Heart racing, Cade rushed over to Rayka, Jer, and Bunny.

  “What happened?” Cade demanded, his voice shaking briefly as a lump of hot coal burned its way through his gut.

  Bunny nuzzled Jer’s side and looked up at the acrobat. He and Elena both stared intently at Jer.

  The man wiped his brow, looking dazed. “We don’t know. We just started feeling sick.”

  “Why? Did anyone stab or cut you? Did you eat anything weird?” Cade pressed, and he caught the momentary shame flicker over both of their eyes as he said it.

  He was about to demand they answer, but voices nearby stole the momentum of his panic. The conversation was whispered, but what secrecy they had beneath their table was lost as their volume steadily increased.

  “You said Moonglade was safe, Gerry!” A jarring voice hissed. “You said, ’oh, we should totally attend the Baron’s ball! What could go wrong? He has the most opulent and warded palace around!’ It was because Victoria was going to be here, wasn’t it? Admit it, Gerry, you’ve been fornicating with her whenever I’m off to the college, haven’t you?”

  The hissed words were clearly from a woman, and Cade decided it was time to interrupt their lover’s quarrel.

  He lifted the linen tablecloth up to reveal a spectacled man as wiry as he was tall, huddled next to a noblewoman with a mole the size of a small kingdom atop her nose.

  “Moonglade?” Cade repeated, the name tickling the back of his mind.

  It felt familiar, yet distant.

  Jer hacked up blood behind him.

  “Pardon?” The woman asked in a shrill voice that belied her fear.

  Cade didn’t have time to comfort her. His friends were dying, and he needed answers.

  “You said Moonglade just a moment ago. What is that? Where is that?” Cade’s voice was like a whip.

  He had an idea, but he needed to be sure.

  “Oh, gods!” Elena yelled from behind him.

  Cade looked over his shoulder to see her arrive and immediately drop to her knees as she cradled Jer’s prone form.

  “What happened? No, no, no, no!” Elena muttered as her lower lip quivered dangerously. She met his eyes, and something hotter than hell’s winds lanced between them. “Cade, do something.”

  “Working on it,” he replied quickly before he turned to the couple. “Moonglade. Answers. Now.”

  “How dare you speak to me in such a disgraceful—” The woman began with a sneer, but the spectacled gentleman cut her off.

  “Help us out of here, and we’ll answer any questions you might have, traveler.” At his demand, Cade hesitated and then nodded.

  “I give you my sacred oath as a thief and lover of the arts,” Cade promised. “Now, talk!”

  The man scowled in confusion, but then shrugged and scooted his way out from beneath the table. He was thin and fair-skinned, and Cade got the distinct impression he didn’t get out much.

  “Al—alright,” the poor noble started. “Moonglade is where we are. It’s been ravaged the past few years, though, and there are not many safe provinces left. A dark sorcerer has been collecting more and more territory across our borders. The Baron’s province is the final bastion between us and destruction.”

  The explanation the scholar gave didn’t help Cade in the slightest, other than confirm that there might be another force at play here. For all the gold in the world, though, he couldn’t figure out how this helped with the riddle.

  “That’s interesting but totally unhelpful. I need more.” His mind raced, and he snapped his fingers. He pinned the couple with a hard stare. “Do either of you know anything about breezes whispering through a twilight gate, or where murmurs might align, or what any of that might mean?”

  Both of them paled.

  “What? What do you know?” Cade stepped forward and into their path.

  The man started to back up, horror draining the blood from his face even as he slipped on something dark and wet beneath his polished boots

  “Whispers bring death in Moonglade,” the scholar admitted before he stumbled away, the noblewoman in tow.

  She gave him and his group one last sneer and then disappeared into the tumult around them.

  Orro sprinted toward him, his face a mask of concern. “Cade, more of our teammates are falling ill. It’s spreading fast.”

  The young thief saw Nora keeled over next to Rayka, hands clenched against her stomach even as the tips of her fingers turned purple. Bunny nuzzled Jer’s shoulder in concern while Elena held his head on her lap.

  Cade’s mind raced. “Orro, take care of them. And don’t drink or eat anything. Do you understand?”

