BooksBarbecue
Back Seven Devils
Chapters (62)
  1. Cover
  2. Dedication
  3. 1.
  4. 2.
  5. 3.
  6. 4.
  7. 5.
  8. 6.
  9. 7.
  10. 8.
  11. 9.
  12. 10.
  13. 11.
  14. 12.
  15. 13.
  16. 14.
  17. 15.
  18. 16.
  19. 17.
  20. 18.
  21. 19.
  22. 20.
  23. 21.
  24. 22.
  25. 23.
  26. 24.
  27. 25.
  28. 26.
  29. 27.
  30. 28.
  31. 29.
  32. 30.
  33. 31.
  34. 32.
  35. 33.
  36. 34.
  37. 35.
  38. 36.
  39. 37.
  40. 38.
  41. 39.
  42. 40.
  43. 41.
  44. 42.
  45. 43.
  46. 44.
  47. 45.
  48. 46.
  49. 47.
  50. 48.
  51. 49.
  52. 50.
  53. 51.
  54. 52.
  55. 53.
  56. 54.
  57. 55.
  58. 56.
  59. 57.
  60. EPILOGUE
  61. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
  62. ABOUT THE AUTHORS

Clo held her breath and fried the chip. Sher twitched, then went limp. His heart still beat, but who knew what she’d done to the machinery within his skull. Her heart hurt. She’d lost both of the men who had brought her into the Novantae.

“Now, Clo,” Kyla said, steel in her voice. “Leave him.”

Clo did as her commander instructed.

They started moving along the vent and Kyla froze, her face contorting in a grimace as she glanced down at the ballroom. They’d missed some of the ceremony. Had the rulers signed the treaty? Clo couldn’t tell. Damocles leaned over to Eris and whispered in her ear. Kyla reached in her bag. Clo understood and grabbed two smoke orbs.

Wordlessly, they pulled out the pins and tossed the orbs through the vents. The smoke released and obscured the revelers below. Clo prayed that Nyx and Cato managed to grab Eris in the confusion.

This was their only chance.

55.

NYX

Present day

Battles were easier than this. There was a cacophonous symphony to war; everyone had a place, movements were carefully coordinated and planned and executed. Nyx was used to exhausting her body, to punishing it with pain. She was very good at killing.

She did not like espionage, or playing a part, or pretending to be of any station above the one she had been designated. The robes she wore were so soft that she felt naked. The filters up her nose and down her throat itched something awful. The soft, musical accents of upper-class Tholosians and Evoli chafed her ears.

As they moved through the gardens and deposited the spharias amid the vast grounds, Nyx and Cato pretended to gawk like tourists. In truth, Nyx was counting how many Evoli and Tholosians were inside the perimeter of the spharias’ quarantine—people who would die if Damocles loosed the plague. The revelers beyond the palace grounds would be spared. That was all they could do.

Nyx and Cato headed back to the palace, and the scan checked them through to the main ballroom.

Beside her, Cato let out a breath. “Now what?”

Nyx wound her way through the crowd, taking care to appear casual rather than purposeful. “We wait for Sher and the distraction,” she said through her teeth.

Beside her, Cato’s movements were as stiff and awkward as one of those mech androids on planets without many gerulae.

“Look natural, you fuckwit.” Nyx put up a hand as if she were rubbing her nose. “Avert your face or cover your mouth when you speak. Evoli are good lip readers. And for god’s sake, try not to feel panicked. All they have to do is touch you and they’ll sense everything.” Nyx scanned the room, eyes darting from person to person. “Plenty of security—”

An Evoli soldier across the room caught her gaze, then he glanced behind her.