as he rose and rushed to her.

She was too stunned to answer; she couldn’t believe it had worked.

“Orion, we don’t have time; we need to get Solon, and you both have to leave immediately ,” Evienne said, her voice even.

She took his hand in her uninjured one and squeezed softly.

“I don’t know what will happen to me tonight, but over my cold, dead corpse will they take your life. You have to run, to survive, and if I make it out, I’ll find you wherever you are.”

Orion shook his head, brow furrowed and denial on his lips, but before he could speak, Evienne kissed him. She kissed him as if it was the last time she ever would. Then she took his hand and sent her magic spearing for the door mechanism.

They found Solon in a cell down the hall, much worse for wear. They had sent the guards for him, and he hadn’t come without a fight apparently. Bruises marred his handsome face and his left eye was nearly swollen shut.

“How..?” He began, trying—and failing—to get to his feet as they barged into the cell.

“No time to explain, old friend. We have to get you out of here,” Orion said quietly, striding to Solon’s side.Orion looked to Evienne.

“You have to get him away from here, Orion. And you have to stay away as well. If Aldith sees you again, she will kill you. I won’t be able to live with myself if I don’t keep you safe from this,” Evienne said, voice breaking.

“Evi, not leaving you,” he said.

Evienne knew they didn’t have time to argue, so all she said in response was “I love you, Orion, and I am proud to have been your Còmhanam, even if this was all the time we had.”

She didn’t wait to hear his response, but glanced out of the dungeons beneath the palace to the hallway just outside the great hall, where she knew the queen’s grand finale to this whole cursed celebration was taking place.Her heart was breaking to leave Orion behind, but his safety was more important than having him by her side. She loved him, and she would protect him to her dying breath.

The music and joyful chatter of the streets was echoed in the palace as Queen Aldith’s final ball raged on, the minutes until the new Millennium dripping away in a haze of alcohol and dancing.

Evienne took a deep breath and steeled herself for what she knew she must do. Aldith had to be removed from power tonight, one way or another. Her plan was simple: make the truth known, no matter the cost. She would have to intuit the rest as she went.Her anger kept her mind sharp and pushed any doubt out of her mind.

She strode into the great hall, head held high, and made her way to the very center of the room. A few surprised exclamations rose from the crowd as she passed—blood still dripped from her hand—but no one stopped her.

When she was only twenty paces from the dais, she let her voice ring out clear as a bell on a winter morning.

“Aldith of Ichorna, I condemn you and your forebears for the atrocities you have committed against the nation of Beitar. You have robbed the Tuanadair of their magic, crippled them, to power our technology. You have bound our queen’s magic and preyed upon her to work your Valsang. All in shameful secrecy! You are not fit to bear Ichorna’s crown any longer!”

Silence had fallen across the hall the moment Evienne began to speak, and now the only sound was the rustle of skirts as guests shifted anxiously, unsure what to do.

Léhiona sat frozen on the throne next to Aldith’s, eyes wide with horror and fixed on Evienne. She wished that Léhiona, who had been a true friend to her all these years, had found out about this another way; there just hadn’t been time. Her shock and devastation broke Evienne’s heart. Anger for her friend was a keening wail in her soul.

After a moment of horrible, tense silence, Queen Aldith spoke, not even deigning to rise from her throne to respond to Evienne’s accusations.

“Guards, remove this traitor from our celebration immediately.”

Evienne glared at the guards, her labored breathing the only sound she could hear. No one moved. Léhiona slid her eyes to her wife at her side and said quietly, “Aldith, my love, what is she talking about?”

Without tearing her gaze from Evienne, Aldith replied, “Nothing but traitorous delusions, dearest, I’m sure.”

If Aldith continued to play the fool, Evienne knew she would have to strike her down and become Ichorna’s villain in the process. It was something she was prepared to do.

Sylvain stepped forward from the crowd then, moving with grace toward the front of the hushed room.

“Your Majesty, I have never known our High Sangviere to harbor delusions. I would not dismiss her so lightly.”

The crowd began to murmur at Sylvain’s declaration. Even he did not usually dare to speak so publicly against the queen. Aldith’s placid expression hardened into cold anger at her brother’s defiance.

