Queen Delayna takes the seat beside the king at the edge of the bed. “You’re right, the heart of Lyrichia hasn’t woken yet. But the seas showed me that Wilder can wake her.”
“Her?”
“I’ve seen her.” The queen nods. “The blue-haired girl who will wield the gods’ blessed power. She waits in the stars to be born. But when she is, Wilder must be there to wake her. If he is not, then we all will die.”
“Where does he need to be?”
Queen Delayna folds her hands in her lap, frowning. “Alyssium.”
“The human island?”
“The prison,” she answers, and the king frowns. “Our son must fall. To wake the star, he must meet his fate. Only then will the magic that can save our realms be born. I saw the truth in the sea.”
“Our meeting next week with the king—the one I’ve been warning you about?—”
“Is a trap for Wilder. For all of us.” Queen Delayna’s tone is sharp. “And we will walk into it. For the heart of our kingdom, my son will fall.”
Wilder’s palm is sweaty. His body is rigid. The sight of his mother and father fades, and he’s still as death beside me, not blinking.
A century ago, Wilder didn’t just fall in battle. He was brought down by his own queen. She sacrificed herself and her son for some vision of the gods. She led him to his capture. To that prison.
To me.
My father’s voice hums in my mind.“You don’t need the sun to glow, not when you are the heart of a star.”
Did he know?
Did he understand where my magic came from?
Not a life wielder. Not a death wielder. Not a necromancer. But a celestial wielder, gifted with magic from the heart of the realm. A god’s magic.
The magic of Voilene.
“Who would have guessed your mother was right. That theblessed magic of Voilene would be trusted in the hands of a half-human?” King Malachi sneers, disgusted.
“How did you get this vision? They were in the palace in Quietus.” Wilder’s teeth grit.
“There are eyes in every palace.” King Malachi’s gaze cuts across the courtyard to where Greer stands. “Your parents made a worthy sacrifice, providing the key to saving your kingdom. You should be proud. It was too great a secret to let them carry it, unfortunately. But they did their kingdom a great service in retrieving it for me.”
Greer’s back straightens as the king’s words sink in.
“It was too great a secret to let them carry it.”
It was never the rebels who killed her parents. They reported what they learned to the king, and he couldn’t risk them telling anyone else. He had them killed, and he made it look like the enemy. All to incite this war and play into his scheme.
Greer tries to rush forward, but Callum catches her. Not to protect the king but to protect her from herself. She’ll be dead before she reaches him. Either from the guard at her side or the king. There is no battling him. He made sure of it.
Callum wraps his arms around Greer, whispering something in her ear as tears start to fall. The first real emotion I’ve seen stain her cheeks.
“You’re horrible.” I turn to King Malachi, glaring.
“I am protecting my kingdom, Elorie. Something you were prepared to do only moments ago.”
“Not like this.” I shake my head. “This isn’t protecting your people. You slaughtered your people. You—” My mind jogs as I try to put all the pieces together. “You caused the split in Solace, too, didn’t you? I saw your magic in that crack, pulling the Well to the city. You set siege on your own people for this twisted mission.”
“You needed motivation.” King Malachi isn’t the least bit apologetic. “I helped set your magic free.”
Callum steps forward now, but guards turn at him from every angle. He and Greer are trapped in place, and Malachi gleams.
