I took a sip of water as I turned back to him. “Is everything okay?”
He lowered his hand. “Now that you’re awake? Yes.”
I wanted to smile at that but couldn’t. “Are you sure? Things have felt…odd between you and Casteel.”
“Yeah?”
I nodded.
“I don’t know why you would think that.” Kieran smiled, but it didn’t warm his features. Setting his glass on the table, he crossed the distance between us and placed a hand on my arm. The contact sent a wave of energy through me and caused him to jerk. “Gods.”
“You felt it that time?”
“Yeah, man. That’s…” He shook his head. “That’s something else.”
I grinned, but it faded quickly as I stared up at him.
Kieran’s eyes briefly closed, and only the gods knew what he was picking up from me in those quiet moments because he looped his arm around my shoulders and pulled me against him.
“Two hugs in less than an hour?” I asked. “Have you been possessed by a friendly and affectionate god?”
Kieran’s laugh was low and rough. “Cas and I…” He exhaled heavily. “We’ve just been worried about you, Poppy,” he said, his voice low. “You were asleep for so long. It messed with both of us. But we’re the very last thing you need to be worried about. Okay?”
“Okay,” I murmured.
His arm tightened around me, and I rested my cheek against the chest of the man who had been my rock when Casteel was taken.
Kieran had kept me sane as we made our way across Solis to find Casteel. He’d always been honest with me and pulled no punches, even when what he had to say wasn’t easy. I trusted him with my life and, more importantly, others’ lives. He wouldn’t lie to me.
Still, I didn’t believe him.
He wasn’t telling me the whole truth. Something was up between them. Cas was hiding it, and Kieran was willing to lie about it. So, whatever it was…
It was something they didn’t want me to know.
CHAPTER 19
POPPY
Kieran held me for a few more moments before smoothing a hand over my hair and kissing my forehead.
“You never said what caused this great loss of life,” he mentioned as he stepped back.
Tabling whatever Casteel and Kieran were hiding from me, I went back to the window. “It was the Ancients.” Opening the shutters, I told Kieran about them and why they’d Awakened as a surprisingly cool breeze filled the chamber. He had the same reaction as Casteel when I got to the part where I told him it was due to my Ascension. I then distracted him by mentioning that I’d gone to Mount Lotho.
“The Fates?” My gaze moved over the Garden District in the distance. The waning sunlight reflected off the Atlantian guards’ golden armor as they patrolled the streets. They were little more than specks, but the fact that I could see what I hadn’t been able to before should have had me beside myself with joy. Instead, my stomach churned under the weight of what had happened in the other realm.
“They are the Ancients who stood against those who wanted to cleanse the realm.” I looked over my shoulder at Kieran. He had taken a seat in the armchair. “I think only the draken, the true Primal of Life, and the true Primal of Death know that. It’s not something that is supposed to be known.”
Kieran nodded slowly. “Do you know why?”
“They didn’t tell me why,” I said. “But if I had to guess, I’d say it’s because they see themselves as…the keepers of the balance. And they know that would be impossible if they took positions of power—which would happen if it became known that those who created everything around us were still alive and well.”
“It doesn’t sound like they’ve been doing that great of a job keeping the balance,” he remarked.
“Agreed.” I moved from the window. “So, what happened in the Luxe?”
“We found several Ascended dead in their homes. Drained of blood.”
