Divined (30 page)

Riece strode into the tent some time later. With him came the smell of the campfire, the sounds of the men still singing and toasting outside. He let the flap fall, and it was as if the world faded away.

“I have thirty men here who’ve agreed to come with me tomorrow. It might be a little difficult, but with any luck the Order will be focused on pinning in the city’s population for the sacrifice and the gate won’t be too heavily guarded.” He hadn’t looked at Clio yet as he walked into the room, his mind clearly on battle. But when his eyes finally found her, he stilled.

She didn’t say anything. She didn’t need to. For once there were no words between them, nothing to keep them apart. He came to her swiftly, as if he always knew he would, as if he’d been waiting for it, and she reached out for him with equal certainty. Her hands found his face as he knelt before her, and not a moment passed before his lips met hers.

His kiss felt different. Unrestrained. Free. There were no Visions, no promises or Deities or Emperors to stop them, and Clio knew he sensed it. She felt it in the way he took his time, lingering to kiss her brow, her shoulder, her neck. They’d never kissed like this, like they had all the time in the world, and it was a long time before Clio reached for the clasps of his cloak and let it fall behind him. His hands found the hem of her shift, and Clio urged him on with a kiss, but he stopped.

He shook his head as he leaned back on his heels, his breathing still heavy.

“What’s wrong?” she asked, sitting up.

“We”—he ran a hand through his hair, agitated—“we should stop.”

“You want to stop?” Her eyes went wide.

“I said
should
, not want,” he answered quickly, his eyes landing hungrily on hers for the span of a heartbeat before looking away again.

“Why, Riece?”

He blinked. “Why? Because we don’t know what’s going to happen tomorrow. I could die, and I wouldn’t… We’re not wed. I couldn’t leave you like that.”

Clio almost smiled. “I don’t care about what could happen tomorrow. You’re the one who told me to start making decisions without fear of the future. Well, this is what I want.” She blushed as she said it, but Riece’s eyes found hers before she could drop her gaze.

She continued, her voice growing strong. “We’re both too stubborn to die tomorrow.”

Riece laughed, but she could tell he was still holding something back.

Slowly, she rose so she knelt facing him, their chests lined up close without touching.

“This”—she kissed him, but he remained cautious, his lips firm and uninviting—“is what I want. You can tell me you don’t want to, you can argue with me over it.” She kissed him again, and this time his hand found the small of her back. “Or, if this is something you want too, then—” But she never got to finish because his mouth opened to her, and she was falling back into the blankets, pulling him with her until she was wrapped in him, in a moment that was neither present nor future nor anything but their own.

CHAPTER FIFTY-NINE

She woke with Riece curled around her.

“No,” Riece murmured behind her.

“No?” She turned around in his arms to face him.

“You’re awake, which means you’re going to force me out of this bed, and I’d really rather not leave.” He smiled at her, his hair tussled, his eyes wide and clear.

“We do have a war to fight and a Deity to kill.”

“See? I knew you’d say something bothersome like that.” He pushed a stray hair from her eyes, his hand lingering by her ear.

“Riece, last night…”

He sighed, his smile fading. “I know. Don’t worry. I’m not expecting anything of you now. If you’d—”

“…was perfect,” she finished with a quick grin, her hand finding his.

“Perfect?” he repeated. His expression was unguarded, and Clio had never seen him smile so broadly before.

“But yes, I am going to make you get out of this bed now so we can settle our futures on that pyramid.”

“Always ordering me around, aren’t you?” he asked with a laugh.

“Always,” she promised.

The sun had only begun its ascent when they arrived back in Morek. Immediately, she felt the weight of the day, of the war, return. The streets were mad. Everywhere Clio looked, she found amber cloaks. They swarmed through the city, bursting into homes, dragging out screaming women and beating back men who cried out for their wives, their sisters, their daughters. The Order dropped gold on the crumpled bodies of the men, as if to atone for what they’d taken.

Clio felt Riece walk closer at her side. She’d worn her hood, and now she pulled it close to her chin, hoping to pass for one of the mourning men wandering the streets looking for someone they would never get back.

“Go to the gate,” Riece commanded his men when they had made it to the small crumbing house in front of the mountains. “Wait for me. I’ll come shortly.”

