Aren watched as guards disappeared into the castle with Galo. He wanted to follow them in, to make sure Galo was all right, but he needed to find Iria first. He’d lost track of her after she killed Olivia and helped Em inside.
The sun was almost completely gone, the last wisps of light shining across the grass in front of the castle. There were bodies scattered everywhere, some of them Lera soldiers, and Aren swallowed down a wave of panic as he scanned the area.
He spotted Olivia, her body still crumpled on the grass where she’d died. A few Ruined stood nearby. He dared a quick glance around the area, trying his best not to look at Olivia as he searched for Iria.
Mariana was trudging slowly toward the castle, Patricio and Gisela on either side of her. She smiled weakly at Aren.
“Did we lose any Ruined?” he asked.
“Not one.”
He breathed a sigh of relief.
“What should we tell them to do with Olivia’s body?” Mariana asked.
Aren closed his eyes briefly. “Um, I think Em will want to bury it.” His throat closed as he said the words. He didn’t have much affection left for Olivia, but he knew that Em had to be devastated. All of this had started as a way to get her sister back, and in the end, she’d failed.
Mariana nodded. “I’ll let them know.”
He scanned the area behind them again, squinting at the soldiers returning to the castle. He purposefully didn’t look at the dead bodies on the ground. He didn’t want to even consider that she could be there. “Have you seen Iria?”
Mariana shook her head.
“Go rest,” he said, putting a hand on her shoulder briefly. He walked farther away from the castle, his heart sinking further with each step. Soldiers and guards passed him, some of them smiling and thanking him, but he didn’t see Iria.
He turned back to the castle. Two guards were helping a soldier to her feet a few paces away.
“You were incredible,” the woman said to Aren.
“Thank you. Do you know if there was any fighting in the back of the castle?”
One of the guards shook his head. “No, but there was some on the southeast side.”
“Thanks.” He broke into a jog and headed southeast. There was nothing there but a few dead bodies, many of them killed by Olivia, judging by the state of their necks.
The soldiers around him were celebrating as he walked back to the front of the castle. Two Ruined passed him, one briefly grabbing his hand and saying something kind. His heart was pounding in his ears so loudly that he couldn’t even make out everything she had said.
“Have you seen Iria?” he asked a familiar guard as she passed.
“Not since she brought Em in.”
He stopped, bracing a hand against the castle wall. He should have grabbed her after she passed Em off to Galo. He’d wanted to, but he’d had warriors coming at him from all sides at the time. He’d taken his eyes off her for a moment and she was gone.
“I took this shield from a soldier. I’m not sure who it was.”
Aren’s head snapped up at the sound of the familiar voice. Iria stood not far away, passing a Weakling shield to a guard.
“You’re the one who killed Olivia,” the guard said. His face broke into a smile. “I’m sure you can keep the shield. I think you can probably have anything you want.”
Iria shook her head. “Thanks, but I don’t need it.” She looked up and spotted Aren watching them, and a tentative smile crossed her face. She lifted her hand in a wave.
He strode forward, reaching her in only a few quick steps. Whatever expression he had on his face, she seemed surprised by it, because her eyes widened a little as he approached.
He put both hands on her cheeks and kissed her. She immediately wrapped her arms around his waist and rose up on her toes, drawing them closer together. His whole body almost collapsed with relief. He might never let her out of his sight again.
“I’m sorry about Olivia,” she said as soon as they broke apart. “She was coming for you. I had to.”
“I know,” he said softly. He kept his hands on her cheeks, refusing to let her go yet.
“Is Em all right?”
“I haven’t seen her yet. But she knows you did it to protect us.” Aren thought that Em might have even been a little grateful, deep down. Iria saved Em from having to do it herself.
He leaned down and kissed her again, wrapping both arms around her waist and pulling her tight against him. She pressed both hands to his chest, and he took one as he pulled away, lacing their fingers together.
“Where were you?” he asked. “I lost you after you gave Em to Galo. Did you go into the castle?”
“No, I helped Mariana and a few other Ruined fight off the warriors.”
He took in a sharp breath and looked down at her foot. “You really weren’t in shape to fight yet. You should have stayed where I could protect you.”
“I don’t need you to protect me. I did just fine on my own, obviously.”
“You’re still healing. Once you—”
Iria cut him off with another kiss, a low laugh sounding from the back of her throat. “Are you yelling at me or kissing me?” she asked. Her arms tightened around his waist.
“Both, I think.” He smiled and leaned down to kiss her again.
FORTY-NINE
“ARE YOU EVER going to die?”
Cas pressed his lips together to keep in a laugh. The words were spoken by Jovita, who glared at him from the other side of her cell. She’d been locked up beneath the castle since the day of the battle, and it seemed she’d assumed he was dead.
“He’s immortal,” Galo said, stepping off the stairs behind Cas. “I guess you didn’t hear.”
Jovita looked between the two of them, like she couldn’t decide if they were telling the truth. The Ruined had clearly damaged her mind, because he could see the confusion all over her face as she frowned at them. It had been nearly a month since she’d returned to the castle on the day of the battle, and she hadn’t improved at all.
He felt a flash of sympathy for Jovita that she didn’t deserve. She didn’t deserve any of what he was about to do, but he knew it was the right decision. It was the first time he’d felt at peace about Jovita since his mother had died.
“I’m sending you to the fortress,” Cas said, stepping forward and pulling out the key to the cell. “There are guards waiting at the top of the stairs. They’ll escort you to a carriage, and then south, to the fortress.”
She regarded him suspiciously as he pulled the door open. “And then what?”
“And then you may do whatever you want, in the confines of the fortress. You’ll be given a room, not a cell, and you’ll have full access to the grounds. But you’ll be guarded at all times.”
She laughed. It was short and loud, and not at all amused. “You’re lying. You’re going to send me away so you can kill me without getting your hands dirty.”
“No, that’s what you would have done. The guards have been ordered not to harm you.” He swept his arm toward the stairs. “Go. We may come up with a different arrangement in the future, but for now, you will live in the fortress, and I will live here, and with a little luck, we will never see each other again.”