I sniffed. "The rest of you weren't at hell's gate. I was."
"Yes, but the path that led to that place is where the blame can be placed." His voice was grim. "That road is scattered not just with our failure, but the failure of the Raziq to guard the place they desecrated with their conceited slaughter of the priests, and by the failure of your father to fully tell us what his chrání was capable of. And it also lies with those of us forced to take over guard duties and yet who still do not understand all the magic of that place."
"Was it magic that prevented the Mijai at the gate from interfering?"
"Yes. He was not aware that anything was amiss until the gate opened."
"But he sensed my presence?"
"Yes, and thought nothing of it because you wore the marks of my tribe and my energy resonated within you. But he had no sense that anything was wrong. Not until I was able to slaughter the sorceress's Dušan and get into the temple grounds. By then, it was all too late."
Because I'd failed to do what I'd gone there to do. He could dance around it all he liked, but that was one fact we were never going to escape.
"Will the pits hold her?"
"It would depend on how much knowledge the Aedh passed on to her."
I shifted so I could look into his eyes. "Meaning what?"
"Meaning the priests have always been able to enter either gate at will. As the Aedh was your father's chrání, he will have gained some – if not all – of that knowledge."
"You should have ignored my wishes and killed that bastard when you had the chance," I muttered. I scrubbed a hand across my eyes, smearing the remaining tears. "So what the hell do we do now?"
"Now," an ominous, all too familiar voice said, "your friend dies."
I scrambled to my feet, Amaya suddenly in my hands and screaming her fury. Valdis joined in the noise as Azriel rose beside me.
My father's energy filled the room. How he'd gotten so close without us noticing I had no idea, because technically, he shouldn't have been able to get into this place. Ilianna's wards were still active, and they should have prevented any Aedh other than the now dead Lucian from getting in.