Total pages in book: 222
Estimated words: 213974 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1070(@200wpm)___ 856(@250wpm)___ 713(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 213974 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1070(@200wpm)___ 856(@250wpm)___ 713(@300wpm)
My mind raced as the two argued. The first time Sotoria had died…gods, it had been hundreds of years ago, if not close to a thousand, back when Kolis ruled as the true Primal of Death, and his brother the Primal of Life. So exactly how old was Callum? Had Kolis created Callum even before he stole the embers from Eythos?
Or had Callum known her decades later, after she’d been ripped away from the peace of the Vale and brought back to life—after Kolis stole the embers and brought her back? No one knew exactly how long she had lived that second life. But still, even that was hundreds of years ago.
Callum was clearly old, and Kolis could have been able to create Revenants before he stole the Primal embers of life.
“You should drink.” Ione offered the glass to me. “It will help settle your mind.”
Hand trembling slightly, I reached out and took the glass from her. Our eyes met. “Thank you,” I said, hoping she knew it wasn’t just the water I was thanking her for.
A faint smile appeared on her thin lips, softening her sharper features. “You’re welcome.”
I took a sip of the fruity water and then gulped as Ione turned back to Kolis. His hands continuously opened and closed at his sides.
“I am happy that you have found your graeca,” Ione stated, and I nearly choked on my water, my eyes and throat burning. “You must be overjoyed.”
“I…I am,” Kolis murmured.
I thought maybe he should sit down since he appeared as if he were close to falling over.
“Is there anything else you need of me, Your Majesty?” Ione asked.
“No.” His hands stilled. “Your assistance is appreciated and won’t be forgotten.”
Ione nodded as she stepped back, bowing to Kolis before facing me. She smiled, the eather now a faint pulse behind her pupils. It was quick. I saw it. Kolis didn’t. His attention was fixed on me. I could feel it, like I was being suffocated in a too-heavy, coarse blanket.
“Good day, Consort.” Ione inclined her head.
I mumbled something in response.
“Ione,” Kolis called out, and my fingers twitched around the glass. The false warmth in his voice immediately caused warning bells to go off.
The goddess stopped at the cage door. “Yes, Your Majesty?”
I lowered the glass to my lap, watching Kolis’s lips curve into a tight grin. “You addressed her as Consort.”
“Yes, I…” Her arched brows knitted. “Was I not supposed to?”
“No,” Kolis answered. “You were not.”
Ione’s wary gaze darted between us. “I…I apologize. I’m—”
“It’s okay,” I interjected. “That is my title.”
Kolis’s head turned toward me, his eyes as still and flat as the waters of my lake, causing the hairs on the back of my neck to rise. “It is no longer how you are to be addressed.”
A sudden wave of dread flooded me, and I struggled not to show it on my face. It took everything for me to slip on that veil of nothingness again.
His stare held mine. “Your coronation was not recognized nor approved by me.”
My mouth parted in incredulity. That was a bald-faced lie.
“Therefore, the coronation itself was invalid,” he continued. I couldn’t believe what I was hearing as he turned his attention back to the goddess. “Do you understand?”
“I…I was unaware of this.” Ione lowered her gaze and nodded. “I do understand.”
I was nowhere near being the blank canvas I needed to be now as I clenched my teeth. My fury had nothing to do with losing my perceived rank in some ridiculous class structure; it was the message that he was sending to the other Primals. That any accusations of Kolis breaking tradition by taking me could be discredited.
Only the Primals Attes, and his brother Kyn, had been present when Kolis gave Ash and me his permission. The latter would likely back up whatever Kolis claimed, but Attes…
He had sworn an oath to me.
However, the false King wasn’t aware of that. Just as he had no idea that Ione had lied to him.
My anger cooled as Ione crossed the chamber. Attes would have to support Ash, and that included telling the truth about Kolis giving his permission. Of course, the other Primals could choose not to believe Attes or Ash, but Kolis’s plans weren’t as clever as he thought they were.
“Your Majesty,” Callum began once Ione was gone.
“I know what you think, Callum. I understand it is hard to believe. And accept,” Kolis said, the flatness leaving his gaze, and the golden flecks burning brightly. “And you’re right. She looks different, but the similarities are there. I can see them.”
Callum said nothing, but he too stared at me.
Gods. One was bad enough, but both of them scrutinizing me? I wanted to gouge their eyes out.
“But it is her,” Kolis continued. The expression on Callum’s face grew increasingly more disturbing, reminding me of how I knew I’d looked at Tavius. “After all this time, my graeca has returned to me.”