Riece pushed Clio inside as more amber cloaks emerged from a house down the street. She threw back her hood, desperate for air, and nearly walked into a furiously pacing Ixie.

“What’s going on?” Clio asked, looking around. Ixie and Atzi stood on opposite ends of the room. Ealis was seated beside Ashira, and Tirza stood over Vazuil. Each and every face was drawn and hard, and Clio could feel the cold tension palpable in the air.

“We have no way of getting to the pyramid,” Ixie answered, her face flushed from argument. Her face was still bruised and swollen, but she walked around the room without flinching.

“What do you mean no way?” Riece asked. “Ashira and Atzi were supposed to scout and find a weakness in the guard.”

“Yes, well there isn’t one.” Ixie’s voice was sharp, and she resumed her pacing. “It seems we should have hidden away at the top of the pyramid last night because the number of guards is only increasing as we near the sacrifice.”

“We would have been caught. To stay for so long in so visible a place—we wouldn’t have made it to dawn,” Atzi said with so little patience Clio could tell they’d gone over this several times already. “Our best chance is storming the back of the pyramid. It’s less guarded than the front.”

“Less guarded?” Ixie’s eyes went wide. “We’ll be blind. There’s no way to know when Nox will be in the open if we can’t even
see
the pyramid. We could make a charge too early and completely ruin our chances. We may as well try from the front. At least we’ll know when to attack.”

Tirza shook her head. “The front will be a massacre. We’d be lucky if a single person made it to the top.”

“We only need one,” Ixie interrupted.

Tirza shot the girl a quick glare. “There are amber cloaks everywhere. We should go through the slave tunnels. It would be less exposed.”

“No,” Ixie and Atzi said at the same time.

Vazuil spoke from the floor. “There must be some vulnerability in the Order’s guard. They can’t be everywhere at once, right? And you said they’ve taken to the streets. You must have missed something in your scouting.”

Ixie rounded on him. “Do you have anything helpful to suggest? How about you tell us how to reverse the ritual, and then we’ll start listening to your criticisms.”

Vazuil didn’t flinch away. “You should have let me go with you. You mortals must have overlooked something.”

“You’re more mortal than I. Shall I prove it to you?” Ixie pulled out a blade.

“Hold on.” Clio stepped between them. “This isn’t going to help solve our problem.”

“No, but it’d make me feel better. If anyone is going to die today, it’s him,” Ixie spat.

Riece walked forward. “Clio is right. We need to find a way up. I have thirty men with me, maybe it would be enough to charge the front.”

“Thirty? No.” Atzi shook her head. “The Order must have been bringing men in from around the Empire, because they’ve covered the pyramid completely. Nox knows we’re planning something like this. He won’t allow any room for error. There simply isn’t a route to the top that won’t lead us into a massacre.”

Clio straightened suddenly. “That’s it!” She looked to Riece. “There’s one way to the top of the pyramid without obstacle.”

Riece’s expression flattened. “No. A thousand times no.”

Clio smiled. “I managed it once. Who’s to say it won’t work again?”

“Clio…” His voice was low with warning. “I’ll not entertain this notion. You barely survived last time, and that was without a thousand priests all anticipating an attack.”

“It’s our best option.”

“I’m sorry, I’m a little lost,” Ealis said, standing.

Clio faced him, ignoring the heat of Riece’s gaze. “I give myself as an offering.”

CHAPTER SIXTY

Riece broke through the stunned silence first. “You’d be stripped of all weapons, separated, outnumbered and delivered right into Nox’s hands. Not to mention the overwhelming likelihood that someone recognizes you, and Nox has you killed before you even reach the top.”

“There are risks to every route, Riece. Think about it. If I enter through the tunnels I could take out some of the guards on the back of the pyramid, give the rest of you a signal so you can make an attack.”

“And how do you plan to escape once you’re held captive as an offering bound to sacrifice?” Riece narrowed his eyes.

“I’ll…figure something out.”

“No,” Riece growled.

“Actually”—Ixie rubbed her eyes—“I think it could work. We send most of the force up the back and wait for a signal. The only problem is you can’t do this on your own.”

“I’m not letting anyone come with me,” Clio said quickly.

