Kane is behind this door. I pray to the Three, excluding Desona and Kane – so I suppose only to One – that he’s sleeping. My throat is dry, and no matter how much I force myself to swallow, it’s still scratchy with nerves. I know I have to be quick. Dawn will be here in an hour, maybe two. And after that, Kane and the others will be up and preparing to hunt the Nephilim. I have to be far away from this little village by the time Aiden and Willem wake up. Even then, I know that they’ll catch me no matter how far I run. When my father made me promise to kill Kane, he sentenced me to death.
But there’s a chance, a quiet voice in my mind whispers. The mortal realm is the best possible place to assassinate him. Here, I can flee directly to my home. I don’t have to run through the dangerous Underworld to find a working portal first. And if I can make it to Ryrn, I can be under my father’s protection. Surely, Aiden and Willem couldn’t defeat an army on their own. I bite my bottom lip hard enough to draw blood as I consider the possibilities. If I don’t do it here, will I ever?
I once wished I could have been taught to be brave the same way I was taught to defend myself. They should have taught me how to be a murderer too. My palm is slick with sweat again, but I tighten my grip on the dagger. It has to be now, I think, trying to be fierce. I promised my father I would do as he asked. I promised that he could have his revenge against Death, and maybe we could get my mother back. My eyes flutter when I think of her, pale and sick in her bed. For the last year of her life, she hardly moved from it – that's how ill she was. And Kane didn't come, not when we needed him – no matter how many times my father begged for Death to have mercy.
No one should have to suffer like that – not anymore. I nod to myself, pretending I believe my own lies. My father will want to know why I haven't done it yet. If he were here, standing over my shoulder, he would be egging me on. He would demand to know why I let my heart pound when Kane looks at me or why I feel moonstruck when he touches me. I don't know how I would tell him of my doubts. What will happen once Death is gone – will anyone die anymore? And isn't Kane just as deserving of mercy? My heart squeezes painfully in my chest. I'm a fool. I take a hesitant step towards Kane's door, picturing what will happen next. I'll use the dagger to sidle the lock open first. I can hardly breathe as I lift the dagger to the door.
“What are you doing?”
I swallow a scream, heart thudding with fear, and whirl on Aiden. Dagger in hand extended towards him, I know how it must look. His eyes are dark and suspicious. They settle on my dagger and grow so cold I'm sure he must able to freeze steel. "It isn't what you think," I squeak desperately. Gods, I'm a fool.
A dead fool.
“Really?” He steps menacingly towards me. “Because it looks like you’re about to break into Kane’s room with a dagger in hand while he sleeps. And that looks like you have something more than a midnight tryst in mind.”
"I couldn't sleep," I say softly, trying to force a pathetic whine to my voice. "So, I took a walk, and I brought my blade for protection."
Aiden moves too quickly for my mortal eyes to catch. The dagger is in his hand before I can even blink. He hoists it up into the light, inspecting it from every angle as I stand frozen in fear before him. “This is a good blade. Fine craftsmanship, evenly balanced. Do I detect an enchantment?”
“No,” I stammer.
He lifts it to his nose and sniffs before scowling at me. “Mortal liar,” he says viciously. “A spell of rot? To prevent him from healing fast enough to escape death.”
"That's not – I mean I don't know." The words come tumbling from my lips as I grasp for any way out of an assured and painful death. But Aiden isn't buying it.
“It’s finely done too,” he muses, ignoring me. “Perhaps done by a Royal Mage? At your father’s request? I’m sure a respected mage wouldn’t be too keen to listen to a request from a little girl.”
I clamp my lips shut. Nothing I say now will convince him. Silently, I make my peace with Axiol, the Goddess of Mercy and Judgment. I wonder what Kane will do with my soul once his Reapers collect it. Will he tuck me away in a dark pit? Or perhaps he would enjoy torturing me forever personally. I close my eyes then, feeling a flash of something like gratitude that I might be able to see him in the next life.
“Night, you truly were going to kill him,” Aiden says. His voice suddenly sounds gleeful. I peek at him uneasily, opening one eye. He grins down at me, fingering the blade with delight. “How dramatic. But why?”
“I wasn’t going to kill Kane,” I say stubbornly. “I was on a walk.”
Suddenly, Aiden lashes out at me. He wraps his hand around my throat and bares his perfectly white teeth at me like a wolf. My stomach flips with fear and adrenaline shoots through me. I start to lift my foot to bring it down on the fragile bones of his foot, but my body freezes. My muscles are stiff, heavy, and no matter how much I try, I can’t move in his grip. Aiden’s
