Children of Virtue and Vengeance (Legacy of Orïsha #2)(110)

It’s clear to me now that the plague of Or?sha has never been magic at all. It’s us—Father, Mother, and me. Even Amari has been twisted by this throne. The monarchy poisons us all.

As long as it stands, Or?sha doesn’t have a chance. So I’m doing the only thing I can and ending it once and for all.



I grip the parchment so tight, it nearly rips in half. I didn’t even know ending the monarchy was something a king could do.

I don’t know what comes next, but I know it’s time for this reign to end. I will work till my dying breath to protect this kingdom, to be the man I thought I could be when I was with you.

But should our paths collide again, I will not raise my sword.

I am ready to end my life at your hand.



“What is it?” Tzain stands behind me. I wipe away my tears, handing him the letter. His eyes widen as he combs over the words.

“He did all this?”

I nod, and Tzain rubs his jaw. “You two.” He shakes his head. “Even when you crash, you intertwine.”

I stare at the bronze piece in my hand, wanting to throw it into the ocean. I hate Inan for doing this. I hate the part of me that wants to believe he’s telling the truth.

“What’re you going to do?”

“What I have to.” I shrug. “It doesn’t matter what he says, what he promises. Our people are still behind those walls. I have to do whatever it takes to get them out.”

A silence hangs in the air and I grab his hand, staring at all the parchment on the ground. “What’re you going to do about you and Amari?”

Tzain’s face twists as he winces. He holds back his tears, but I feel their sting behind my own eyes. Throughout all the pain we’ve endured, she’s been the only one to make him smile. Even when I resented her to my core, I loved Amari for that.

“There is no me and Amari,” he finally speaks. “Not anymore.”

“Tzain, how you feel about her, that’s not something you can just turn off—”

“She almost killed you,” he interrupts. “There’s no coming back from that.”

He sinks onto the replica of his old cot and I sit by his side. I squeeze the bronze piece in my hand as I lean my head against his shoulder, listening to the crash of waves outside our window.

“Next time let’s fall for a pair of siblings that don’t come with a crown.”





CHAPTER EIGHTY-SEVEN


ZéLIE


WIND WHIPS AT MY HAIR as we stand on the hilltop overlooking Lagos. Storm clouds thunder above, releasing a pelting rain.

Lanterns bathe the capital in an orange glow. Specks of light twinkle from door to door. The palace shines brightest of all, safe behind the city’s massive walls.

“Are you ready?” Tzain nudges me, and I nod as I take Lagos’s strongest defense in. The silver barrier around the city towers thirty meters into the air, nearly twice the height of any tree in the surrounding forest. But t?táns and cênters be damned. We shall not lose tonight.

We carry the might of the gods.

I feel it with every beat of my heart, every chant waiting on my lips. There’s no stopping us now.

We’ve brought the war to them.

I turn back to Amari, still bound in metal restraints. She stares at the ground at a safe distance behind us, not even moving when I motion for Kamarū to release her binds. Ro?n stands by her side, and we exchange a nod. I look back at Lagos’s walls, bracing myself for what’s to come.

“For Mama Agba,” I call. “Mazeli.”

“Baba and Mama,” Tzain joins in.

“Zulaikha and Kwame,” Folake whispers.

We speak the fallen one by one, naming everyone the monarchy’s taken from us.

“Fight for them all.” I walk forward, tattoos igniting on my skin. Their purple glow flickers around my hands like a blaze, covering my body in twisting light. I close my eyes as it spreads over us all, concentrating on the sound of our twelve hearts beating as one.

Time holds its breath as our magic bleeds together.

Then I whisper the command.

“? t?nná agbára yin.”

The pulse of energy that explodes makes the ground beneath us crack. Gravel and dirt float around our feet. Bark splits in the surrounding trees.

The world moves in slow motion, illuminated by the rainbow of colors flooding from our eyes and mouths. The power of the gods burns through our beings as we march down the hill.

Kamarū and Kenyon step forward, powerful ashês glowing around their forms. An emerald light shines through the Grounder’s skin as a red one burns through our Burner’s.

Together they shove their hands into the ground and the earth vibrates at our feet.

With a clench of Kamarū’s fist, the entire ground lifts.

Kenyon follows, creating a wave of lava that spreads through the land.

Majacite mines explode, one after the other, mushrooming in clouds of black. The lava Kamarū and Kenyon create churns through the earth. Black plumes of smoke shoot into the sky.

“Defenses ready!”

Alarms blare at our attack. The first wave of t?táns charge as the majacite flies. But before the soldiers and gas can strike, Jahi and Imani lift their hands.

The air howls at our Winder’s command as the Cancer transforms the majacite before our eyes. The black clouds turn orange.