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“You knew everything, and you sent me out there to find her. Why? Why did you try to push us together like that?”
Calen waved a hand and a mirror appeared on the table beside us. “Look in the mirror and tell me what you see.”
I raised a brow but grabbed the mirror and lifted it. My reflection showed only the glamoured version of me, dark hair slicked back and soft elven eyes staring back at me. But Calen shook his head.
“No, not that version. Look at the real you. Or is it that hard to admit what you’ve become?”
I snarled and clutched the mirror tight enough to crack it at the edges. It was better than what I really wanted to do, which was throw it at the wall and watch it shatter to hundreds of pieces.
“You think I don’t know who I am?” I set the mirror down and glared at my brother. “What makes you think I’m blind to the reality of what I’ve become? There’s not a day that passes that I don’t have to battle the beast inside me now. That’s not something anyone forgets easily.”
Calen remained quiet, as if he were weighing his next words carefully. He watched me all the while. He must have honestly believed that I had no clue of who I was, like I didn’t hear our own people whisper about theGolden Beastas I walked through these very halls.
“I only allowed myself to become this in order to keep our kingdom safe. The court would be nothing but rubble if it weren’t for my work on the front lines, making them fear me so that everyone else could live a normal life. I sacrificed everything for your safety.” Rage roiled like a churning sea inside me.
Finally, Calen ducked his head. “I know.”
I shoved my chair back and stood. I was tired of being insulted in my own home. If he’d known, he never would have treated me like this. It was demeaning to have my own family look at me and believe that I had no idea who I really was.
Del had seen both versions of me. She’d looked into the beast’s eyes without flinching, without questioning if I was oblivious to my own monstrosity. She simply accepted all of me without trouble.
“I wanted to offer you a path back to your true self,” Calen said as I walked away.
Pausing in the doorway, I tried to swallow his words. They weren’t quite empty, but they didn’t have any real substance either. My brother had the best of intentions, but the way he’d withheld information and rubbed me the wrong way.
But…my brother was trying.
“You’ve sacrificed so much for us,” Calen said. “Over and over, you gave pieces of your sanity and your morality to a kingdom that never properly thanked you. I grew afraid that if you gave much more, you wouldn’t be the man you are now. A good man.
“My skills are underhanded, yes. It’s what I learned while you led the battlefields.” Calen sighed. “I wanted to use every skill I had in my arsenal to thank you for everything you’ve done for me and our kingdom. I know…it wasn’t the best way of doing things. If you don’t mind, I may call upon you for advice from time to time.”
My eyes burned with unshed tears.
“Thank you,” I said without turning back to him. “Thank you for reconnecting me with Del.”
“I’ll have you know,” my brother said with a teasing laugh on his lips. “I did all of this as a ploy to get the throne.”
His joke missed its mark as I looked around and saw the perfectly functioning court filled with happy people meandering the far gardens. Calen had the same drive for peace as I did. He wanted a happy kingdom, too. I knew that they would be all right without me. The court didn’t need a monster anymore.
“They’re in good hands, even if you are a manipulative bastard.”
“Should I expect an attempt to reclaim your throne?” Calen stepped up alongside me. He leaned onto the marble railing and cast me a sidelong glance. “Or do you feel like this is a fitting time to step down once and for all. I hear retirement in the mortal realms isn’t what it used to be. I would understand if you wanted to return.”
Laughing, I shook my head. “No. This is it. You’ve won fair and square.”
I had ulterior motives this way. From the light in Calen’s eyes, I knew that he understood. I’d put everything I had into keeping this place safe. Now that it was truly safe and well kept, it no longer needed me.
Not like Del needed me.
“Locke Balefire is in a private domain right now,” Calen supplied, knowing exactly where my mind had gone. He passed me an envelope, the same one he’d opened earlier.
The envelope was heavier than I expected. It held more than just a letter, I realized.
“While the domain might be private, his people hate him. They gave him up first chance they could. Here’s a bit of scent for you to track. It should lead you right to him.”
I plucked a handkerchief from the envelope. Fabric always held scent the best. When I held it up to my nose, I knew the way to his domain without a problem. It was almost like an invisible pathway had revealed itself to me.
Calen pushed away from the railing. “Let me announce my position on the throne. Once that is through, you and your betrothed can storm Locke’s domain and burn it all to the ground. Should anyone ask, I will completely deny any and all involvement with this. You understand.”
