The Iron Butterfly (Iron Butterfly #1)(70)

Two pairs of hands reached around my waist and hugged me. I didn’t need to look down to know that it was Pim and Jury. I put my arms around them and cried. We didn’t know who comforted who but we knew we needed each other at that moment.

I felt a familiar pull on my spirit and somehow I knew Kael was near. He came running down the alley, out of breath and pale. He looked upon the mess of carriage parts and stared, he was the only one that noticed the blood pooling underneath the wreckage.

I didn’t care that he had come to rescue me, I was angry and sad, and hurting.

“Where were you?” I cried out loud, letting my frustration out on him. “You who are supposed to protect me, failed. When I needed you most, you weren’t here! And look! Ruzaa’s dead, and it’s all your fault!”

Kael stopped and stared at me, bewildered. Clearly he wasn’t expecting my outburst, but I had just taken three lives and I wasn’t prepared for the emotional havoc it was causing on me. I should never have had to face Scar Lip alone. If only he had killed him when he had the chance, instead of letting him escape then this would never have happened. I wouldn’t be a murderer.

I knew it was unfair, after all, this is why the Queen and the Adepts wanted me to be trained in self-defense. It was what Kael had been preparing me for, to attack, to fight back, to be able to save myself. And I did it, but at what cost? Ruzaa’s life.

Jury and Pim buried their faces into my hip and I turned them away and started walking with them toward the Citadel. Kael reached forward and tried to touch my arm.

I snarled at him, “Don’t touch me. You weren’t here, when I needed you!”

Kael’s hand dropped quickly to his side and he held his breath as if he were in pain, I could tell I just deeply wounded his pride. “You’re right, I should have been here.”

“But you weren’t, and it’s obvious I don’t need you to protect me anymore.”

“Thalia, let me explain…”Kael reached for me again.

“Leave me alone!” I slammed Kael with a flash of power. The blast lifted Kael off of the ground and sent him spinning through the air to hit the wall. I grimaced as I heard the smack of his body against the stone wall.

Kael’s reflexes were those of a fighter. He dropped and nimbly landed in a crouch, ready to spring back into action. Slowly standing to his feet, he circled me, keeping his distance. It was like two wolves sizing each other up, and I had two cubs I was ready to protect.

Kael’s jaw twitched in anger and his blue eyes stared into my own. I wasn’t expecting to hear a pained voice reply, “If that is your wish. You will never see me again.” Kael turned and was gone. Breathing a sigh of relief and remorse, I felt a sudden chill of apprehension of what I had done.





Chapter 29





The next morning I was woken by a very disgruntled Tearsa.

“Wake up!” she hissed, shaking my shoulder roughly.

Groggily, I tried to open my sleep-encrusted eyes.

“I already sent Forrest to wake you earlier, but you wouldn’t answer any of his knocks,” she went on, grumbling, but I only caught bits and pieces as I tried to make sense of my muddied memories from last night. Ruzaa had died and I killed three people. A pain in my chest felt like it was going to explode.

The curtains on the window were thrown open, and the light pouring into my room made me throw the blanket back over my head to block the blinding light. My armoire opened and the not-polite sound of shoes and other objects being thrown around the room made me want to burrow deeper in my covers and hide from the formidable Tearsa. She was obviously on a rampage because she had to personally wake me up.

I groaned because there was no justice in the world. The Adepts questioned the shop owner, Joss and Cooper, and they couldn’t find any deceit in them, even Syrani. Apparently she had nothing to do with the kidnapping and the Septori had been following me for days, and found a lucky moment to grab me. The truth was, Syrani was only being nice to me to get near Joss, but of course she didn’t want to be seen in public next to someone covered in dirt, so the stop was purely to dress me. How typical, how very much like Syrani. What worried me the most was that I hadn’t even had a chance to speak to Joss, to tell him I was fine. I had been sequestered in my room after the battle and given very little time to adjust or mourn for Ruzaa. It was not what I had wanted, nothing happened how I wanted it too.

“No one had a key, so I had to drop everything I was doing to come and help you. The Council Session starts in fifteen minutes and here I am playing maid to you.” Her words finally started to filter through the down comforter into my foggy brain and I sat up in a panic.

“Finally, you realize the importance of the situation,” she harrumphed.

Jumping out of bed, I put on the clothes she had laid out, barely giving them a glance. I tried to run a tangled comb through my disheveled curls from the night before. Using some water I was able to pull them back and secure the curls with a blue ribbon.

I had forgotten that the Queen had called an emergency session and the Adepts asked me to be there for the proceedings.

“Now remember,” Tearsa said as she looked me over, giving me a nod of satisfaction. “You have been asked to sit in, not participate. There is a viewing section to the side where you can watch and listen from. You hear me?” She placed her hand on her hip and began waving her finger at me. “You are not to speak unless spoken to.” Her fingers waved dramatically.