  Orro nodded and hurried away. Cade scanned the room, his sense of urgency mounting. He needed to get to the bottom of this.

  “To grasp the Baron’s veiled design…” Cade recited, then stumbled to a halt.

  He looked up at the balcony where Hugh had been. Either that traitorous bastard was laying a false trail, or he really did think that little of Cade’s intelligence. But it made sense.

  He knew the truth now, but that only made what he had to do next worse.

  “Huh.” He looked back at his team and then made his decision.

  They would not die. He wouldn’t let them.

  He rushed toward his target, careful to avoid the many skirmishes that were still popping up around the massive hall. Wide banners with the Baron’s seal depicting some kind of dragon coiled around a thick book billowed in the winds kicked up by the fighting.

  Cade beelined through the shattered chairs and overturned banquet tables, stepping around the corpses that now littered the floor.

  He found the Baron standing at the head of the room, calm and unconcerned. Cade stormed up to him, his anger matched only by his growing confidence.

  “Hey, Baron Rathmore! You’re the Baron Rathmore, aren’t you? Not just some copycat for our dark amusement or some sick joke?” Cade demanded while his chest heaved.

  The Baron smiled serenely. “Do I look like a joke to you, peasant? Though I do think it’s about time to finally add some fun into this part of the world.”

  The way he said the word ’fun’ convinced Cade that they had very different definitions of that word. His involved a castle filled with priceless art and his crew spending more gold than a nation-state.

  Something about the Baron’s response triggered another memory for Cade. The image of a bedraggled storyteller flashed into his mind, though it took him a long moment to realize why.

  More of the puzzle pieces came together, but he still needed more information.

  “So, you’re bored. I get that. I get bored too,” Cade replied with a wave of his hands. “I usually try to steal from a minor prince or Orro’s secret stash of perfumes—both equally dangerous I might add. But is a massacre really the only solution you’ve got? And poisoning, no less? Seriously. Talk about getting desperate for a thrill.”

  The Baron’s eyebrow twitched, and his serene mask slipped for just a moment. Cade resisted the urge to smile when he saw the wild beast beneath the calm exterior. He was right, but that made what would come next even more dangerous.

  “I’m not desperate, you pitiful creature. I am finally rising from the disgusting ashes of this stagnant kingdom, and I’m taking its prized possession with me.” The Baron adjusted the lapels of his suit and huffed softly through his nose.

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  “Oh, and what is that?” Cade asked, though he already had an idea of what it might be.

  “Its Whispers, of course,” the Baron retorted easily.

  There it was.

  Cade knew something felt off about that phrase, but now he needed to make sure.

  “The whispers?” He clarified in his most naive persona. “As in, people gossiping? I imagine hosting balls was great for that sort of thing.”

  The Baron’s smile turned predatory. “Fool. Not bland rumors my servants document without any effort at all. No. The Whispers are those nasty little assassins. Nearly everyone here tonight hired at least one of them to acquire my estate. They thought that it was this castle that warded off that pesky sorcerer they were so worried about. Turns out the Whispers were just as bored as I was.”

  He gestured to the room where countless people lay in pools of their blood.

  “I would make a comment about the taste of one’s own medicine, but it’s beneath me. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have a toast to make to my new friends.”

  Cade’s mind whirled as the final pieces slipped into place. He stared down at the soul-curse tattoo attached to his left wrist. He then peered over to where his friends were dying.

  His sister.

  “Shit, this is going to suck.” He took in a deep breath and called to his best friend. “Orro! Get them all sitting up!” He didn’t wait for a response.

  Cade dashed to a dinner table and grabbed a large knife and a goblet. He sprinted back to the Baron, who watched him with mild curiosity. Cade forced a smile and bowed sardonically.

  “Thank you for your generosity,” he said, and before the Baron could react, Cade sliced the man’s wrist open and poured the blood into the goblet.

  The Baron screamed in pain and fury, but Cade ignored him. He raced back to his friends, the goblet sloshing with the Baron’s blood. Orro recoiled in disgust, but Cade shoved past him.

  “Drink this. Now!”

  One by one, each of his teammates drank the blood, their faces contorting in revulsion. As they did, their color returned, and their wounds began to heal. The effect was immediate and miraculous.

