F rom what I’d seen of Henri’s rebel friends in Fortos, I had expected the Guardians to be an assortment of brusque, overbuilt soldier types, the
kind of men that usually swarmed around my father like bees on freshly bloomed mint.
And although plenty of men of fighting age clumped together, slapping each other’s shoulders and laughing raucously as they talked, it was everyone else milling about in the crowded meeting room that caught me by surprise.
Women—and lots of them—of various ages, many of whom I recognized. A seamstress who knew my mother well, a few sex workers I recognized from the Garden, a former classmate chatting with our old teacher. Children, too—some not even old enough to have finished school, their faces still round with youth and pocked with teenage blemishes. And a number of elderly, too old to fight, but perhaps still willing to put their lives on the line in other ways.
There was even one of my own trainees from the healers’ center. Lana, the girl who had accompanied Maura and me to the palace on my first visit, rushed over to Henri and began chatting animatedly with him before her eyes caught on me hovering in the background.
Her face drained of color. Mine might well have done the same.
The instinct rose in me to judge her—to march over and scold her for putting her future as a healer on the line. It was harder than I wanted to admit to remember I no longer had any moral high ground to stand on.
I didn’t dare make too much eye contact with anyone. My presence here still felt like an unwelcome intrusion, a violation of something deeply
intimate and fiercely guarded. They, on the other hand, watched me like predators on the prowl. I wilted beneath the burn of countless eyes as I slumped into a seat near the exit and stared at my open palms.
A door in the front opened, and the man they called the Father strolled in, flanked by the same two men. The room went quiet, and everyone hurriedly made their way into the scattered chairs. Henri slid into the seat beside me and lazily reclined back, his arm draped across my shoulders.
“Who are those three men?” I whispered.
“The one in the center, the man who let you in—his name is Vance. We call him the Father because he leads the Lumnos cell of the Guardians. The one on the left is Brant, the one on the right is Francis. They’re Vance’s second- and third-in-command.”
“You told me the Guardians were run by a woman.”
“She’s in another realm on a mission. Vance is leading us now.”
I frowned, my heart drooping. A small part of my drive to join the Guardians had been to meet whatever mystery woman had carved out such a unique position of power.
“What was the mission?” I asked.
“I’m not sure. Vance doesn’t share specific details on missions until they’re over. It limits the damage if anyone betrays us.”
I bit back my response. Frankly, if anyone betrayed them, everyone in this room would be dead soon anyway.
“Welcome, everyone,” Vance announced loudly. “Blessed is the Everflame.”
“Emarion soil, we shall reclaim,” the room chanted in unison.
I nudged Henri. “You didn’t mention there were secret passwords.” “You’ll learn them after the blood rite.”
My eyes snapped to him. “Blood rite?”
He stared ahead blankly and nodded. “In a minute, you’ll be called up to confess the worst things you’ve ever done so the group has leverage on you if you try to quit. Then we’ll all strip naked and put a drop of blood in a chalice, and you have to drink it. It’s the second test of loyalty.”
“Are you out of your Flaming mind?” I hissed. “I am not doing any of that.”
“It’s too late. Once you come in the meeting, you can’t leave without taking the blood rite. You’ve already seen too much.”
Anger and panic flooded my veins. Henri hadn’t warned me about this.
Any of this.
“This was a mistake. I’m getting out of here.” My hand shot down to my boot, sliding Brecke’s knife from its sheath. “I’ll fight my way out, if I have to.”
I moved to creep past Henri’s chair. His arms wrapped around my waist and dragged me back to my seat. “You can’t go.”
“Oh yes I can,” I ground out, struggling against his grasp. “Get your hands off me.”
“D, wait—” “Let go, Henri.” “Diem, stop.”
“I swear on the Everflame, if you think I won’t stab you—” “I’m joking!”
I jerked my blade at him. His lips were pursed to hold back a smile, and his shoulders quaked with barely suppressed laughter. Several faces had turned at the commotion, earning me a number of disapproving stares.
