“Thank you,” I say, prepared to lay down my own life or whatever else she demands. “Please. I’ll do anything if you can help him.”

Zerra’s mouth twists up into a smile that sets me on edge.

“Yes. That you will, Lor.”

I blink, again noting the ominous bite of her beauty and waiting for whatever condition she’s about to attach to my future. Our future. I squeeze Nadir, hoping he knows I’m doing everything I can to fix this.

“What?” I finally ask while she continues staring at me with that same haughty look. “He’s not breathing. Hurry up. What do you want?”

She waves a hand. “Don’t worry. As long as he’s with me, he’s in a suspended state. He’ll be fine once I choose to revive him. It will be like you never killed him at all.”

Those words loosen the bolt screwed inside my chest, but it can’t be that easy. I’m confident I have many bridges yet to cross before this is over. I cling to him tighter, feeling how cold he’s grown already and how the color has leached from his skin. I run a thumb over the arch of his dark brow, my fingers caressing his cheek as my eyes burn with tears. When I look back at Zerra, she’s watching us, a crease denting the space between her brilliant blue eyes.

“What will make you choose to revive him?” I ask, gritting my teeth with impatience.

She clasps her hands at her waist and slowly paces a few steps left and then right before turning back. With my heart wedged in my throat, I clamp down on the urge to scream at her to hurry the fuck up.

“The arks,” she says after a few moments as a few pieces shift into place.

“The arks. Cloris Payne told us about them.”

“High Priestess Cloris,” she says. “You will respect her position and address her as is her station.”

I roll my neck because otherwise I’ll roll my eyes. I’ll respect Cloris fucking Payne when pigs grow unicorn horns.

“Fine. High Priestess Cloris told me.”

Zerra tips her chin as if that pleases her. But only a little. Her entire demeanor speaks to something that resembles a mortal-shaped sneer. This is the goddess who controls our lives? This small, petty woman?

“I don’t have the ark of Heart if that’s what you’re after.”

“All in due time,” she says.

I’m choosing not to think too hard about what that means, because for now, Nadir is the only thing that matters.

“The Alluvion King has an ark in his possession,” Zerra says.

I sigh, feeling pressure build in my temples, already knowing where this is going.

“I want you to retrieve it for me,” she says.

“Of course you do. And then you’ll bring him back?”

She presses her lips together and nods.