Page 28 of The Arcane God

“It’s our version of handfasting,” Steig explained.

Greya nodded. She was beginning to understand the situation now. The man had divided loyalties…but did he really have Ena and Ty’s best interests at heart…or his own family’s?

“But,” he continued, “I’ve known about the amulet from the start. I was with Ty when he captured Ena, and when they found the amulet. I am on his side, not the king’s.”

That tracked. Greya knew there had been a third daemon, along with Ty and Turner, that had participated in Ena’s capture. Maybe Steig was on Ty’s side, but where did that leave the witches?

“And Ty is on Ena’s side,” Greya stated, testing his reaction to the mention of her sister. “His wife’s.”

“Wife?” Steig asked, his brows jumping up.

“Yes,” she said. “I had the honor of handfasting them before…” Greya paused, not sure how much she wanted to reveal.

“Before what?” Steig asked, his concern for them evident. “Where are they? Are they not here anymore?”

Greya fell silent. She trusted that what he said was true—that he was Ty’s friend and had been involved in the plot to break the bond along with him, but still…could he be trusted now? With the king breathing down his neck and his family presumably left alone without protection?

Steig seemed to sense her hesitance. “Look,” he said. “I’m sorry for the attack. I swear it was not my idea, and I harmed no one. The other two…they couldn’t be stopped. They were absolute idiots, and to be honest, I’m glad to be rid of them.”

Greya scoffed, not sure how she felt about so much harm being done by two daemons Steig dismissed as “idiots.” “Just because you knew my sister, and didn’t participate in the attack, does not mean you are a friend to witches,” Greya said.

“I have no desire to hurt witches,” Steig replied, his voice adamant. “It’s no secret that I do not trust your kind, and I hope you’ll agree that mistrust on both sides is warranted, but your sister…she showed me that not all of you are bad, and that our two races have more in common than I thought, especially now that we have access to Gaia once more.”

Greya paused, assessing him. “And what is Gaia’s will telling you now?” she asked, again testing his response.

Steig sighed, as if reluctant to speak her will out loud. “To keep peace with you and your Coven so you can help me warn Ena and Ty about what the king is up to. And then figure out how to overthrow the bastard,” he said. “Although I’m pretty sure that second part is Iblis’s will.”

Greya watched him, letting her Knowing have free rein to interpret his signs—his facial expressions, the way he breathed, the way his eyes looked about—and she decided once again that he was sincere.

“They’re gone,” she said. “They were here, but…they had to leave.”

She wasn’t sure if she should tell him about the baby. Even if his intentions were good, she did not want to risk that information getting back to the king.

“Where did they go?” he asked, his brows furrowing in concern.

“Over the Chasm Mountains.”

“What?” Steig asked, as if he couldn’t possibly have heard her right.

“It’s true, and I’m sorry, but I don’t—”

“Greya!” a voice called—distressed and muffled, as if far away and…underwater.

It couldn’t be.

Greya looked around the room frantically. She recognized the way that voice sounded.

Greya shone her candle around the dark room, looking for—

There! The pitcher of water they’d given the daemon. Turning her back to Steig so he couldn’t see, she picked it up off the floor and moved it to the center of the room, placing it on the ground in front of her. She held the candle up to it, and almost couldn’t believe what she saw.

In the reflection of the water, she could just barely make out part of Ena’s face. The pitcher was too small to hold the whole thing, but she could tell from her eyes alone that something was wrong.

“Ena! Oh, Gaia. What is it? Why are you contacting me?”

“Greya,” Ena said. She could tell her voice was full of tears, despite being muffled by the water. “It’s Ty.”

Greya looked into the pitcher of water to see Ena’s blue eyes filled with sadness, and her heart plummeted.