“I just…” My voice cracked as I forced my chin up, knowing an explanation was needed. “I needed a moment to say goodbye.My father, when I was in prison, told me my mother had taken her own life.” The confession fell out slowly, heavy in the air. “I couldn’t stay in this house without saying something.”
Silence took the space between words for a long breath. Gabe’s hand slid farther along my waist, but he remained quiet. He didn’t need to speak. His silence was its own kind of anchor.
Ronan’s jaw tightened until I worried it might shatter. He let out a low, dark sound that could have been a rumble, something like the beasts he used to tame. “If he were still breathing, it wouldn’t be for long.”
The threat hung sharp in the air before he added, quieter, “It wasn’t enough for him to hurt you, or to hurt your mother. He had to try to kill you. In front of all of Alfemir.”
I should have known how furious it would make them all in the aftermath. Beyond the fact that I had died, the truth that I’d been captured with them near was something I was sure they were unjustly blaming themselves for. By now, I understood their protectiveness. I embraced it. I loved it.
Niz set a heavy hand on Ronan’s shoulder. The gesture steadied him; I saw it in the way his jaw eased, if only slightly.
“He wanted to silence you,” Niz said, voice certain as his eyes held mine. “But we won’t let that happen. You aren’t alone in this, My Fire. Even when it felt that way on the execution platform, you were never without us. We’ll make them listen and understand the truth.”
A ripple of movement cut through the air, sharp enough to raise every nerve on edge. My eyes immediately caught two bodies slipping out of the shadows, their shapes drawing closer. My dagger was in my hand with my summoning it, just before a face I knew came into view.
Mithrie. The Elementalist examiner from the trials. She had never looked at me with the contempt the others carried.Even then, her river-blue eyes had been steady, curious, and measured.
She stopped at the edge of the porch and bowed her head. “Kieran…it’s good to see you alive.”
My grip loosened on the dagger, but I didn’t lower it. Her words made it clear she had been at the execution. I had never had conflict with her, but these were different times, and trust was scarce. Around me, I felt the men brace, ready to stand between me and whatever threat these women posed.
Her gaze flicked to the dagger, and she offered a small, careful smile. “Selene and I followed from a distance after you left the battle. We did not wish to intrude, but we couldn’t go without offering our sympathy.”
The second woman stepped forward, shorter, her copper curls glinting in the dim light. Silver eyes met mine, steady and warm. “We never believed him,” she said. “About what we were told about her sudden disappearance.”
The word caught in my chest before I could stop it. “Disappearance? And you were… close with her?”
Mithrie’s expression shifted, the careful composure she’d held beginning to crack. “Yes. She was my friend. We often sat together at gatherings, when the Elementalists were called together. She made the hours bearable—always asking how I was doing and if I needed anything, even when no one else did.” Her voice faltered. “She was too good for him.”
“What did my father tell you?” My words came quieter but sharper.
“That she left.” Selene answered.
The bastard hadn’t even admitted she was dead. Ashamed that his wife had killed herself? Or only too proud to let anyone know she had escaped him, even in that way?
“She killed herself.”
Selene’s breath caught, her eyes widening as she brought her hand to her mouth in shock. Mithrie’s composure faltered, a flinch of pain and grief filtering through her expression. When they finally nodded, it was slow and heavy with understanding.
“We suspected that when she was gone,” Mithrie said softly. “She didn’t need to say a word for us to see the evil within him. We saw it in the way she shrank when he entered a room, how her smile dimmed when his name was even spoken. It may have been her hand, but he drove her there.”
Then how hadInever known? My hands curled at my sides, nails biting into my palms as the question tore through me, guilt eating me alive.
Selene’s voice cut through, firm. “And when we saw him try to kill you with our own eyes…there was no denying what he was. A monster.”
Mithrie’s words settled between us, steady and certain. “Everything you said. It was the truth.”
None of the men around us spoke, the faint shift in their posture the only sign of them relaxing at the revelation of the respect these women held for me.
I swallowed hard, throat tight with emotion. “Thank you for believing me.”
Mithrie’s face softened. “We owe you more than that. You endured more than you should have. We judged you without understanding, questioned your worth, and allowed others to do the same. You faced every trial we set before you and still stood your ground. That kind of strength demands we stand beside you now.”
Selene stepped closer, her silver gaze unwavering. “We vow to gather the angels within Alfemir willing to listen, to share the truth we’ve witnessed, and to carry the coming burdens with you. When the time comes for Alfemir to change, a new order must rise, and you will not stand alone in its rebuilding.”
Tenuous hope bloomed within my chest, only to twist with the reminder that I wasn’t sure I could hope yet. Alfemir’s hierarchy had survived two genocides, and now that the ‘divine order’ had been broken, there was that looming threat in the back of my mind that the upper triads could turn their eyes to us.
We’d changed so much, but would they be watching us that closely? How long would it take for them to notice?
