Page 89 of Fallacies

Gemma has her fingers pressed into the dull red hair at the crown of Ceres’s head, mender magic forming lines of shimmering gold across her forehead, keeping her alive.

Callan passes me, making his way to her bedside, and my feet take me to Pax. I decide it’s the best place for me to be.

But he doesn’t take his eyes off his mother as I approach, a mass of confusion, betrayal, and a detached sort of sadness on his face. It makes me bold enough to reach out and take his hand.

I lace our fingers, squeezing once, and the way his expression softens nearly breaks me. Pax’s hand tightens around mine, and he lets out a shallow exhale.

There’s a new bond between us, now that he’s seen my worst memory and I’ve seen his. I suppose Pax and I always had a connection, but now it’s more of a tangible thing. A tie around his heart that connects to mine. It reminds me of the bond I have with Jude—innocent and endless.

The sound of Callan’s voice pulls my attention. “Gemma?”

“I’m positive,” she replies, nodding in confirmation. I’m not certain what the confirmation was for, but if I had to guess, she is absolutely sure that Ceres is past the point of saving.

As wrong as it feels to mess with a soon-to-be dead person’s memories, Ceres forfeited those decencies when she decided to summon the King of Rogues.

Kimber could have died last night.

Pyra, we all could have died last night. He might not know our exact location, but because of Ceres, Alaric now knows that the Sol still exist. That his attempt to snuff us out failed.

The Captain glances at Delia, and it takes her a second to acknowledge the silent request for permission, but the nod of her head is quick and confident.

Callan turns to Ceres, and there’s a brief moment of hesitation before static fills the room, prickling across my skin in familiar waves. Gemma keeps her hand in place, a continuous stream of mender magic flowing through Ceres’s head.

While I know very little about Callan’s abilities of the mind, I do know he can make it painless as easily as he can make it hurt. When he tampered with Aster’s memories, he did it too fast for her to feel anything, but right now…judging by the pinch between her brows and the twitch of her unconscious body…

He’s making it hurt.

Callan stares off blankly, deciphering through memories until he finds one worth noting and announces to the room, “She found the Eldral in the woods.”

Panic shoots up my throat, and I quickly swallow against it, realizing there’s a very real chance that Callan will see me in that memory.

I’m not sure how Ceres found the Eldral, but she had to have followed me into the woods. I just hope that’s not the scene unfolding before him.

I should have confessed to that, too—the Eldral belonging to me—but the news of who my father was sort of…overshadowed everything. I was so focused on the big secret that I forgot to tell him about the small ones.

Oops.

“How did she find it?” the Dame asks, attention darting from Ceres to Callan.

I drop my gaze to the floor when he clears his throat, fisting his hands at his sides. “I don’t know.”

He knows.

The breath I was holding rushes out of my lungs, but the relief is quickly replaced with the sinking feeling that I’ll be in a world of trouble when we leave this room.

Fucking fantastic.

“I want to know why she did this,” the Dame snaps, her impatience spilling over. “We’ve been here for twenty years. Why now would she—” Navy eyes find mine, and I furrow my brows, unsure as to why it’s me she’s looking at.

Slowly dragging her gaze back to Callan, she drops her hands at her sides. “Find her memories from the night of the attack.”

I look to Callan as she does, but I’m confused, and she seems confident. He shifts on his feet, ignoring the room as he takes his time sifting through her head.

I briefly glance back at Delia, but before I can interpret anything on her face, Callan flinches, stumbling back a step—away from her bedside.

His power ceases at once, the static in the air retreating.

“What is it?” Laverna asks, eyes wide.