  The Baron, clutching his bleeding wrist, began his big announcement.

  “Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you the grand—” He stopped, seeing Cade and his team standing, alive and well.

  Cade stepped forward, holding the empty goblet high. “These trials are about Life, Baron. Or, should I say, Conflict?”

  The Baron’s fist twisted in rage as the hand holding his goblet paused in its journey to complete his toast. He lowered the cup and swirled it slowly as he gritted his teeth.

  Around them, the fighting slowed, and Cade scanned the room to see at least five groups of contestants clustered together in various sections of the large space. Cade noted that nearly all of the noblewomen and men that had cut in line just yesterday lay dead near the overturned dining tables.

  “What gave it away, peasant?” The Baron inquired, though his eyes never left whatever dark concoction filled his glass.

  “I just had to figure out which trial this was,” the thief answered smugly.

  His veneer of naivety removed, he spoke calmly and clearly.

  “Once I realized it wasn’t the trials about fighting for life or the perseverance of life, but rebirth, it became obvious. It’s actually a bit on the nose now that I think about it. Rebirth only happens in so many ways, and what greater example is there besides the infamous mortal-turned-god that happened just a few centuries ago?” Cade asked rhetorically, though he couldn’t hide the grin across his face at the Baron’s growing irritation.

  Cade raised an eyebrow. Conflict’s grip on his goblet turned white and the crystal snapped. Blood dripped across his fingers and his fist shook violently by his side.

  Cade decided to hammer the final nail home and prayed to whatever god might be listening that this didn’t kill him.

  “It doesn’t take a master-scholar to figure out your riddle’s double meaning. ’As whispers in the night reveal?’ The Whispers are famous no matter where you go.” Cade gestured to the recovering participants who had calmed enough to listen in to this exchange.

  His grin widened.

  “A group of assassins bent to the will of a god is pretty solid fodder for even the most inept bard, trust me. I remembered something about how Conflict arose from some plagued kingdom and made it his home, or something like that, but I never figured you to be some bored Baron who was too much of a coward to face his enemies directly,” Cade sucked at his lip in faux contemplation.

  “For the god attributed for war and chaos, you sure are a letdown. I’ll bet you had to ask a real god to help you ascend,” Cade hedged.

  The Baron screamed and lunged off of his dais at Cade.

  Please let this work, Cade prayed as he clenched his eyes shut and waited for the impact.

  It never came.

  The sound of a grunt followed by the crash of plates, accompanied by more grunts and curses, was enough for Cade to finally peek through his eyelids.

  As he’d hoped, several warriors were holding the Baron down while others collected his blood and shuttled it to what Cade could only assume were other poisoned contestants. He looked around, and his heart nearly stopped a second time in as many minutes as Hugh gazed back at him. He nodded once and then shoved off the pillar he’d been leaning against and headed away from the spectacle.

  “I will arise! You won’t get away with this!” The Baron cried.

  “Oh yeah!” Cade said loudly, and he snapped his finger in the air.

  He turned to the restricted noble and his smile turned cold.

  “I remember that old bard saying something about how Conflict needed to start a war by killing a whole bunch of officials and dignitaries from other kingdoms. You tried to poison all of us. You even succeeded a bit there, but have fun starting a bloodbath when everyone’s united against your demise, you disgusting piece of trollshit,” Cade spat.

  “Curse you! Curse you!” The Baron screamed, but Cade turned away and toward his friends.

  He put both hands in his pockets and sauntered away as the demigod kicked and screamed in vain. A vine as thick as a tree branch sprouted from the ground and gagged the vile creature, putting an end to his tirades.

  A finely dressed elf caught his eye and nodded a silent thanks before she rushed off, goblet in hand.

  “Y’know,” Orro began as he helped Rayka to her feet. “The Whispers have the same insignia as those banners, right?”

  Cade’s shoulders tightened. “Wait, really? I thought I was being all clever with that connection to the story I heard as a kid.”

  “My question,” Nora rasped as she put her weight against a thick oak table beside where Orro had propped her. “How in the hells did you know his blood would cure us?”

  Cade looked around at his team and saw the same question repeat itself across each of their expressions.

