Children of Blood and Bone - Tomi Adeyemi Page 0,143

we’ll use her as leverage to retrieve it. After it’s in our hands, she’ll destroy it for good.”

“And after that,” I press, “after it’s gone, what then?”

“She dies.” Father turns back to his map, charting a course. “We’ll parade her corpse around Orïsha, remind everyone what happens if they defy us. If there’s even a whiff of rebellion, we’ll wipe them all out. Then and there.”

“What if there’s another way?” I speak up. I glance at the cities on the map. “What if we could hear their complaints—use the girl as an ambassador? There are people … people she loves. We could use them to keep her in line. A maji we control.” Each word feels like a betrayal, but when Father doesn’t interrupt, I keep going. I don’t have a choice. I have to save her at all costs. “I’ve seen things on these travels, Father. I understand the divîners now. If we can improve their situation, we’ll quell the possibility of rebellions altogether.”

“My father thought the same thing.”

I suck in a quick breath.

Father never speaks of his family.

The little I know about them comes from gossip and whispers around the palace.

“He thought we could end their oppression, build a better kingdom. I thought so, too, but then they killed him. Him and every other person I loved.” Father places a cold hand on my neck. “Believe me when I say there’s no other way. You saw what that Burner did to their camp.”

I nod, although I wish I hadn’t. There’s no fighting Father now that I’ve seen humans incinerated so fast they couldn’t even scream.

Father’s grip tightens. Almost to the point of pain. “Heed my word and learn this lesson now. Before it’s too late.”

Father steps forward and embraces me. A touch so foreign my body flinches in shock. The last time his arms were wrapped around me was when I was young. After I cut Amari.

A man who can cut his own sister is a man who can be a great king.

For a second I allowed myself to feel proud.

I was happy as my sister bled.

“I didn’t believe in you.” He pulls back. “I didn’t think you would succeed. But you’ve kept Orïsha safe. All of this will make you a great king.”

Unable to speak, I nod. Father turns back to his maps. He’s done with me now. With nothing more to say, I leave the room.

Feel, I command myself. Feel something. Father’s given me everything I’ve ever wanted. After all this time, he finally believes I will be a great king.

But when the door slams shut, my legs buckle. I slide to the ground.

With Zélie locked in chains, it doesn’t mean a thing.

CHAPTER SIXTY-SEVEN

INAN

I WAIT TILL FATHER SLUMBERS.

Until the guards leave their post.

I sit in the shadows. Watching. The iron door moans when the physician exits her cell.

His face is blanched with strain, his clothes stained with her blood. The sight of him fortifies my desires.

Find her. Save her.

I zip across the floor and slide in my key. As the door groans open, I brace myself for the sight.

Nothing can prepare me.

Zélie hangs limp, her body nearly lifeless, her torn dress soaked through with blood. The sight rips a new hole inside of me.

And Father thinks the maji are the animals.

Shame and rage thrash within me as I select the right key. This isn’t about magic. For once it has to be about her.

I unlock the shackles binding her wrists and ankles, freeing Zélie from their hold. I catch her in my arms and cover her mouth. As she wakes, I muffle the sound of her screams.

Her pain ripples through me. Already the physician’s stitches are splitting. Her blood seeps out.

“I can’t feel it,” she whimpers against my skin. I adjust my arms to put pressure on the bandages around her back.

“You will,” I try to soothe her. What in skies’ name does she mean?

Her mind is a wall, running her torture on a constant loop.

There’s no ocean, no spirit. No scent of the sea. I can’t see beyond the anguish. She lives in the prison of her pain.

“Don’t do this.” Her nails claw into my shoulder as we ascend an empty stairwell. “I’m already bleeding out. Just leave me.”

The heat of her blood leaks through my fingers. I press harder against her back.

“We’ll find a Healer.”

Guards’ boots clank around the corner. I duck into an empty room as I wait for them to pass by. She cringes and fights back a scream. I press her