“I was teasing you,” he whispered. “I couldn’t tell you the secret words until Vance let you in. There are no rites or confessions.” He rolled his eyes and grinned. “We’re not a cult.”
My glare only made him laugh harder.
My cheeks flushed bright red, and I slumped back against my chair. “That was incredible,” he said, biting his knuckle. “You should have
seen your face.”
“Keep laughing. I want to remember every second of this the next time you ask for a little nighttime fun out in the woods.”
His laughter abruptly stopped.
Vance’s announcements continued on, though I could hardly focus, his words nearly drowned out by my now-pounding heartbeat.
“…several successful recent missions. Sister Samyra completed a high- risk delivery in Lumnos City.”
Near the front, a petite brunette looked around and smiled shyly at the smattering of applause.
“And our newest member, Sister Diem, obtained some very valuable documents from the home of a prominent Descended target.”
A round of eyes turned toward me, accompanied by clapping and a few appreciative nods. My cheeks burned even hotter.
Without meaning to, my eyes met Lana’s, and I saw the same judgment I had felt toward her now reflected in her own expression. She knew about my visit to House Benette, as did all the healers at the center. Any hope I might have had at hiding my decision to betray my vows was officially, unavoidably gone.
It didn’t matter that I could likely say the same of her. She was only a trainee. I was her mentor, her guide, meant to lead by shining example. Now we both knew I was a fraud.
The desire to melt into my chair and fade away was overwhelming.
Vance started up again, his voice taking on a graver tone. “With the arrival of a new member, I want to remind everyone of our oldest and most important rule. The names of your fellow Guardians are to be protected at all costs. Am I understood?”
“Yes, Father,” the voices echoed.
“You are not to reveal the identity of any other member. There are no exceptions to this rule—ever. Am I understood?”
“Yes, Father,” I answered this time with the crowd, the words tasting awkward on my tongue.
The eyes of the three men in the front turned on me and lingered for a beat too long. There was something there, something in their sudden fixation—as if they could see the discomfort written on my face. The two men at Vance’s side exchanged a look, some inscrutable expression passing between them.
They didn’t trust me. Henri had been right about the cloud my father’s legacy cast over my loyalty to the mortal cause. My so-called test may have been enough for Vance, but I evidently had a long way to go to be accepted by the others.
“As I mentioned,” Vance continued, “Sister Diem has brought us priceless intelligence that we hope will be useful in our coming mission. Many of you are aware that we’ve been planning a more aggressive course of action in light of the fraud King Ulther’s illness, and with this new informat—”
“Fortos’s balls, Albanon, you actually did it. You talked her into joining.”
I looked over to see Brecke slip into the seat on Henri’s opposite side. “Brother Brecke,” Henri said quietly as they clasped forearms. “You’re
a long way from home.”
Brecke smoothed a hand over his dark beard. “Someone told me there were feisty women to be found in Lumnos.” He winked at me. “I had to come see it for myself.”
I leaned across Henri’s chest, placing my hand dramatically on Brecke’s thigh. “What perfect timing, Brother,” I purred. “I’ve just become available again.”
Henri quickly grabbed my hand and held it between his palms. “Ignore her, she’s just high on Descended wine.”
I shot him a fierce look, but Henri’s face was full of playful mischief, his eyes still shining with pride over my successful mission. I couldn’t help but smile.
“So, he convinced you to become a Guardian,” Brecke said in a low voice as the meeting droned on.
“It’s my first night,” I replied.
“She broke into Evrim Benette’s personal office,” Henri added. “Stole a stack of documents and walked right out.”
“Damn, Bellator!” Brecke slapped his hand on my knee. “You’re definitely one of us now.”
My guilt eased a bit at his praise.
“How’s that knife I gave you?” he asked, nodding toward the blade still in my hand from Henri’s prank. “Have you used it on any Descended yet?”
