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Why is she telling me this?
If Asher is mortal, that means we can kill him. This has to be a gesture of trust. I’ve shown her that I trust her, and she is trusting me with Umbra’s secrets.
Then, it hits me. If Asher is mortal, it means he could be around all the time in his mortal form, and I wouldn’t know.
Has he seen my reactions to his queen?
Panic rises within me as I recall every glance, every touch, every moment that could give away my burning desire for the queen. Could he have seen it all? My mind screams one name.Nyx.He is always around; the queen is so comfortable with him. Their affection toward each other could be considered loving. He seems to be wary around me. I get the uneasy feeling that I should be a lot more afraid of Nyx.
Sparks skirt the back of my hand as the queen places hers atop mine.
“You’re safe, Theo. No one will harm you,” she reminds me.
“You can’t protect me from everyone, especially your king,” I reply, with more bite than I should.
I just feel so foolish. My entire life has consisted of half-truths about Umbra, and I never questioned them. I took the word of my king and scholars because I trusted them. But their lies have left me ill prepared. With all the things I’ve learned about Umbra so far, I never imagined that my knowledge of King Asher would be inaccurate too. How have I been here, walking around, seeing the kingdom, without realizing their king might be present all the time?
“There’s no one in this realm that will get past me to harm you. You’re under my protection until all this ends. You have my word,” the queen repeats.
Her eyes are gentle and clear. If I didn’t know better, I could easily believe that this woman would go to the edge of the realm, putting herself in danger to keep me safe. But I do know better, and that won’t happen. If it comes down to me or her king, I know the choice she will make.
The now familiar buzz in my chest reminds me that the queen’s hand is still on mine. A deep hum that seems to rise from the depths of my soul. The threads around my heart feeling as if they are being plucked one by one. The queen is the musician strumming away at the cords, creating a new tone only for her. A melody orchestrated by the fates telling me that I have everything all wrong.
Chapter 26
Lily
Theo seems lost in thought as the sparks between our hands intensify. My shadows and the threads around my heart are beckoning him. The two seem to rejoice at being united once again.
But I can’t. Not like this.
I break the energy pulsating between us and sit back in my chair. Theo flexes his hand when I let it go, as if trying to make sense of what he’s been feeling through it.
Theo looks like the library was made for him, and really, it was. When I made plans to renovate it, he was on my mind. He’d wanted to be a scholar when we were kids, and I wanted to build a library fit for a scholar.Fit for Theo.I wanted a place he would be proud of, but I never thought he’d be sitting in it—beside me.
“Where’d all this come from?” Theo asks, staring at the vast array of books lining the shelves.
“From all over Omnia. We traded for some books while others traveled here with those who now call Umbra home,” I answer with pride.
Under Oren’s rule, this library was nothing but a few rows of pointless literature. He believed that knowledge leads to power and there was no way Oren would allow for anyone to gain any power that he does not possess.Pathetic.
“You have books from Lux here?” Theo’s eyes scan the shelves as if he could pick them out from the stacks.
“Several. We have a lot of former Lux villagers, and many of them donated their books. Pyke brought a few battle novels with him if you need more dry reading material,” I reply, teasing him lightly.
