Don’t!a little voice in my head screams.You can’t trust anyone!
I war with my instincts, biting the inside of my cheek until the taste of copper floods my mouth.
“It’s fine,” Maeva says gently, and something like pity gleams in her eyes as she watches me. “You don’t have to tell me. I understand.”
“No,” I croak out. “It’s just … I’m trusting you with my brothers’ lives, Maeva.”
Her eyes widen. “You have brothers?”
“Yes. And they’re the best and brightest things in my life. I would do anything for them. There are no limits. Do you understand?”
She nods, sitting up taller. “You can tell me.”
I lean close, lowering my voice to a whisper. And I tell her everything.
Shock and fear and determination flicker across her face. When I tell her about the sight of Evren suffocating in front of me, my voice cracks. Maeva’s eyes fill with tears. And when I tell her about Bran’s blackmail, sympathy turns to cold rage.
“He’s dead,” she snarls. And this isn’t the woman with the bright smile. It’s the woman who somehow managed to kill Baldric while bleeding internally and hallucinating. “He’s going to pay.”
“He is. But in the meantime …”
Her voice drops so low I can barely hear it. “You have to kill the emperor.”
“Yes. The urges … they’re getting worse. I can’t break the bond, and I can’t kill Bran. Rorrik says he can break the bond but he left last night and …”
“And trusting him would likely be the last mistake you make?”
I nod. “Yes. That. I never asked if you have siblings.”
She gives me a shaky smile. “My parents stopped with me. Since their firstborn was a lowly bronze sigilmarked, they thought it prudent not to risk another one. Or even worse, a voidborn.”
“I’m sorry.”
She shrugs. “I didn’t need siblings. There was a nest of pixies in our garden when I was a child. At first, they stayed away, but I spent so much time playing near the stream that they eventually began to play with me. By the time I was ten, I counted them as my closest friends.” Her eyes turn flat, and my stomach sinks.
“And then the emperor killed them,” I whisper.
She nods. “He eradicated them like they were vermin. I didn’t know until it was too late. I never had a chance to warn them. When I walked down to the bottom of the garden, it was littered with their corpses.”
My head spins. This explains Maeva’s fury when Baldric called her a pixie so many months ago. “I’m so sorry.”
She takes my hand, giving it a squeeze. “You’re not the only one who hates the emperor, Arvelle. You’re just someone who is being forced to act on that hate. And I’m going to help you.” She clears her throat, and I pass her the water again.
Since I’m telling her everything … “You were supposed to get my spot on the imperius.”
She coughs, choking on her sip, and I take the glass from her.
“What?”
“They were going to pick you as their novice. And I manipulated them into picking me.”
She squeezes my hand again. “Because you figured you’d have more chances to kill the emperor if you were on the imperius.”
“Yes.”
“You did what you needed to do for your brothers. I would never blame you for that, Arvelle. But … thanks for telling me. Knowing Iwouldhave been chosen … it helps.” She gives me a wicked grin. “Besides, I can still earn a place. All I have to do is be exceptional.”
One of the healers rushes past outside, and Maeva chews on her lower lip. “How’s Leon?”
