Thirty-Two
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Samkiel
T he door closed behind me. Cameron and Xavier were still there and
would stay to watch her. I dragged a hand through my hair and
released a breath, the pounding of the headache returning tenfold. Her words sliced at me, but I knew what she was doing. If she couldn’t rip me apart with fangs and claws, she would use her words as weapons, but I knew she spoke more of herself than me.
“We sectioned the area off and have it secured for now, but the mortals don’t want to talk to Vincent,” Imogen said.
I dropped my hand. “Yes, I know. I’ll speak to them.”
“You okay?” Logan asked, watching me carefully.
“I’ll be fine once I return with her to the remains of Rashearim.”
They fell into step with me as I started down the hall.
“Where do you plan to keep her?” Logan asked.
“I have an idea. After I rebuild the guild, I will take care of it.”
“And the map?” Imogen asked.
“It is back in the destroyed building in Silver City. Once I rebuild, I’ll reform that as well. Its ashes are still in that place.”
They nodded, the doors sliding open behind me.
“Imogen, return to the council. Tell them what has transpired and let them know she is secure. I will convene with them shortly.”
Imogen nodded before turning and heading out.
“What do you need from me?” Logan asked.
“Stay here while I am away. With Vincent across the sea, you are next in command. Dianna is downstairs, and as she is right now, I do not trust her not to try to break free,” I said before stepping into the elevator.
W e had repaired the destroyed parts of the city , finishing the guild last. It was once more pristine as if nothing had transpired. Vincent had dealt with the ambassadors for the most part. They were relieved to learn that Dianna had been captured, and they were now requesting a gathering before we left Onuna.
Steam filled the shower, the water flowing over my head. I closed my eyes, and the image of Dianna’s face appeared. It was always the same. The doubt, pain, and anger I had seen in her today would haunt me. It was just one more reason to hate Kaden. He had found her, gotten close enough to talk to her. He had whispered lies to tear her from me, and by the old gods, I wished for his death above any creature in this world or the next.
I opened my eyes, allowing the water to pound the soreness from my muscles. Kaden had told her of the betrothal, but how had he known?
Maybe one of the several stolen books, scrolls, or relics contained that information, but I didn’t think so. Kaden had twisted the tale, his goal to turn her from me, and he was succeeding. Dianna was on the warpath, untrusting of everyone.
It had torn me up when she’d spit those words at me as if I’d broken the small part of her I had left. Maybe I should have told her, but when? We had been together for such a short amount of time, and it was such ancient history.
I stormed after my father, our guards trailing after us, the sound of their armored boots echoing through the halls. As soon as we passed the chamber doors, I unleashed.
“That was the announcement you wished to make?” I bellowed.
“Imogen?”
The doors slammed shut behind us, leaving our guards on the other side. I heard them hit the door, and my hand flicked out. With negligible use of my power, I locked the door, keeping them on the other side. I made sure of it. I needed to speak to him and only him.
My father stopped, the red and gold cloak swirling around his armored
feet.
“You must marry, Samkiel.”
“But Imogen and I are not together. Not as you see it.”
He spun.“Well, how shall I see it? No one else spends as much time with you. You keep everyone at hair’s length except for The Hand. No one is good enough for you, but you must marry.”
“Why?” I shouted, the room quaking, trying to contain the combined force of our power. It was a subject he had harped on so many times, and I was losing my damned mind over it.
“Because I will not be here forever to help you. You cannot rule alone.
It is impossible for one to carry this much by themselves.”
I heard the sky crack. The cosmic storm was on the verge of splintering, his tone only feeding it. Others would have pissed their trousers, yet I had grown so used to his anger it was, oddly enough, a comfort. At least he’d shown some emotion. His words sank in as I stared at him. I saw the lines beneath his eyes, how tired he truly was. Since my mother’s death, he had seemed exhausted. Fine strands of gray wove through his dark curls and beard. His eyes had grown empty as if I alone was not enough to keep him here any longer.
“The realms must have a king and queen. Gods, Samkiel, even another king, I do not care, but there must be two rulers. There are too many realms to safeguard. One rules above and one rules below. It is how it always has been and always will be. You cannot do everything alone, no matter how badly you wish it. Imogen is strong, smart, capable, and beautiful, and you
two share a bond.”
“A bed, not a bond.” I insisted.
“And what is the difference?”
“I do not love her!” I snapped, rain pouring from the sky, my power a shadow of his.
As the words left my lips, the tension withdrew from my father’s
shoulders, and he faltered.
