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My heart rate spiked, but I wouldn’t let her have the upper hand in the conversation. “That’s none of your damn business.”
“I suppose it’s irrelevant now, since you’re happy to face execution.”
I shrugged even though I struggled to keep myself from trembling. I’d barely realized who I might want to become and now I’d doomed myself. Would King Carrington actually follow through and kill us if I didn’t submit to accepting the magic? I chewed my lip because after my limited exposure of meeting him, seeing how both Luz and Lennox felt about him, it seemed reasonable to believe he would.
Mother brushed her fingers along the backs of my shoulders as she turned to face me again. “That means you’re also okay with the rest of the group dying. With Margo dying?” I stumbled over a response and Mother grinned like a fox cornering a rabbit. “It’s convenient she came with me. You can tell her goodbye yourself.”
“Take the mark back.”
She firmed her stance and placed her hands on her hips. “I won’t. I’d rather die. You don’t understand what all’s in play here.”
The only thing at play was her desire to continue living her cruel, destructive lifestyle outside of the authority of others. “The lives of a few dozen sirens.”
“Oh, Lirasei.” She offered a bitter laugh. “I still find your naivety charming even when it might cause our doom.”
“Take. Back. The Mark. There has to be another way.”
“No. And if you don’t accept the magic, we may all face the gallows this week. Your choice.” She sang a few notes, the crowd parted subtly, and Margo walked through them and into the alcove. She wore an ivory dress and had twined pearls into her hair. Her eyebrows drew together. “Sorry, Lira.”
I swallowed at a lump in my throat. I’d felt guilty about leaving Margo. Now she apologized because of her role in this, but she didn’t get a say. Like me she was born as a siren into this harsh reality. However, we got to decide what we did with our magic. It wasn’t inherently wicked like I’d always believed. Mother used her magic for selfishness and evil, but it didn’t have to be used like that. Sai, for all the bitter lessons he’d taught me, had also shown me that.
“Don’t apologize to her, my dear,” Mother said without breaking her gaze away from me. “She’d rather see us all die.”
I growled through my teeth. “It’s not like that. You could take the mark back.”
“I will not. Accept the magic or look Margo in the eyes and tell her you’re okay with her death. You’ve always had such cutthroat instincts, have you not?”
Mother glared at me. Margo’s eyes had grown wet even as she twisted her fingers together. Could I sentence Margo and the other sirens to death? A crash of thunder echoed in my mind, brought me back to my blood-dipped nightgown and the men Mother slaughtered without a beat of hesitation.
She had me cornered.
I was not her.
Never would be.
No matter the cost.
I’d give up my freedom if I accepted this magic. But I couldn’t keep it at the expense of others’ lives.
I shot my hand forward and could feel the mark beneath my sleeve tingling. “I’ll do it.”
Mother curled her hand over mine. “Now there’s a girl come to her senses.” I clenched my teeth as she sang bitterly sweet and low. The magic whispered around me, curled through my hair, brushed over my flesh. Asking. Requesting.
“I accept,” I sang the notes as a tear streaked my cheek. The powers rushed through me like a storm blew over my bones, froze them until they hardened, filled my lungs like they’d drown me. I trembled as I stepped away.
“I’m so sorry, Lira,” Margo said. Tears shimmered on her cheeks.
“It’s not your fault,” I whispered, still shaken, my head spinning. “I won’t condemn you to die. And I’m sorry I didn’t tell you I was leaving.”
She didn’t answer but gave her head a shake, her curls bouncing over her shoulders.
“Now, you’ll return home with us,” Mother said, “as we figure out a way to deal with this false-name you’ve offered the King.”
I almost wanted to bark out a bitter laugh. Mother thought she still had power over me. I held the magic now, plus I’d learned I had more direction over my life than I’d thought. She no longer dictated my choices. “I’m not going anywhere with you.”
Mother pinched her lips. “You hold our troupe’s magic, now. If you aren’t near, they won’t be able to tap into their powers, and you know it.”
“I hold the magic by force, and you being powerless isn’t my problem.”