  He smiled. “The fruit.”

  “What?” Elena questioned, and there was more venom to her tone than Cade expected.

  Jer winced at her harsh tone, and she hushed him gently as he continued to recover next to her.

  “You wagered the life of my brother and everyone else on… fruit?!” Elena demanded hotly.

  “Calm down, El. It worked out, didn’t it?” Jer croaked. He grimaced, but looked to be on the mend.

  “I saw the Baron eat fruit off of a tray.” The thief shrugged and gave them his first genuine smile. “Then he drank from another random goblet. Either he had special servers, or he just got some sort of immunity beforehand. The poisons all acted quickly, so I assumed they entered the blood. If he’s immune, then it would be connected to his blood, right? Hence the fun-juice you all got.”

  Cade’s explanation was met with disgust and even more confusion. Rayka used her index finger and thumb to rub her temples in annoyance, but she couldn’t hide the small smile playing on her lips.

  Orro laughed softly to himself. The assassin looked up with a rare warmth in his eyes. “Thanks for getting us out of this mess, Cade.”

  “Yeah. You came through for us. Thank you,” Jer chimed in, though he coughed immediately after.

  “I won’t let you all down. I promise.” With Cade’s vow, it was like the storm clouds around them cleared.

  His arm itched, and he lifted his sleeve just enough to itch at the edges of the soul curse tattoo Scorn had given him. To his horror, its bright glow was entirely gone from the top of the tattoo, and only about four-fifths of the tattoo still had light to it.

  He was running out of time.

  There was the heavy thrum of horns with such a low tone that it rattled Cade’s bones. The sound echoed through the expanse, and with a flash of light, the ceiling peeled away to reveal the arena’s occupants.

  A second later, the final membrane between the contestants and the audience dissipated, and the volume of the crowd slammed into him like a physical wall. He blinked quickly and squinted through the sharp onset of light above. The tournament attendees screamed and shouted their praises, banners and ribbons, and hands dancing in the air in their revelry.

  “CONGRATULATIONS, MY CHILDREN,” a voice boomed over the mania.

  Cade started up in the direction of the newcomer and saw the brilliant outline of Life descending from the royal box. Her bare feet touched down on the smooth stone of the arena floor, and grass bloomed up in her wake.

  “FOR YOUR VALOR AND TRUST IN MY LESSON, I SHALL GRANT EACH OF YOU A SLIVER OF MY POWER.”

  The light around her diminished, and Cade caught his first good look at the goddess. Her blonde hair was gilded with flowers of every possible shape and size, and Cade could’ve sworn that a few of them were made from some sort of crystal.

  Her lacy dress left little to the imagination, and every sway of her hips left Cade’s cheeks a shade redder than they had been the moment before. She was captivating, and yet he felt bile rise up in his throat as she neared. Her aura was like miasma.

  Cade looked away, and the moment he did, some of his faculties returned. He caught Nora’s eyes, and they shared a brief connection of mutual discomfort as the goddess approached their position. In his periphery, he saw the deity stretch out her dainty fingers and green light spilled from them like a bubbling brook.

  Lifekeepers began to line the outskirts of the arena floor, each carrying a large sack. Cade’s smile turned genuine at the sight of so much gold just waiting to be spent.

  “MY GIFT FOR ALL OF YOU WHO WERE REBORN THROUGH MY LESSON.”

  Life’s sweet and motherly voice carried through the expanse and left everyone holding their collective breath.

  The green light swam along the arena and contented sighs arose from various parts of the arena as the energy enveloped them. A single tendril snaked its way up Cade’s leg and hovered over his heart.

  “...IS MY LOVE. IT WILL BIND YOUR WOUNDS AND AWAKEN YOUR SOULS. LET IT IN, AND I WILL EMBRACE YOU AS MY OWN.” She let out a moan that quickly evolved into a giggle as she twirled for all the world to see.

  The flowers in her hair glowed as she moved, and Cade was once again sucked into her aura of power.

  “I WILL LET YOU WORSHIP ME NOW.”

  The green band of energy shot into his heart, and Cade’s vision blurred as an all-consuming pain wracked every inch of his body.

  And as the world around him darkened, his body went ice cold.

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