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But the question is – will the God listen?
I am surprised to see Plume come in from a tunnel off the rotunda, her face downcast like she is ashamed of what she’s supposed to be doing here. I recognize quickly that it is not guilt at participating in the ritual but guilt at defying Zeph. As she takes up her spot at the Bloomtide’s podium, I see the fear and sadness in her eyes.
I’ve been sitting on the floor of the stage, hanging my legs off, until it is time for the ritual to begin. Stone mentioned something about the moon needing to be just right, and he and Mace set off doing calculations I have no desire to be aware of.
Plume is wearing pants for the first time I’ve seen, ecru and flowing in cream around her legs. Their bottoms are dirty with the grime and dust from the garrison. “Hey, Plume. I wasn’t expecting to see you here,” I say lightly, as if we’re two ladies going out for drinks.
“Viola, how are you feeling?”
No part of me wants to talk about my feelings. On the best of days, I avoid the conversation, but today, where I slept with Mace, sobbed in his arms, and then walked into what may be my death chamber? Feelings cannot become a part of this.
“I am fine, just a regular day getting ready for the possibility of being slaughtered. Not much different than the Race, now that I think about it.”
She looks as if my words actually wounded her. “I know, it’s awful what the Lowlands have been put through to bring the Gods back. Your sacrifice…”
I cut her off swiftly. “I’m not dying here today, no matter what Zeph says.”
At the mention of her best friend, I see a flash of anger across her face. It looks wholly out of place on those rosy cheeks. “He is not himself lately. His alcohol consumption is out of control. He’s unstable and angry all the time. Nimh even told me he…” She drifts off as if deciding she wants to share information with me.
“What, that he beat Mace half to death?”
She shakes her head. “No. I mean, yes, that happened, but what Nimh told me was…” She looks around, checking to see if Stone and Mace were within hearing distance. When she feels satisfied, she turns back to me. “Nimh told me he caught you sleeping with Mace.”
The shock of the statement rips through me like lightning. “He what?”
She blushes as if talking about my sex life is more embarrassing for her than it is for me. “A few hours ago. He apparently went to talk to you; Tulip directed him to Mace’s office, and he… He saw…” I hold up a hand to stop her.
“I was there. You don’t need to tell me what Zeph saw.” Her shoulders relax at that.
“The things Nimh said he was ranting about are fearsome, Viola. He feels as if Mace stole you from him, that you were to be his.”
“I am my own person. No one possesses me.”
“That’s what Nimh told him, I’ve heard.” Her voice is layered with worry for her friend and fear for me. “What happened between the two of you, Viola?”
I lean my elbows onto my knees. “That’s the thing, Plume. Nothing happened at all. He was flirtatious a few times, but it was never more than that. He’s a good-looking guy and was kind to me, but I never felt anything towards him. If he says otherwise, it’s in his head.”
A brutal laugh fills the cavern. It’s wild, aggressive and unhinged. I swing my head to place it but see nothing at first glance. Plume glances around warily, fearful and moving closer to me.
A flare of white light fills the cavern, and standing there in the middle is Zeph Nightroot. His hair is disheveled, his clothing dirty and ripped, as if he was in a struggle. His eyes are bloodshot from drink and wild with anger. He’s terrifying, a wild force of brutal magic who has set his sights on me.
I rise to my feet, hands clenched in anticipation of the fight that Zeph seems to be desiring. Shadow hisses and flicks his tongue from my arm, and I begin to call the room’s shadows towards me.
“All in my head, Viola? That’s what you have to say?”
“Zeph, there was not anything between us. I thought we were friends.”
His hollow laugh rings out again. “Friends? I saved you. I was the first one to see you. To touch you. I helped you with your magic, and when Mace finally told you the truth about everything, I was there to pick up the pieces. I waited for you to come around. If you just for a moment stopped to think about what type of person I was, how good I would treat you, you’d never be in this situation!”
“I chose this situation! You wanted to choose for me. You seek to force me into what you want from me. I am so tired of people dictating what I need to do. This is my choice. I choose to be the vessel.”
I watch Zeph’s nose curl in a sneer as he walks to a shadowed tunnel and leans on the wall next to it.
“You like choice so much, Viola? Okay then. Choose.”
A flash of white illuminates the tunnel, revealing that which he kept hidden.
There in the tunnel, bound and gagged with a tear-streaked face, is Tulip.
