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They weren't listening. They didn't want to. They had come here for blood, and they were going to get it. I could fight all I wanted, but I didn't have enough power to stop all of them. My life flashed before my eyes, and I knew this was it. I had survived my brother, but I wasn't going to live to see tomorrow.
Until a burst of blinding light erupted between me and the approaching horde. I threw an arm up to shield my eyes, only lowering it when the light faded.
I found Healynas standing with his back to me, facing the army that was now falling back in what looked like a mix of awe and fear.
“Remove yourselves from this place!” he bellowed.
When they didn't move fast enough, he raised an arm and moved it in a circle over his head. The wind picked up, swirling like a tornado, lifting some of the sirens off their feet and throwing them through the air. He flung a few of them over the cliff, while others he sent flying into clusters of Synians who'd scattered, clearly afraid of what might happen to them.
“Go, if you wish to live through this night!” He advanced on them, his hands held high, and the fear of what might happen next sent the army scurrying away.
I watched in wonder as they ran, disappearing into the night. Where would they go? I had no idea. I only knew I had never been glad to see him until now.
Instead of hanging around for a family chat, I ran to where Parris and Garrett were now being untied by Elliot.
“Are you all right?” I asked all of them, touching their hands, faces, and anything else I could manage. I had to prove to myself they were real, that they were okay.
“You did well,” Healynas said.
Elliot stiffened at the sound of my father’s voice behind us.
I turned to face him and found him smiling indulgently, like a proud parent. “As I told you. It was inevitable, although I am sorry it had to be this way,” Healynas added.
“It didn't have to be this way. Somebody twisted his mind up. In the last few seconds, he was himself again,” I replied. The memory was still so fresh, so raw. I could almost feel his hand in mine. “He wanted to die.”
“It would have happened as it did regardless. We cannot hope to interfere with fate,” Healynas said.
Elliot growled low at this, but my father only chuckled. “You know I'm right.” Then, Healynas looked at me again. “You've proven yourself. It is clear you were meant to be my heir.”
I couldn’t hide my surprise. I had almost been burned and stoned to death, as well as suffocated. I was still bleeding. I had watched my twin die. And he wanted to talk about his throne? “Your heir?”
“You are the one who is fit to rule in my stead. Come with me. Let me teach you, guide you. You will be placed on high, and one day, you will assume the throne of Xerai.”
Me. On a throne. Somehow, I couldn't make the image crystallize in my mind.
“That's not me. That's not who I am,” I objected. “All the training in the world wouldn't make me a queen or whatever I would be.”
“Mere weeks ago, would you believe yourself capable of all the power you now possess? Imagine how much more powerful you would become if you would only allow it,” Healynas prodded.
“But I would have to leave my mates, wouldn’t I?” I knew the answer before I asked, but I needed to confirm.
“There's no place for them in Xerai.”
“There's no place for me there, either. Because my place is by their sides and vice versa. You talked about fate. We're bonded now. Nothing can break that.”
I expected him to rage at me or to throw me off a cliff again like he did before. He surprised me by merely inclining his head, a smile playing around the corners of his mouth. “Very well. I respect your decision.”
“For real?” I couldn't shake the feeling of waiting for the other shoe to drop.
“I would never wish to bind you against your will. I wish nothing but the best for you in whatever course you would choose to take.” He held up a finger. “However—”
There it was. The other shoe.
“We may not always be on the same side. That is the consequence of the choice you have made here tonight.”
“I understand.” I stood tall, surrounded by my mates, whom my father glanced over only once before vanishing into thin air.
The army was gone, and now there was nothing but the crackling of dying fires and the weeping of injured and mourning Witches.
But I was alive. I had won.
Nobody ever told me winning could feel so much like losing.