“Clio, if something were to happen to you in the tunnels, we would be lost.” Atzi’s voice was commanding, her gaze settling on Clio with deliberate slowness. “I’ll go with you. I can work to clear the tunnels, and it’ll give us another point of attack.”

Clio wanted to argue, but her gaze flickered to Riece. She couldn’t oppose Atzi, not without risking Riece finding out about the Vision.

“Fine,” Clio agreed after a moment. “Atzi and I will clear the tunnels and give the signal. Everyone else, I leave the decisions to you.”

“We should go now, while they are still collecting offerings,” Atzi said. “We’ll need someone to sell us.” She stumbled on the word, and Clio knew Atzi was thinking of the last time she was sold.

“I’ll go.” Ealis stood. “But I have one more suggestion.”

It didn’t take them long to work out the rest of the plan. As Ashira stained Clio’s hair black, Clio tried not to think how much of this plan would depend on her ability to slip away from every guard in the tunnels and avoid the horde of priests waiting at the top. She’d done it before, she told herself. Still, so much depended on trust. Every person would have to execute their part flawlessly, and if one piece wasn’t timed right, then everyone would die.

When they walked out of the hut for the last time, Clio wasn’t thinking about everything that could go wrong. She was focused on one thing—the future she would win, if not for herself, then for everyone walking at her side.

Ixie and Ashira led the way, each holding a rope of Vazuil’s bindings. Ealis followed close behind with Atzi and Tirza. Clio fell back when it came time for Riece to join his men and prepare the gate for Derik.

Atzi looked over her shoulder at Clio paces behind and gave a single nod. Clio felt her stomach tighten. She was being allowed a goodbye.

“I still don’t like this plan,” Riece said, taking Clio’s hand. The city streets were mostly empty by now. Only the occasional passerby wandering their silent grief, the priests all having returned to the pyramid for the final preparations before the ceremony.

“I know you don’t.” Clio offered a small smile. “That’s how I know it’s the only one that could work.”

Riece laughed, and Clio felt something in her chest splinter at the sound.

“I’ll see you at the top of the pyramid, Clio, just like always.” He squeezed her hand. “Try not to make as big a mess of it as you did the last time you volunteered to have yourself sacrificed.”

“It worked out for the best, didn’t it?” Clio said, hoping her tone was light.

Riece’s eyes grew serious. “It truly did.” He turned and began to walk away.

“Wait!” she called after him, running to catch him with a kiss. His arms wrapped around her, lifting her off her feet as his hands held her firmly against him.

He set her down slowly. “That better not have been a goodbye. We’re too stubborn to die, remember?”

“It wasn’t a goodbye. It was an… I love you, Riece.” It came out easily, and Clio was already smiling by the time she said the final word.

Riece blinked, then frowned. “Now this
definitely
feels like a goodbye.”

Clio laughed and kissed him once more. “I wish I could tell you how much it isn’t, but you’ll just have to trust me. I’m not afraid anymore, Riece. I don’t care if this is impossible. I love you. And in this moment, that’s all I care about.”

A grin slowly spread across his face. “I was certain I’d never live to hear those words.”

“Nothing is certain, Riece. And—”

He held up a hand. “No. Not now. Tell me whatever you’re going to tell me after. When we both survive.”

“Why?”

“Because then I’ll know you aren’t only saying it because you think you’re going to die. I know you pretty well, Clio. Stay alive. Tell me then.”

She nodded. “Then you’ll have to stay alive, too.”

He kissed her softly, his thumbs brushing her cheeks. “Believe me. I’m definitely staying alive. I want to hear what you have to say.” He smiled once more before turning away and disappearing down the street.

CHAPTER SIXTY-ONE

By the time Clio returned to the group, Tirza had already set out for her home, which she would prepare as an infirmary to tend to the wounded when the battle was over.

Clio nodded to Ixie and Ashira. “You should get into position. The sun is getting high.”

“Clear a path for me, Clio. If this is our last fight together, let’s make it a good one,” Ixie said with a smile. “I don’t know how to thank you—”

“Don’t,” Clio cut her off. “Did you say goodbye to Ealis?”

Ixie’s cheeks reddened. “I don’t know what you’re implying, Clio.”

“Did you just blush?” Clio laughed.