I truly thought Florian was dead and gone.
This last part of the Goddess’s gift is a miracle I never dared to dream of.
Even if Kay and I knowing of William puts him in greater danger.
I draw in a lungful of air, which I exhale with a shudder.
‘I don’t know the details, William,’ I tell him truthfully. ‘All I know is that Florian Kultavaris didn’t die the way we were all led to believe.That the king’s order to put him to death was somehow ignored, and a couple of years later he – you – were returned to Wrohelm and given to Artur Lorathin to raise. The only thing I know for sure is that you are alive, and it is a miracle.’
A surge of love, of pure joy I hadn’t allowed myself to feel in years, floods me, but it falters at the sight of my brother swallowing nervously, his hands opening and closing.
‘A treasonous miracle.’
Despite his obvious devastation, I’m pleased that he grasps the severity of the situation.
William may not have evaded the king’s order by himself – or even known that such an evasion had happened – but if Korvane found out, he would certainly correct the mistake and see my brother put to death. This time for real.
‘Yes,’ I reply simply. The word tastes like ash in my mouth, but I cannot soften this for him. He needs to know the danger he faces now. Only then can he guard himself as he must.
William turns to Jonas. ‘Is all this true?’ he asks, eyes wide. ‘Tell me it’s not. Tell me this is some sick joke?’ he pleads.
Jonas lowers his head ever so slightly.
‘It’s no joke. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you,’ he says. ‘I should have as soon as I knew, but I couldn’t put you at risk. If you had told anyone – the wrong friend, a mentor you believed you could trust – you would have beenkilled,William. Please understand that all I wanted was to protect you.’
William’s lips disappear as he presses them together into a tight line.
‘And how long have you known,brother?’
The way he leans on the word causes Jonas to flinch.
‘A … a while.’
William’s jaw clenches as a waft of unnatural air rushes in from behind the open door, hissing as it escapes through the cracks in the broken window.
I shiver as the air rushes against my skin, realising that William has cyclone powers, just like our father.
‘How long?’ he repeats.
The wind is a quiet threat, and Jonas knows it. He pales.
‘I was fifteen or sixteen. Little more than a kid myself.’
The pain on William’s face is so raw I fear for the rest of our windows.
‘Over half my life …’ His words come out as a near sob. ‘And all that time you called me brother, knowing I was actually theirs!’
Jonas swallows. ‘I did what I thought was right,’ he offers quietly.
With another scoff, William turns back to me. ‘You only found out at the gifting?’ he asks.
‘Even later than that,’ I tell him. ‘Compelled by the Goddess, Jonas told me the truth after the ball the night before last.’ I feel no qualms about throwing Jonas even further under the carriage. After all, if the Goddess hadn’t insisted, then who knows how long it would have been before we learned the truth? If indeed we ever would have.
‘Well, brother.’ William uses the same inflection again, his tone sharp as glass. ‘You may leave us now. I wish to speak to my sisters alone.’
Rather than responding to William, Jonas’s eyes fall to me, as if seeking my approval. But Kay is the one who replies.
‘It is fine, husband,’ she says firmly. ‘You can leave us.’