“Samk—”
“I do not love her. I know you wish it for me, but it is not there. My heart does not sing for her when I see her, nor would I burn worlds for her, carve out stars, or lock myself away from others as you have if she passed. I do not feel for her what you felt for my mother. I do not share with her what Logan and Neverra have.”
My father instilled fear in creatures carved from nightmares. He made gods quiver in his presence and armies run when he arrived, but he flinched when those words left my lips. I hated how I’d lashed out at him, but I could not control myself. I needed him to see and listen to reason.
“So yes, we seek comfort in each other. We pass the time when you are not shoving lectures down my throat, training for days on in, or gods forbid, lost in battle, but that is all it is. Just time. That is all it has ever been. It is all it will ever be.”
His eyes filled with sadness. “There is no amata for you.”
“What?” It was my turn for my heart to break.
“I spoke to the fates because your activities have had the High Council concerned.”
“What?” It was the only word that seemed to form.
“The council sees a detriment to your rule if you do not marry. So, I sought information from the fates. They said that one was born but did not survive. They are dead, Samkiel. Whoever your amata was to be has perished. It would make sense, given that others would seek to stop the union if you had an equal. Your power alone is far too…”
His words faded as the pounding in my ears took over. I did not remember sitting on the dais or him sitting next to me. His hand came down hard on my shoulder, grounding me as my world tilted on its axis.
“I am sorry, my son, but this could also be a gift.”
“A gift?” I reared back. Could he not see he had extinguished any hope left in me?
He picked at the rings on his fingers. They were the same as mine, but solid gold. “Yes, a gift. They’ll see a King of Gods in you, whereas I am but a shell of what I once was because she is gone.”
My eyes stung, knowing how rarely a mate survived the death of their other half.
“While the thought of having an amata is joyous and fantastic, it is also
a curse. So you are lucky.”
“How can you say that?”
He looked away as if he were afraid to show me how much pain he was in. “It is a true soul tie. In the beginning, Chaos created us in pairs or more. The mark is a tether that pulls you back to each other. Once connected, it is beyond bliss, beyond ecstasy. Even the hard parts are no longer hard. The days become brighter. Everything is better because they
exist, and when they are gone, the pain is immeasurable. I’d heard rumors of the mate dying when one does, and I never truly believed it, but it is true.
You do not die quickly when they are ripped from you. It is a slow, painful death. You die every day you wake, every day you breathe, every day you think. You are empty, a shell of what you were. I try, and I work, and I help, and I lead, but I am no longer here, Samkiel. A part of me left the day she did. So yes, that mark is a deadly cruel thing, and you are lucky.”
He stood in one solid motion, the chains and armor echoing in the hollowness of the room. He stopped at the door and, without looking back, said, “I just wish for you to be well. You need someone to look after you if I am not here. You need someone to always be on your side. If Imogen can at least shoulder a portion of the burden, then so be it.”
Silence fell.
“When?”
“I have a briefing in several moons, perhaps after that.”
I did not speak.
“I am sorry, my son,” he said before closing the door behind him.
He spoke of someone able to shoulder the burden of the crown, but I knew Imogen. Even with all her strength and wit, she could not. Only my equal could, and now that I knew my fate, the world seemed to dim.
The storm outside raged on for days.
The water had turned bitterly cold, its chill ripping me from my memories. I swallowed and turned the water off before stepping out. I could hear every voice in the guild. The celestials were working to calm the mortals as they scrambled for answers. I should care about what had happened. Yet, the only thing I heard, the only thing I focused on, was the single, slow, steady heartbeat coming from eight floors below in the cell.
She had asked me once if I had an amata. I’d told her then how unkind the universe was, how cruel it could be. But, hearing her down there, knowing what had changed between us, I knew I was wrong.
The universe was not cruel. It was brutal.
I dressed, summoning clothes and preparing to venture back downstairs.
I could give Cameron and Xavier a reprieve if they wished to eat or rest, but first, I needed to give the map to Vincent.
Lights flickered on as I crossed the large living area. A few books I wished to return to the remains of Rashearim sat in a neat stack on the center table, along with the thin strip of gray photos hanging from the edge.
The air shifted, and I spun, my blade already summoned and raised.
“Roccurem.”
“I do apologize for what is about to transpire, but please know it must happen this way. I see no other option.”
“What are you talking about?” I asked.
Blinding pain exploded in my temples in the next instance, and I fell to my knees. I watched as two large figures walked next to Roccurem, their mouths opening in a swirling empty void.
“You cannot contain me.” I gritted between clenched teeth, fighting that ache in my skull.
“Forgive me, god king, it is in her best interest, I assure you.”
I went to stand as another blistering sharp pain threaded through my skull. My body hit the floor seconds before darkness claimed me.
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