Page 26 of Maleen

“I’ll go fetch him,” Aemon murmurs before cloaking himself in shadows and disappearing.

I can’t help but notice the similarities between the two royal females in the room with me. My mother’s hair may be dull now, but she has the same shade of blonde as Cynder, and if she were to open her eyes, the same shade of pink would stare back at me from both of their faces. How no one ever put two and two together baffles me, but then again, everyone thought the Queen had died all those years ago. There wasn’t even a chance for a pregnancy rumor to circulate.

“Are you sure the Queen would want me here?” Cynder asks nervously as she eyes the sleeping form, fully aware of her condition.

“Of course.”

“But why?” She tilts her head and suspicion enters her gaze—a gaze that reminds me of when I got into trouble as a fledgling and my mother didn’t believe my feeble tales.

I focus back on petting Nero. “We should really wait for Talyn.”

She goes to open her mouth but shadows expand and Aemon appears with the male in question. My lavender-eyed mate winks reassuringly and then disappears again. “I’ll be nearby if you need me, my Dream.”

Cynder eyes both of us with a narrowed gaze. “What is this about?”

Talyn glances at me before taking the seat next to her. “Cyn… We recently found out some information about our family, and it’s something you should know.”

“Okay?” she draws out, obviously nervous and confused but trusting her older brother as always. I wonder if she’ll still call him ‘big brother’ after this.

I take a deep breath. “What do you know about Gallalaus fae? About their magick?”

Suspicion enters her gaze again and she crosses her arms, subtly shifting herself away from Talyn. “It’s all the fae magick combined. Isn’t it?” She peers at Talyn, who nods.

“Before we went to the mountains, I had a dream, and you were there, but I didn’t pull you in. Do you remember?”

She stands abruptly. “Yes. What does this have to do with the Queen? Why am I really here?”

“Cyn sit down and listen,” Talyn snaps. “Just answer her.”

She rolls her eyes. “Yes, I thought we established that.”

I lean back in my chair. “How many times before have you entered someone else’s dreams?”

She freezes and a look of panic crosses her face. “I-I,” she stutters, wringing her hands together and eyeing the door like she wants to bolt.

Deciding to get to the point before she does run, I blurt, “Your family isn’t who you were told. We share a mother, you and I. You are my sister.”

The room becomes so quiet that only the soft sounds of our mother’s breathing fills the room as I hold my breath.

“Good going, Rav, you could have used a bit more tact than that,” Talyn groans, turning towards Cynder.

“Did you know?” she snaps.

“Rav told me yesterday that she found out, but no, I didn’t have an inkling before that. It doesn’t change anything, though. I’ll always think of you as my younger sister.”

She shakes her head as tears line her eyes, but none fall. She collapses back into her chair, and her gaze finds our mother while I quietly explain the story shared with me. Eventually tears stream down her face, yet she doesn’t make a noise—just listens as I tell the whole of the horrifying tale.

When I finish, I can’t help but ask, “How did you hide your magick? Surely someone must have known that you weren’t just an Elemi fae?”

She wipes her tears with the back of her hand and squares her shoulders. “I suppressed it. I used to dream of this female, although I could never see her face, and she would teach me how to hide it. She told me my father must never know, that he couldn’t be trusted. That no one could. That one day someone would find me. But I gave up hope long ago that someone would come. Even though I did my best, I still think he must know… he would stare at me sometimes like I was the answer to all his prayers.” She takes a breath. “Is she really dying?”

I dip my head slowly and my heart cracks. She never got to experience our mother’s love. I’m thankful she got to meet her in dreams, at least. Still, that time was brief—she never even had a motherly figure in her life to guide her. Only a tyrant who stole the affection of Talyn’s mother from her before she was even born.

My rage builds and I force it back down. She doesn’t need to see that side of anyone right now. “I’m so sorry, Cynder. If I knew of you sooner, if she didn’t mess with my memories, then I would have gotten you out of there.”

Talyn stays quiet, brooding. I can almost feel his rage, but after some minutes he speaks. “I should have gotten you out long ago, and for that I’m sorry.”

She doesn’t reply, just sits in her thoughts. Her whole realm has been flipped upside down. Even I’m not sure where to go from here, but we will take it one step at a time.