Page 107 of Cursebreaker

“You can,” Father says, his expression determined despite the slight quiver of his bottom lip and the tears that continue to fall. “The people want you to lead. Orella chose you to lead.”

I gape at him—at the crown in his hands.

You don’t know what it takes to lead.

I’ve failed them all. Elsie is gone. Jack is dead. And Will is right—his venom still flows through my veins. My attempt to use my affinity only brought about destruction, bloodless corpses, crimson rain.

They know what I’ve done. They can see it—can see the blood covering me from head to toe.

Despair surges through me, like pulsing, cursed energy radiating from my chest, and I hear Will’s voice whispering in my ear, It’s only a matter of time before everyone sees you for who you truly are.

A killer. A girl with Shifter venom in her veins.

I look up, trying to find Mother—to find some sort of answer in her expression—but Father’s eyes go wide and he shifts his body, as if to block me from the gathering crowd. And when I catch sight of my reflection mirrored in the gilded seashells, I know why.

I expect to see that my eyes have changed from the use of my magic, just as they always have whenever I’ve drawn on Manan. But I don’t see gold shining back at me from the sparkling surface of the crown.

I see red.

“Abomination!” someone cries.

“Underling!” comes another voice.

My heart leaps into my throat.

Owen draws a wicked-looking knife from his belt, angling himself to stand in front of Titus and me, but Father is quick to raise his hands, stepping between Owen and the panicked crowd.

Dread washes over me, numbing my senses. Curse or not, you’re a killer, too, Aster—through and through, Titus said all those weeks ago. And you’re afraid that when all this is over, everyone you love will finally see you for who you truly are: a monster, just like us. I know now that he would never have said this if he wasn’t compelled. And still, Will’s words play over in my mind. It’s only a matter of time before everyone sees you for who you truly are.

Cursed. Abomination. Monster.

All this time, I thought I wanted to be feared. But now I realize that’s exactly what Will wanted. Could that be why he bit me? Because he knew, one day, the venom in my blood would mark me as more than his—it would mark me as other? Someone who can’t be trusted to lead—someone who can’t even trust herself to love? To choose?

Hide, I think. I need to hide. My eyes. My face. My grief.

Before I’ve even called to my magic, the ocean answers. A wall of water separates me from the razed structure of the Pearl and the wails of those who lost their homes—their families—in the fire, encapsulating me in the rhythmic whisper of the sea. It cocoons me, just as it did the night I was under the waves for twelve hours. Glowing, sentient tendrils prod at my skin, attempting to wash away the blood.

As the waves turn crimson, I feel my power rising up within me, strengthened by the presence of the ocean. The onslaught of Manan causes me to retch.

I never asked for any of this. I never wanted the power of the Lightbringer. I wanted to keep everyone safe. I wanted a home where my family could be together—where they could be happy. Somewhere I could be happy. Someone I could be happy with.

Margaret found that. So did Killian.

Now Jack is dead. Orella is dead.

And it’s all my fault.

Maybe it’s not too late to make a deal with Will. Maybe I should just give up.

“Bit early for a swim, don’t you think?”

His familiar, lilting voice—his steady heartbeat—is almost indistinguishable from the lullaby of the waves.

Somehow, for some reason, when the ocean sought to protect me, it didn’t push him away or shut him out. It brought him close so that it is only him and me in this bubble, and no one and nothing else can reach us.

“He’s not going to stop,” I croak, another sob twisting my gut. “He didn’t want the Elysian Navigator. He wants me to choose him.”

Titus winces, and that same mask he once wore as the cold, cruel prince of the Eerie seems to eclipse his expression. “You’re not seriously considering turning yourself over to Morana?” His eyes soften as he searches my face, and the mask of the prince slips away. “Aster, whatever he’s promised you, it’s not real. There is no world where Morana rules that you or anyone you love will be safe. I know what these people are capable of. I know what he’s capable of.”