Halfway up, I paused to peer across the floor. The captain’s body lay across from me, a thick glaze already over his unfocused eyes. Blood leaked from the corner of his mouth, an open slash across his throat.
My hand tightened over the hilt of the sword. I padded up the last few stairs, ducking behind the main mast. To my right, another motionless body. One of the drones. He faced away from me, his arm tucked awkwardly behind his back in a bloodied stump, a severed hand leaning against the corner of a nearby barrel. A trail of crimson connected the two.
The ship gave a lurch. I dropped into a squat, keeping low as I crossed the helm. The dagger pressed into the flesh of my thigh, needling through my pulse like a sharp promise.I will not fail, I will not fail, I will not fail.
Steps sounded from the other side of a crate, scuffing and dragging as though wielded by injured legs. I froze, my back flat against the wood. Turned the hilt in my sweaty palm. My lungs refused to deflate. They pressed so hard against my torso, I thought my pounding heart might break my bones.
Behind me, the steps turned, following the curve of the crate.
I swallowed.
Step.
Anchored my weight in the balls of my feet.
Step.
Prepared to spring.
Step.
Deimos emerged from around the corner.
I leapt before his foot even landed.
He stared at me with those silver-wolf eyes as my sword cleaved his chest.
54
Pheolix
The tumblers inside the lock echoed across the shadows.
The iron door creaked open.
Thaan hadn’t opened it before. He always stood on the other side, gazing at me through the bars to ask questions about Selena and Cebrinne’s time in Venusia. When I refused to answer, he started visiting wearing Selena’s face.
She peered at me through the shadow, a dark silhouette against the burn of the torch behind her.
My back straightened. My stomach tightened. I could withstand the way he wore her like a mask while the iron door remained closed, cutting me off from him as he mocked me with her voice.
But she stepped inside, and everything in my body constricted in response.
I couldn’t eclipse him. But if he came close enough, I’d kill him with my bare hands.
She glanced around. The cold bucket of water I used to bathe. The walls, washed long ago with white paint, most of it scratched off by hundreds of hands. Scratched off until we’d bled. Dried blood patterned every surface, splattered, dripped, and finger-painted on. I’d grown so used to it, I hardly saw it anymore.
“Pheolix,” Selena said. As if I didn’t recognize her.
I leaned into the cold wall away from her. What game was Thaan playing now? What did he want from me? Information? Action? Was he testing whether I’d run? He’d left the barred door wide open.
Selena took another step toward me. Cautious. “Pheolix. Let’s go.”
A test, then. He wanted to know if I’d make a run for it. My lip curled. Selena took another step toward me. “Pheolix. It’s Selena.”
Something between a grunt and a laugh ejected from my chest. My eyes narrowed. Just a few more steps, and he’d be within reach. He hadn’t even bothered to wear something she’d wear. He’d come in man’s clothes. Pants and boots. The shape of a knife pulled at the side of Selena’s leg.
Two more steps.
