The Crown of Gilded Bones (Blood and..

silencing my threats. Nausea churned at the taste and the
spike of helplessness I felt.
He arched a brow at me before pushing away from the
stone slab, his hand falling to the hilt of a short sword. His
shoulders tensed, and I wished I could see his expression.
He turned from me as others drew swords. “Keep alert,” he
barked. “But do not engage.”
The masked men moved out of my line of sight as the
creak of carriage wheels ceased. I couldn’t allow myself to
think beyond the next second, that very moment, as I
watched the torches drift forward, thrust into the ground
around the broken remains of Castle Bauer. My heart
pounded. I couldn’t believe this was happening. I twisted my
head to the side, hoping to dislodge the bindings, but they
didn’t move.
Panic swelled as a dark shadow drifted closer to what
remained of the steps, then climbed them slowly. A cloaked
figure in black and red stood in the middle of the half-fallen
walls. I stopped moving, but my heart continued throwing
itself against my chest.
This couldn’t be happening.
Two pale hands lifted the hood of the robe, lowering the
material to reveal a woman I didn’t recognize, one with hair
the color of sunlight, swept back from a face that was all
cold angles. She strode forward, the heels of her shoes
clicking on the stone. She never once spared a single look at
the others. She seemed utterly unafraid of their presence
and the swords they held. Her entire focus was on me, and I
wondered how either side could share the same space as
the other. Could these pretend Protectors’ need to be rid of
me, and the desire for the Ascended to reclaim me, be that
great? And would the Ascended take me and not attempt to
capture all the Atlantians standing among them, all so full of
the blood they craved so desperately?
Gods, a sick part of me hoped this was a trap. That the
Ascended would turn on them. It would be so very fitting.