“Your skin is tinged blue, Emilia. Had you not kicked me awake while showing signs of returning, I would have come for you and obliterated every creature in that realm. I’d have taken you from there, then wiped the entire realm from existence.”
“Oh.” I pulled an arm out from under the covers and glanced at my skin, cringing.
No wonder he was so angry. I looked half dead. I would have been terrified if I had awoken to him looking like a corpse beside me, too. Given the circumstances, his reaction was fairly mild. If any harm came to him, I would have attacked first.
“Your sister is playing a very dangerous game.” Wrath’s tone was filled with malice.
“I know.” I traced small circles on his upper arm. “She’s not thinking clearly. Vengeance and retribution are her gods, and she’s honoring them regularly.”
“What has been so critical for her to share that she cannot wait until you seek her out?”
“I think she senses some of my curse is breaking, and there are cracks where my memories are coming back. She’s trying to help me remember so I—”
Wrath turned all his attention on me. “So you what?”
“Vittoria wants to reestablish House Vengeance. She says she means to start a war between witches, demons, and other supernaturals, but I don’t necessarily believe that. She certainly hates witches and has a strong dislike for demons, yet her main focus seems to be on restoring our House.”
Silence crept into the space between us.
“Is that something you want?” Wrath asked, his tone carefully neutral. “Reestablishing your House?”
“Until I know the full story and regain my memories, I don’t want to make that decision.” I bit my lower lip. “Is that something that would cause a complication for us? My sister seems to think it would.”
“No. I would never stop you from doing anything you wanted. And as long as Vittoria leaves you to your own choices and respects your wishes, I don’t give a shit what she does or who she prays to or starts a war with. There’s already a price on her head. Greed wants her dead. So do Envy and Pride. Lust and Gluttony can both be swayed easily if it came to war. And Sloth will not go against the majority. I am the only one standing in the way of her total annihilation. And if she takes you against your will again, I will hunt her down. I will hurt her. Slowly. And painfully. Her death will be so brutal, so vile, it will serve as a warning for anyone who dares to touch my wife. Once I’m through, there will be nothing left for my hounds.”
A tremor went through his body. I’d been wrong. Wrath’s reaction wasn’t mild at all. He was desperately trying to keep himself under control for my benefit. I thought of what I’d learned tonight, about how Wrath reacted once the curse began. How he’d nearly killed his brothers in his mad search for me. All he’d found was some blood and torn-out hair. Of course he would have thought his brothers had schemed. A curse would have been the last thing on his mind.
I couldn’t help but wonder if there hadn’t been any strife between the princes before then. As much as they fought and tried to outmaneuver one another now, there still seemed to be some familial affection. Some loyalty. Maybe one day those wounds could heal, too.
I nestled against my prince, laying my head on his chest. His heart beat like a war drum. Mine marched along to the same haunted rhythm.
If Wrath decided my sister was a true threat to me, he would not hesitate to remove her. I had little doubt that, even as an immortal goddess, he would succeed.
As terrible as things seemed with Vittoria, I was still clutching at hope that there was some redeemable part in her. Some way for me to reach what had once been warm and kind when we were mortals. I wanted to believe that Vittoria’s goals of breaking my spell-lock and granting me my full power were solely because she wanted what was best for me, but I worried it had more to do with her current plan.
If she wanted a powerful ally and hadn’t gotten one with the demon princes, maybe she wanted to unlock my power for her gain. And if Wrath was correct—if there was a chance I might not survive the removal of my heart—I understood why Vittoria’s insistence would push him to remove her as a threat. He’d had someone take me against my will before.
I was still fighting my way back to my true self. If our roles were reversed, I would destroy anyone who threatened our happiness, too. I would murder without regret or remorse. Just as I’d done to that Umbra demon. But this was my twin, and it wasn’t so simple or black and white.