“Say it.” The king’s voice was low and dangerous. “Or you will watch me cut your friend into small pieces. First, I’ll remove his toes, then his feet. Then his fingers and hands. I will feed him piece by piece to my dogs while he screams for a mercy that will never come. My dogs do so love fresh meat.” His eyes flashed with fury. “Say it.”
“I, Cleiona Aurora Bellos,” she choked out, “do pledge to take Magnus Lukas Damora as my husband and future king. A bond that will begin this day and go forth unto eternity.”
The priest anointed her forehead with the fragrant oil. Even though he was from Limeros, she was certain she now saw pity in his eyes. “And so it is, and so it shall be, from this day forward until death and beyond. You are wed. You are husband and wife. It is done.”
It is done.
CHAPTER 21
ALEXIUS
THE SANCTUARY
Melenia looked up as Alexius entered her chambers in the crystal palace. It was a room filled with light and flowers. A floor-to-ceiling crystal window looked out to the expansive city far below, where other immortals made their home.
The window bore a jagged crack down the center. The massive tremor in the mortal world had been clearly felt here as well. Many immortals, in fact, had panicked, believing this to be the end.
But Alexius knew differently.
He’d already been on his way to see Melenia when it happened. His steps were focused, his mind clear. There were matters that needed to be discussed, and they couldn’t wait another day.
As she stood from the seating area, her diaphanous robes swished around her curves. Her eyes were blue—a vivid sapphire shade that no one could ever mistake as mortal.
“I’m glad you’re here,” she said before he had uttered a single word. He was struck by her beauty, as he always was. She held her hands out to him as he drew closer. “You can celebrate with me another sign of our success. We’re close now. So close I can taste it.”
“And what does it taste like?”
“Like sweet victory. At long last.” Her smile fell as she saw he did not look pleased by this. She reached up to press her cool hands against his warm cheeks. This woman seemed so small and fragile before him, but he knew she was anything but. He’d never known anyone stronger in his entire existence. For so long, he had admired that strength. “What is wrong? You look so troubled.”
“I am troubled. The princess awoke from her deep slumber earlier.”
“I see. And now it will be more difficult for you to access her dreams.”
“That’s not it.”
She watched him carefully. “Then what is it? Unburden yourself to me, Alexius. You know you can trust me. We share all of our secrets, don’t we?”
So many secrets, he’d lost count of them all. “Two disasters in the mortal world. The tornado and the earthquake. It’s unfolding exactly as you said it would.”
“Yes.”
Melenia was a very special immortal, different from the others. More powerful in so many ways. She could see many things the others couldn’t—that which happened here in the Sanctuary and beyond into the mortal world. Her sight was clear and focused and always had been.
“And you continue to visit the king’s dreams?” he asked.
There was a pause this time before she spoke. “Not recently. He already knows what I need him to do.”
It was another of Melenia’s many secrets. Elders did not possess the ability to enter the dreams of mortals. Such a task was never easy and was always draining of one’s magic and physical strength. But for an elder, it was impossible.
Except for Melenia.
“It won’t be long before my road is finished,” she said. There was joy in her voice.
Yes, her road. A road that had to be swiftly built by mortal hands. A road that needed to pass certain locations along its twisting path.
And, of course, since it wasn’t only a road, one mustn’t forget that there needed to be a great deal of blood spilled on it.
Blood—everything depended on blood. It was elemental. It was magic. Even when it flowed from the veins of mortals.
And when the road was finally completed . . .
“I need to know if there’s another way,” Alexius said, the words thick in his throat.
Melenia’s brows drew together. “Another way?”
He raised his gaze to meet hers, trying to shield the ache in his chest beneath his golden, swirling mark. Other immortals didn’t know of Melenia’s plans, but he did. He’d agreed to them when originally enlisted to her cause. He’d been certain he could stay the course.
Now he doubted himself.
Understanding entered her blue eyes. “I wanted you to make contact with her. To speak with her. To establish whether or not she was truly the sorceress prophesied by Eva so many years ago. You did as I asked of you perfectly.”