Total pages in book: 121
Estimated words: 112416 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 562(@200wpm)___ 450(@250wpm)___ 375(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 112416 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 562(@200wpm)___ 450(@250wpm)___ 375(@300wpm)
Adrian turned and glared at the prince, his voice vibrating with a quiet warning. “I’m always working for King Caelan, and don’t you forget it.”
Shey’s smile didn’t waver. “Yes, but this is more of a personal mission. As long as you do nothing to endanger your king, you’re free to act as you see fit. You don’t even know if King Caelan had ordered Vitor to intercede in this matter with Ruben. We’re working in a murky gray area.”
“I know, which is why I think we should move slowly,” Adrian countered. He returned to his chair and sat, dropping his hands into his lap. “How is revealing that you’re Prince Shey Thrudesh-Vo of Caspagir going slow? Feels like throwing fuel on the fire to me.”
“It’s—” Shey started to speak, but Tyche slipped between Haru and Shey, placing a hand on Shey’s arm. He squeezed, and the prince fell silent. Tyche continued to cross the room and sat at the table where they’d been reviewing a map of Damardor. He even put his coffee aside, forgetting about his precious treat.
“I understand your need to go slowly. This is dangerous work with many lives at risk, but you must remember that sitting hidden among those humans are little time bombs. There aren’t a lot of us minor gods left. Zyros saw to that. We’ve survived by hiding among the humans, letting you forget that we ever existed. But that doesn’t mean any of us have lost our power. As I see it, one of two things could happen as Ruben and his people snatch us up. We die in a painful blast of power, killing those around us, just like Yesuntei did. Or…”
Adrian shifted in his seat and licked his lips. “Or what?”
Tyche slowly lifted his gaze from the map to look at each of them as he spoke. “Or one of those minor gods wakes up and realizes that we aren’t as powerless as we’ve told ourselves. That human weapons aren’t nearly as frightening as Zyros or Tula. That we’re one push away from snapping and reminding humans that while minor, we are still gods.”
“Shit,” Adrian hissed.
“Yeah. Something I hadn’t really thought about,” Shey admitted softly.
Tyche flashed a crooked smile and shrugged one shoulder. “Mostly, my kind are content to float along, existing on the outskirts of humanity, but no one enjoys being trapped.”
“Everyone has a breaking point,” Haru murmured.
“The world is better off if everyone forgets we exist. That is why we must force Ruben to give us the information that we need now.”
Adrian flopped against the back of the chair. “How should we do this?”
Haru pulled the cell phone Vitor had given him for communication with Ruben from his pocket and handed it over to Adrian. “Send him a message. Tell him I’ve been in contact with my people. The Caspagir shard will arrive shortly. Ask for a meeting.”
“Yeah, okay,” Adrian mumbled, already typing on the phone.
“If it’s anything like last time, his butler will show us to his study. Ruben won’t realize that we’ve brought our friends until it is too late.”
Adrian lifted his eyes from the phone to stare at Haru and then Shey. “Uh-huh. This is the part where he panics, refuses to tell us anything, and tries to kill us.”
“Yes, but he won’t because we have a dragon, storm magic, and luck magic,” Tyche chimed in. “We’ll torture him. Get the information we want. And afterward, we’ll kill him.”
“I’ll burn the building,” Haru added.
“After you get the shard from the Isle of Stone. We are not leaving that behind,” Adrian stated.
Haru nodded. “Yes, of course. It shouldn’t be hard to locate. Even if I must tear the building apart.” That was the other part he was looking forward to besides the killing of Ruben Deinum. He wanted that monument to Ruben’s wealth and power destroyed, reduced to rubble and ash.
“There. We have a plan,” Shey announced.
“We’ve got something,” Adrian grumbled. He tapped on the phone a few more times before setting it on the table facedown, as if he couldn’t stand to look at it. “The message has been sent. If our cover hasn’t been blown, I wouldn’t be surprised if he wanted to see you today.”
Tyche jumped to his feet and rushed to Haru’s side. “Help me find the right attire for this. He dismissed me as nothing while in that prison. I want to wear something that screams fierce bad-ass, so he regrets ever capturing me.”
“And you don’t think him discovering you’re a god is terrifying enough?” Shey inquired.
“I haven’t decided if I’m going to reveal that yet. I have a feeling that learning you’re Caspagir royalty is going to be enough to make him shit his pants. Finding out I’m a god is kind of unnecessary.”
Shey smirked as he reached out. He caught a strand of red hair between two fingers and rubbed it. “You are anything but unnecessary.” His smirk turned into a grin. “But finding out you’re a god could give him a heart attack.”