Page 63 of Kill the Queens

"It's called a hug, Shelby. In case you didn't know that."

"I—" He paused, his hands gently touching her back. "There isn't time for this."

"You're right," Ace muttered before sliding down the length of him.

"We have to help them before we go," Shelby said looking behind a very quiet Rehan and to the wall of assorted metal objects that each looked scarier than the last.

He brushed past the two of them reaching for a set of keys. Ace and Rehan watched in silence as Shelby walked to the cell and handed the keys to the nearest person.

"We can't stay but when you get out make sure to help the others." He turned back, looking at Rehan wearily before he found Ace again. "You trust him?" She nodded. "The queen's dead I presume?" Ace nodded again.

"And that is precisely why we need to get moving…" Rehan was already inching toward the door. "Come."

Shelby's throat bobbed, but he extended his hand to Ace. "If you're going, I'll go."

"I'm not sure that's a good thing," she breathed.

"Me either."

***

Even people who have been brought back from death are still susceptible to the normal functions of the human body. Holy fire or not. Adrenaline being one of those things. If Ace wasn't paying attention, adrenaline could feel an awful lot like holy fire. Maybe it was the fuel for such.

When the feeling had faded, Ace was left with shaking sweaty hands, weak knees, and a heavy heart. Killing the queens had been what the gods wanted, right? She'd even convinced herself that it was what she wanted too. For the good of Pasia. For revenge on what they'd done to her.

Part of her was sick with regret. Killing Farah was different than killing Sienna. Ace hadn't technically killed Sienna, hadn't seen her face as she recounted all her mistakes leading up to her death. Farah's blood was on her hands.

The city of Saylor was behind them now as Rehan led them out to where he'd stayed, not too far away. Ace believed him—not that she could afford the luxury of not believing him—only because he had become an expert at finding the shadows of Saylor and slipping through the city unnoticed as Ace had when she lived in Maipeg for so long. The three of them stole away through every darkened corner of the city until there was no city left. Rehan's home hadn't been buried in the woods like Shelby's grandmother's. Instead, it was hardly a ten-minute walk once they lost sight of the city through the tree line. It was bigger and grander than Ace expected as she looked up at the two-storybrick home.

Rehan's hair had torn from its bindings and now hung to his shoulders. Before opening the door, he wiped his bloody hands across his thighs. The door was opened and Ace and Shelby ushered in. For whatever reason, Ace expected cobwebs and large empty rooms similar to her apartment. That was not the case.

Rehan's home was stocked with furniture, books, and many knick-knacks, all well dusted. Sparkling chandeliers dangled in the center of each room and large rugs lay out on the floors. A large staircase could be seen through the single open door past the front room; Rehan pointed to it.

"Guest rooms are up the stairs. There are several; pick whichever you'd like. My room is down the hall." He swallowed and gave a tight smile. "Welcome to my home."

"Rehan," Ace blinked, "how did you find this place?"

"This was my home before I died." He nodded. "I didn't have a family to share it with yet but it turned out for the better."

Shelby stood silently next to Ace, his arms hanging at his side, eyes panning the room.He cleared his throat, finally giving Rehan a nod before he started through the room and toward the stairs. Ace moved like a ghost after him.

“Ace.” Rehan placed a hand on her before she could get too far. Shelby paused in the doorway but did not turn around. “I’m sorry.”

That was it. Was he sorry that Ace had been killed? That she’d been killed by her sisters? Was he sorry that she now had to kill her own flesh and blood? Or was he sorry that Ace agreed to marry him? Could he sense the way her heart ached for the one man she didn’t think she could ever have?

There were many things to be sorry about, she supposed. All she could offer him was a sad smile before she slipped out of the room. Shelby had already made it up the stairs and into hisown room. When she got to the second floor she stood staring at his door.

You should tell him, Mina said softly.

“I can’t.” Ace’s voice cracked. She sunk her teeth into her bottom lip just to feel something other than the swirling abyss of sorrow and terror.

The floorboards creaked under her as she took a step toward the other room. The hardwood under her looked well worn, like perhaps Rehan had grown up here. She could picture the space filled with family members laughing together, reading on the couches in the front room, children bounding up and down these stairs. Rehan was the future the gods had picked for her.

What if he feels the same, Mina encouraged.

The real question was, what if he didn’t? With that thought, Ace turned swiftly and let herself into the other room. It was a smaller bedroom with a single bed that was practically overflowing with throw pillows. Two windows looked out to the treeline and farther to the backyard where a small trickling creek passed.

Ace ran her fingers over the pinstripe wallpaper and eventually the tall mahogany wardrobe where several dresses were hung with care. She didn’t dare touch the fine materials for fear of staining them. Nestled under the clothes were a few pairs of shoes—house slippers and a couple of finer dress shoes.