As Vladim moved to turn the locks, I heard Genya whisper. "You definitely owe me a kiss after all this, Don't think I won't hold you to it."
I laughed lightly. "We'll see."
"There is no seeing, you will, if I have to be the one to do it then so be...
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I SAT UP WITH A GASP, SUCKING IN THE DAMP air of the alabaster chamber. I looked around guiltily. I shouldn't have done it. What had I learned? That he was at the Grand Palace and in disgustingly good health? Paltry information.
But I wasn't sorry. Now I knew what he saw when he visited me, what information he could or couldn't cull from the contact. Now I had practice in one more power that had only belonged to him. And I enjoyed it. At the Little Palace, I'd dreaded those visions, though I might be losing my mind, and worse, I'd wondered what they said about me.
No longer. I was done being ashamed. Let him feel what it was to be haunted. A headache was starting in my right temple. I sought Morozova's amplifiers for you, Freya.
Lies disguised as truth. He'd sought to make me more powerful, but only because he believed he could control me. He still believed it, and that scared me. The Darkling had no way of knowing that Alina and I knew where to start looking for the third amplifier, but he hadn't seemed concerned. He hadn't even mentioned the Firebird. He'd seemed confident, and strong, as if he belonged in that palace and on that throne.
I know things about power you can barely guess at. I gave myself a shake. Alina and I might not be a threat, but we could become one. I wouldn't let him beat us before we'd had a chance to give him the fight he deserved.
A quick knock came at the door. It was time. I shoved my feet into my boots and adjusted my scratchy gold and blue kefta. After this, maybe I'd give myself a little treat and stuff the thing in a stewpot.
The services were quite a spectacle. It was still a challenge to summon up even the smallest amount of water so far underground, but the dampness helped what it needed to. I'd had to have help up onto the podium by both Alina and the priest just to prove that my power had been restored. The people below moaned and swayed. Vladim stood to my left, his shirt open to display the brand of Alina's palm on his chest.
To my right, the Apparat held forth, and whether out of fear or real belief, he did a very convincing job. Alina was beside me, looking out over the crowd. We'd both agreed that she'd do the talking, not because I didn't want to but because I knew after I pulled the water back I'd be exhausted.
The Apparat's voice rang through the main cavern, claiming that our mission was guided by divine providence and that Alina and I would emerge from trial more powerful than ever. Though I wasn't sure what he meant by 'we'.
I studied him as he spoke. He looked paler than usual, and a bit sweaty though not particularly chastened. I wondered if it was a mistake to leave him alive, but without the rush of fury and power guiding my actions, execution wasn't a step I was prepared to consider seriously.
