Throne of the Fallen

“I like her, dear brother.” Emilia laughed, breaking the tension. “You must be Miss Camilla Antonius. I’m so happy to meet you. It’s about time someone gave Envy a bit of hell.”

“A pleasure, Your Majesty. Please call me Camilla.”

“How are you liking the Seven Circles?” Emilia asked.

Some of the tension in Camilla’s stance loosened. She gave Emilia a tentative smile. “Aside from meeting your twin last night, it’s been interesting.”

“I can imagine.”

“So.” Envy clapped once, drawing everyone’s attention back. “Now that we’ve established that Emilia hasn’t had the pleasure of riding my massive cock, I do have a request.”

“Whatever it is, my answer is no.” Wrath was not amused.

His wings beat softly in warning. Their inky color nearly faded into the background of the chamber. Shadows upon shadows. It was odd to see them without the flames.

Envy knew how much Wrath had loved them, how they’d been part of his very being. It was a testament to how much he loved his wife that the wings were now ebony. Through the careful sleuthing of his spies, Envy knew it was a price Wrath had paid so Emilia didn’t have to.

A twinge of jealousy twisted through Envy. His wings had also been taken, along with the rest of their brothers’. Until his court was settled and returned to its full glory, Envy didn’t have the power to summon his. They were there for the taking, but to unleash them for the first time… the magic involved would take too much from his battle to keep his court intact. With the ward, holding his court’s minds… he had no power to spare for his wings.

“I need access to the Twin Pillars.”

Wrath stared at him hard. “No.”

“The game leads there.”

“My answer stands.”

Envy and Wrath stared each other down. A slow rumble shook the floor. Wrath’s anger was manifesting. Envy’s own sin growled a low warning in return.

“I’m asking nicely”—Envy’s voice was quiet—“but I’ll get there one way or another. You cannot bar me from them.”

“As they sit below my House of Sin, that’s exactly what I can—and will—do.”

Envy took a step toward the dais; Camilla’s hand came down on his arm, forestalling him. It would not be good for the realm if either of them unleashed themselves.

Emilia cleared her throat.

“Where are the Pillars?” the queen asked.

Wrath looked inclined to keep his mouth shut, but never resisted his wife. “The entry is in the Crescent Shallows.”

Her brows rose.

Interesting that she hadn’t known that. Envy kept silent. Emilia was the living embodiment of fury, and he didn’t need to use his senses to see that Wrath had stoked her sin.

“What other surprises do we house here?” Her voice was low with warning.

Wrath shot his brother a look that promised vengeance. “Nothing.”

Envy snorted, holding his hands up when Emilia glared.

“What do you know?” she demanded.

Envy considered his next move carefully.

“You recall the afternoon in the garden?”

That afternoon he’d stolen her magic after she’d stolen a book of spells he’d left for her.

Emilia’s puzzled expression smoothed out. She shuddered. “That terrible, keening howl. You told me not to be curious.”

He nodded. “You still shouldn’t be, especially now. Abyssus guards the path to the Twin Pillars. Abyssus feasts on goddess blood; placing him there was a means to keep unwanted deities away from the Fae.”

“Why don’t I know about this?” Emilia’s gaze was on her husband. “From… before.”

Wrath looked ready to shove his fist down Envy’s throat.

Envy would love to see his brother try.

Camilla’s grip on Envy’s arm tightened in warning. Wrath could be intimidating when he wished to be. But he didn’t think she was staying his movements because of that.

Envy cut a cruel smirk his brother’s way but didn’t advance on him. “Keeping secrets from a vengeance goddess isn’t a wise idea.”

Wrath blew out a slow breath, trying to wrangle his temper. “It’s not something anyone outside my court is supposed to know.”

Envy’s spies were well worth the gold and sin he supplied them with.

“I don’t need to enter the tunnel from your House,” Envy said. “We’ll use the entrance in the fountain.”

“No.” Wrath’s tone was harder than his look. “I don’t want you anywhere near the Well of Memory.”

Envy’s frustration had him taking a threatening step closer. A move his brother did not miss. “I will swear a blood vow to leave your precious well untouched. I just need access to the Twin Pillars. That’s all.”

“Your issue, not mine, Levi.”

“It’s the most direct path there.”

“But not the only one,” Wrath said, mouth set into a firm, unyielding line.

Envy’s pulse roared, but he kept his face free from the strain. Wrath would not budge on this. Envy turned to Emilia, playing his last hand.

“Do I still have the queen’s favor?”

After her coronation, they’d spoken about her potentially being in his debt. He didn’t really mean it then, but he’d call in a favor now. Even if it meant burning one more bridge, destroying the friendship before it had a chance to truly begin.

Emilia, for her part, seemed amused.