Page 106 of The Seeker

“Not if the crown is someone who helps the people,” I corrected him, a smirk on my lips. “I’m tired of this age, Leif—an age where magic is used for suppression. No king will survive in this world and wars will always wage. It’s time to make a change and I intend to do that.”

The hand he’d raised fell back down to his side with a soft thump. “You’ll never succeed; you’ll just get yourself killed. Please, Runa.” His words were a genuine plea, but my heart had hardened.

“Then I’ll die for something I believe in, Leif. Something I’ve never been afraid to do. Care to join me?” I challenged.

Though we were standing feet apart, he still took a step back, as if the rebellion brewing in me was something contagious—something he would accidentally inhale.

“Runa, we had hoped you would see reason.” My cousin sighed, drawing my attention away from my former bonded and back to her.

“And I was hoping you would come to agree with me,” I countered, no longer afraid to express my differing views to my cousin.

“No one will ever agree with you. Your idea is insane.” Her tone of voice was the same one she’d once used to scold me, back when I was a parentless teen spending her time living half a life, and if any doubt still existed in me, it evaporated in an instant.

“Otho already has,” I spat. I hadn’t intended to reveal that tidbit of information to them, but based on how the conversation was going, it wouldn’t matter anyway.

“Don’t make me do this, Runa.” Leif breathed. This time, I didn’t look at him, only hearing shuffling and spotting movements in my peripheral vision.

“Do what? Live outside of your comfort? I’ve been doing that my whole life, Collum. I would think you of all people would be able to adapt.” I pinched the bridge of my nose. “Weren’t you the one who wanted to read to the servants?”

She shook her head slowly, like a disappointed parent. “That was different. Adis was evil; we had to stop him.”

That one phrase was all it took for everything to become clear to me. All the difficult feelings I’d been having about my cousin—they made sense. “And you don’t believe you could ever become that evil.” It wasn’t a question.

Collum opened her mouth to reply, but she was interrupted by a loud thump from near where the door to the bedroom was. I spun in time to watch as Leif kneeled to pick up the stack of books he’d dropped on the floor.

The books I would recognize anywhere.

The purple book was there, along with the black one that whispered. The only one I didn’t see as he swept them into a pile once more was the one gifted to me by my parents. The first books I’d ever read.

I made no move to stop Leif. Not as he restacked the books, hissing when his skin came into contact with the one that whispered, and not as he crossed the floor and tossed them into the fire one by one.

Though he didn’t glance my way as he did it, I could feel the twinge of his shame and pain that accompanied his actions.

He didn’t want to burn the books either.

The room filled with silence when the last book was tossed in, their task complete. I crossed my arms over my chest, hoping they wouldn’t notice what was tucked there.

“That was your compromise?” I asked at last.

“Yes. Now no one can have magic, just as you wanted.”

My tongue jumped, eager to tell her about those in Ralheim we’d already been teaching, but I didn’t want to bring them into this. My cousin obviously wasn’t who I thought she was, and I didn’t know what she would do.

“Otho is going to find the scribe. We will request for more books to be written.” The words hung in the air, sounding much less firm than they had in my head.

Collum shook her head. “The scribe is no longer around. Even if they were, you could look forever and not find them. They only appear to the next scribe to take their place.” Her eyes connected with Leif, where he stood, dusting the ash from his hands.

“I suppose you know where the door is,” I announced rudely, ready for my cousin to take her leave so I could scour the cabin for the black book with the gold lettering—the only thing left from my former life.

Collum shook her head. “Unfortunately, it’s not that easy, Runa. You have to come with us.”

I raised my eyebrows at that, crossing my arms over my chest. “I’d rather not, but thanks for the offer.”

“It wasn’t an offer.” Leif’s gravely voice cut in. “You will come with us and sit on the panel as the Seid matron, and you will no longer speak of this nonsense of everyone learning magic.”

It wasn’t until he finished his long-winded command that I realized what he’d been trying to do.

He’d been trying to use the persuasion power on me.