Reign the Earth (The Elementae #1)(78)

He shook his head. “No. Not now. I have to stay right here with you and watch over my niece since you’re clearly not thinking of her.”

I put my free hand on my stomach, staring at the ceiling, trying to breathe evenly. “We were caught in some kind of skirmish, and Zeph pulled us to the side.” Kairos squeezed my hand, and it made my mouth tremble. “They killed so many people, Kai,” I whispered. “There was so much blood—and then Rian—Rian was just—and they were going to—”

I couldn’t take a deep breath, couldn’t breathe properly at all, and Kairos pulled me up, sliding me closer and hugging me tight. He rubbed my back and held me, whispering to me. “Hush, sister. Hush, you can’t upset yourself like this. You have to calm down and protect that sweet girl in there,” he told me.

Hiccuping and taking a stunted breath, I asked, “You think my child’s a girl?”

He nodded against my head. “A tiny little princess.”

“Is this a sense, or are you making this up?” I asked him.

“A little of both,” he said, and I heard the smile in his voice.

“I used my power,” I whispered to him. “I didn’t mean to. Someone was going to kill Rian, and it just … happened.”

He pulled back a little, meeting my eyes, dark and serious. “Don’t ever tell anyone that, Shy.”

“I know.”

“No,” he said, shaking his head. “You don’t. Something isn’t right. Something awful is going to happen, and I can’t see it. But I feel like your husband will do it, and I feel like you will pay the price. And whatever it is, it’s … awful. Unimaginable.”

Shivers of cold ran over me. “What kind of awful?”

“I don’t know,” he said, his mouth tilting up. “ ‘Unimaginable’ means I can’t quite picture it.”

I touched my head to his, wishing he could share the vision—or feeling, or sense, or whatever it was—with me. “We’ll be all right, Kai. We’re together. We’ll be fine.”

He hugged me tight. “I hope so, Shy.”


I drifted off after a while, gripping Kairos’s hand in mine, and I woke when he tried to pry it away. “I’m not going anywhere,” he snapped, but the words weren’t for me, and my heart sped up.

Sitting up quickly, I felt dizzy but still stood from the bed. There were soldiers in the bedroom, and Calix was with them, and Zeph and Theron were nowhere to be seen.

“Seize him, then,” Calix ordered the soldiers, and I grabbed Kai’s arm as the men in black uniforms came toward us.

“Calix, no, what are you doing?” I screamed. They grabbed Kai, but they wouldn’t touch me, wouldn’t separate us.

Calix stormed up to us and pried my hands off him until I cried out, pushing me back so I stumbled and fell.

“Don’t touch her!” Kairos roared, throwing off one of his captors and punching another.

They cracked a sword hilt over his head. “No!” I shrieked, struggling to my feet. “What are you doing?”

I tried to run past Calix, but he raised his arm and cracked the back of his hand squarely across my face. The blow was blinding, so hard and fast that I was on the floor without remembering how I got there, pain bursting over and over in my face. Blood dripped onto the floor, and I wasn’t sure where it was from.

Everything had stopped. The only thing I could hear was Calix, breathing hard, his face in a snarl as he looked down at me. Kairos had stopped fighting, but he had murder in his eyes, staring at my husband.

“You disloyal desert bitch,” Calix spat. “You know what we found when we chased down the information we collected? Rian d’Dragyn. Little wonder you didn’t want me to act on it. You thought you could trick me?” he growled. He stared at me, cowering at his feet, and then turned to look at Kairos. “You and Kairos must have been in league with Rian this entire time. Going behind my back, feeding him information—you both will tell me everything you know of the Resistance. Take him and question him,” he ordered.

“Make no mistake,” Kairos said, his voice a dark and deadly snarl. “I will repay every wrong you inflict on my sister. I am a Dragon of the desert, and nothing will slake my thirst for vengeance.”

“I’m fine, Kairos,” I lied, shaking to say it. “I’m fine. Please just go with them.”

Kairos didn’t even acknowledge my words, and they pushed him out of my chamber.

Calix paced, and I shifted slowly to curl against the wall, still huddled on the ground. “You saw him,” he accused. “You had to know he was here.”

I shook my head. “You promised me,” I told him. “You promised me you wouldn’t hurt our people. You were executing them in the streets.”

“I lied,” he said. “And I’m glad I did. Now we will see what else you’re deceiving me about,” he said, grabbing my chin and forcing me to look at him.

I pulled away from him, shrinking in a tight ball, protecting my head with my knees.

“Have you lost your mind?”

Danae’s voice was clear, and I knew it was her, but I didn’t raise my head.

“Her brother—” Calix started.

“Did you hit her?” Danae asked, and the voice sounded closer. “You struck the mother of your child? Your wife?”