“I will unbind Queen Léhiona and you will all see for yourselves Queen Aldith’s deception!” Evienne spoke surely, taking another step forward. Despite her body’s protests, she would have to put another facet of her Contrapensae magic to the test tonight.

“Guards! Remove her!”

Evienne’s magic lashed out of her; it came as naturally to her as breathing, though she didn’t consciously understand what she was doing. Her power bore down on the dark magic binding Léhiona, rending it, forcing the dark magic wound into that black band around her finger to disintegrate bit by bit.

Léhiona screamed and doubled over as the magic was torn from her, and Aldith leapt up to take her wife’s hand. When she realized what was happening, though, it was too late. Léhiona’s scream halted as quickly as it had begun, and she darted her gaze to Evienne.

Evienne nodded to her friend, emotion nearly overwhelming her as she realized Léhiona was free for the first time in ten years. Tears streamed down Léhiona’s face—she knew, too.

The moment Léhiona began to shift, unbound, time slowed to an ethereal drip. Her magic shimmered and her graceful human form dissolved. Out of an opalescent mist, a jewel-toned luna moth the size of a raven materialized, each beat of its massive wings an eternity.

Seconds slipped back into place, and Evienne heard sounds of awe rise from the crowd around her at Léhiona’s second form. She fluttered down from the dais, and Evienne extended a hand toward her. Léhiona came to rest on Evienne’s finger as she said, “This is proof of my condemnation. Bear witness to your wife’s oppression and answer for your crimes, Aldith of Ichorna.”

Sylvain rushed to Evienne’s side as she spoke, offering his hand to Léhiona. She fluttered over to him, and he stared at her in awe, running a finger over her downy wing. She was so beautiful it nearly took Evienne’s breath away.

Dominique’s strident laughter cut across the soft murmurs of the crowd as she slithered toward the dais from wherever she had been hiding. Evienne’s exhausted body tensed at the sound of Dominique’s voice. She addressed Aldith with open derision.

“You imbecile, how could you think you could contain her? I bet her Tuanadair friends are halfway home by now. You should have killed her when you had the chance and fixed your spell, but you can’t do anything right can you, your majesty? ”

Aldith stood frozen, her jaw slack at Dominique’s words. Evienne and Sylvain watched, both on edge and ready to protect Léhiona. Sylvain was no great Sangviere, but he had some basic defensive training. Léhiona was now perched on his shoulder, her wings flitting nervously.

“Nothing to say for yourself?” Dominique asked before turning to address the crowd.

“The truth is, my friends, your queen does not have the strength to do what must be done to ensure our progress—to solidify Ichorna’s greatness, our place in this world. Aldith had one task to carry out to ensure Ichorna’s needs were met for her lifetime, and she put her own desires above the needs of her country. That little Tuanadair wife of hers was supposed to give us access to power for decades, but she couldn’t bring herself to do it right—didn’t want to hurt her as much. Take me as your ruler instead, and I will not suffer anyone to stand in the way of our dreams! I will not stand for imperfections or weakness or sentiment!”

The crowd inhaled a collective gasp at her words, and before Dominique could even turn back to Aldith, she lurched, her body seizing. Evienne glanced at Aldith, who now had a trickle of blood running down her wrist. She had used another of those cursed vials of another’s blood to perform her Valsang.Evienne watched as Aldith took hold of Dominique’s body and held it at her mercy.

A few people in the crowd screamed as the sound of snapping bones echoed through the hall. Dominique’s arms and legs now bent at unnatural angles. She shouldn’t be standing, but Aldith’s grip on her kept her upright. She had no control of her body now. She couldn’t even scream.

“You disloyal, grasping, traitor !” Aldith screamed, and a trickle of blood ran down from Dominique’s nose to her chin. She did not look afraid. She stared back at Aldith with hatred in her eyes.Evienne made no move to interfere; if these two wished to destroy each other, she would gladly let them.

Aldith didn’t let Dominique go, clenching her hand into a fist around the blood and broken glass in her palm. A sickening crack sounded, and a mist of blood sprayed where Dominique’s body had been.