The Throne of Broken Gods (Gods & Monsters, #2)

by Amber V. Nicole

It had been twenty thousand, one hundred and sixty minutes since she had left, and I had counted every single one. My eyes skittered toward the large clock on the other side of the room. Sixty-one now.

“Pinky promise, I will never abandon you, Your Highness.”

I stared at the empty night sky, watching her dark wings beat across the sky, her sleek form disappearing into the roiling clouds. Away from me. “You promised,” I whispered as the sirens continued to wail.

So, no, Samkiel was who I was, who I would forever be, and Liam died with whatever part of Dianna’s heart fractured that night.

“I count every second you’re gone.”

That was a lie. Her words had done nothing but rip me to shreds, one after the other. I felt gutted by the way she looked at me, as if not an ounce of her cared. That was pain.

“When I burn this world to embers, and you paint me as the villain, remember, I really did try to be good… once.”

“Maybe death will be a mercy after everything we have done.”

Mer-Ka was my birth name. Ain was Gabby’s, and Eoria was the home where we knew peace so long ago.

Maybe he was from another world, too.

One star seemed to glow a bit brighter, twinkling merrily at me as if it were waving.

It would be nice to have someone with good intentions in her life.”

She will never ask for help, trust me. She is headstrong and will go into things without thinking.

Oh, and watch her if she gets quiet. Usually, that means she is planning something extreme. She likes to lock herself away in her head. She always has.”

Guilt threatened to devour me like a raging, flaming beast.

“You have taken someone from me with your actions—someone very precious to me. And now you have helped a lunatic corrupt her already damaged heart, shattering it into a million pieces. They are pieces I will pick up and fix, but what you have done is unforgivable. I plan to make you suffer for that transgression. Death would be a kindness, and you deserve none.”

You two were never supposed to meet,”

“No. I’m here to save you.”

Most of all, I’m sorry I ever thought I had a real friend.”

I closed my eyes, imagining another lock on a chain on a door in a faraway house.

“I called to check in on the others, but Gabby answered. She spoke of a time similar to this. How when you first changed, it was easy to pretend you were something you were not because of the guilt you felt. She also told me she never gave up on you. I will not give up on you either.”

Trust me. You are the only thing she cares about now.”

She is sweet, kind, funny, and loves with her entire being. That’s why she is like this. She’s hurt. She’s in pain. If you love her, truly love her, don’t give up. True love is worth it. It’s worth fighting for. Remember that.”

“I swear, this is just another prolonged version of flirting for you two.” “I am not flirting.” I glared at her, a low growl emitting from my throat. “This will be a clear sign to him that the girl he is looking for is long gone.” “A clear sign to who?”

“I am very aware of how far he is willing to go. He has poisoned her, degraded her, threatened her, had monsters drag her back to a hole in the ground while she screamed, ripped her to pieces, manipulated the people closest to her to betray her, and then he took the one person she loved away from her all because she refused to return to him.”

“I never once said that I was good. That is just a fable you all tell yourselves, I suppose. You tell yourselves that I will show mercy. You believe that to be the law and govern the realms, I have to at least be neutral, but sometimes a king has to be a monster.”

“I will admit that I do seem more erratic, and I am aware it is because of Dianna. It’s confusing and frustrating. I have never felt for another how I feel about her. She makes me feral and possessive, but not in the way your master is. I would never hurt her, and I cannot allow her to keep hurting herself.

“I still care about you. Need you. Want you. I always will.”

The heavy sound of steel rang out, and a part of me broke.

“Why can I not feel you anymore?” My brows furrowed, and I heard Santiago gulp behind me.

Call me curious, but I just wondered what felt so godsdamn good that Kaden would halt plans for a thousand years.”

“You can keep pretending that what we have done and been through meant nothing to you, but I know the truth. You have affected me on some deep level, Dianna, and I know you feel it too. I know it,”

“I know when souls pass, even I cannot reach them. It is forbidden, but please, I beg you, if Gabriella is there, if she can hear me, let her help me. Give me a sign that I am at least on the right path.”

“You’re closing yourself off again. Even if you haven’t returned to the remains of our home and locked yourself away, you’re leaving us again. No matter how much you try to hide it, I can feel it.”

“I just told her the truth. I told her that the reason she is really mad is you.”

“You are here to end me as well, I suppose. For the death of the one you call sister.”

“I see different realities, one per second. No matter the reality, your sister was supposed to die in every single one of them. Some sooner than others. In this reality it is how it had to be for you to ascend to power. You were always the catalyst for worlds to burn.”

“You are running out of time.” Roccurem shook his heads. “The One True King comes.”

“I have gained nothing for my sacrifice. Nothing but nightmares, judgment, and words thrown at me like I did not give everything I am, everything I have, for you all. For the world.”

“The babe meant to rule at his side was taken and destroyed.”

“You will have a choice. One you must make. Choose out of selflessness, and the path is set. Choose vengeance, and well, the outcome will be devastating.”

I don’t think you’re as evil as you want others to believe. You collect these people and surround yourself with these creatures so you don’t feel so fucking alone all the time. My guess? You’re just a damaged little boy who just wasn’t loved enough.”

“You do realize that falling in love with Samkiel did not kill your sister?”

“Kaden.” I nodded, the reality of the situation seeping in. “It was always so funny to me that he claimed to not care about her, yet he destroyed anyone who even attempted to get close to her.” “It’s more than that. More than I am allowed to say, but in simplest terms, Gabriella was her heart, Samkiel is her soul, and Kaden has orders to destroy both. I am afraid he has accomplished his task.”

We swore that no matter what happened, we would try to bring her back because if Samkiel loved her, she was also ours. He had finally chosen for himself. He hadn't been coerced or chosen out of duty. We would be damned if we lost him like so many gods before.

“You will have to be more specific, akrai, on what exactly I ruined. Your mood?” I taunted her. “Your panties, perhaps?”

We can do this dance until this world burns and the next takes its place, but I will still choose you.”

“If you are truly gone, I refuse to live in a world without you, so you’ll have to angle it farther to the right. That’s where a god’s heart lies, and mine already belongs to you, so do with it what you will.”

“You can’t, can you? You cannot truly hurt me.”

His eyes filled with sadness. “There is no amata for you.” “What?” It was my turn for my heart to break.