I smirked and slid it back into its sheath. “I have, actually.”
“You did?” they exclaimed in unison.
A scowling woman turned to shush us, and I shrank deeper into my seat with an apologetic grimace.
Brecke leaned closer. “You really stabbed one of them?”
I nodded. “I saw a Descended man attacking a mortal woman and a half-mortal child a few days ago. He…” My voice faltered at the painful memory. “He got away, but I managed to get two good cuts in.”
Brecke beamed as if I’d told him I had regrown the Everflame. Henri frowned. “You didn’t tell me that part.”
I winced. I hadn’t shared most of what happened in that alley with Henri. When I went to him afterward, I was too consumed by anger to relive it, too focused on seeking justice through the Guardians.
And there were still parts of that night I wasn’t ready to face again—not until I understood them better myself.
“I forgot,” I lied, avoiding his eyes. “It was an emotional day.”
“You forgot you stabbed a Descended?”
I shrugged and leaned back, pretending to pay attention to the meeting. An awkward silence settled between us, and I drifted in and out of eavesdropping as Brecke and Henri talked quietly about the real reason Brecke had come to Lumnos—something about a weapons shipment I mostly ignored, having already had my fill of that world for one day.
Every now and then, I caught Henri watching me. After nearly two decades of friendship, I knew the subtle signs of his temper, and I could tell it bothered him that I hadn’t told him about the fight.
But then, he hadn’t told me about the mortal boy he’d seen die until our trip to Fortos. It seemed we’d both grown accustomed to keeping secrets from each other—especially where the Descended were involved.
At the front of the room, Vance’s second, Brant, was asking for volunteers for future missions, and the atmosphere had shifted to eager anticipation. Everyone but me seemed to be listening intently for a way to contribute.
There was a need for horses for a trip to the western countryside, and several hands shot up. Henri immediately claimed a delivery to Faunos before Brant could even finish the request.
One by one, the more experienced Guardians stepped up to volunteer. With each passing task, I sank deeper into my chair.
“The Mother of the Arboros cell has sent word. She’s planning a major mission soon and would like our help. We need a Guardian who can gain access to the royal palace of Lumnos and move around unseen on the ground floor. We’ll provi—”
“That’s you,” Henri whispered, nudging me with his elbow. “You should take that one.”
“Prince Luther never takes his eyes off me when I’m there. There’s no way I could go unnoticed.”
“You got away from everyone at House Benette. You can figure it out.” He nudged me again. “Come on, this mission was made for you.”
He started to raise his hand, and I yanked it down, hissing in his ear. “Henri, no—I’m brand new. Don’t you think I should learn the ropes first?”
“Learn the ropes?” He looked at me like I’d sprouted wings. “D, you accomplished more on your test mission than most people here have done since joining the Guardians. You don’t need to learn anything. You’re ready.”
He flashed me that same goofy grin I’d fallen for once, his eyes bright with affection. Working with the Guardians had filled him with a passion I’d never seen in him before. His infectious excitement was hard to resist.
Henri jumped to his feet and pulled me up beside him. “Sister Diem can do it,” he announced.
Every eye in the room turned to me. Brant raised an eyebrow. Even Vance looked up from his papers and gave me a thoughtful look.
“The palace is a dangerous place for our kind, Sister Diem,” he said. “If you’re caught, there may be nothing we can do to save you. Are you sure you’re ready for this?”
No. I wasn’t ready at all. I had barely survived my mission at House Benette, and as intimidating as Evrim Benette had been, he was nothing compared to the Prince of Lumnos. Saving his sister’s life had earned me some patience, but if he found out I was spying for the Guardians, I had no doubt he’d kill me without hesitation.
But…
I’d always dreamed of living a life worthy of a legacy. Greatness was a rare privilege, especially for mortals in Lumnos. If I wanted to leave my mark on the world, this was my chance.
I sighed and raised my voice. “I’m ready. Tell me what you need me to do.”
