“Kieran, my son!” Alicia snaps.
“Shall remain quiet now. Why should he cry when our hybrid waits like a lamb for the slaughter?”
Gooseflesh covers my skin and my blood has turned to ice, but I say nothing. Seven doesn’t either. We both know words won’t help us now. I look toward Arden, willing her to use the wish. She’s eerily calm in a way I’ve never seen her before. Only… Ihaveseen that calm in her father and in myself. Oh Kieran, you do not know what you’re in for.
“I have questions,” Arden says softly, her hand pressed into the base of her throat, palm over the gold acorn.
“And I will answer them. It’s the least I can do to say thank you for your sacrifice,” Kieran says.
“Will you, as king of the fae, play a part in the spell to bring down the wall?” Arden asks.
He nods. “I will. It can’t be done without me. I will snuff the magic and then use your blood to neutralize it permanently.”
“Because you’re king of the fae,” she says softly. “It can’t be done without you.”
“That’s right,” he says proudly.
“My teacher at Bailiwick’s said that many people believe Godmother trapped you here because if she killed you, another fairy would rise to your position, possibly someone she couldn’t defeat. So it was safer for her to keep you alive.”
“Clever theory. Although I’m stronger now. I believe Godmother will be unpleasantly surprised when we bring down the wall and I pay her a visit.”
Arden’s gaze darts to me and then to Seven, where it lingers, almost apologetically.
“Fuck,” Seven utters under his breath. What does he know that I don’t?
Fingers clutching the acorn in the hollow of her throat, Arden says clearly and with intention, “I wish my father was king of the fae.”
ChapterTwenty-Three
Arden’s luck snaps out of her body, but unlike before, it’s no cute, lovable raccoon. The acorn amplifies her power into a primordial beast that expands to the size of the castle and roars, blowing back my hair in a gale-force wind.
Kieran raises his hands, forming a triangle with his thumbs and forefingers, and tries to absorb the excess energy. His magic glows orange as a sunrise, but it is nothing compared to Arden’s. She grinds his power beneath the heel of the wish.
I raise my arm to shield my eyes from the intensity of the clashing magic. Seven draws me into his chest. “Whatever happens, Sophia, I love you. I have always loved you.”
His words scare me as much as the flames of power licking at my skin. It feels like we’ve been thrust into a kiln. A flash between our bodies draws my attention, and I see the coin around my neck glowing bright. The charm! I spin around, my back to Seven, shielding both of us as much as possible. Seven ducks his head, making himself small behind me as the blast grows in intensity.
Kieran is a glowing ball of fire. He is an orange sun, an exploding star, a detonated bomb.
The hound creatures in the room are the first to go, their bodies incinerating to ash before my eyes. Suddenly Edmund screams. His mouth has returned, which must mean Kieran’s power is waning, but the blast coming off Kieran is frying the boy and his mother. Alicia shields him with the giant spider of her luck, but it isn’t strong enough. They run for the hall, but it’s too late. They both collapse near the exit, their skin blistering, then burning off altogether. I watch them gasp one last time before they stop breathing.
Across the room, Arden’s eyes glow like emerald fire, the wish protecting her from the fallout. Her luck feels boundless but not targetless. Every ounce of it is directed at Kieran. The rest of us are simply collateral damage.
The king’s face sags and his arms flop to his sides. I stand up straighter, my arms wrapped around Seven behind me, panting in the heat of this magic. It finally wanes, coiling back in on itself. Kieran’s knees give out, then the rest of him, flesh and bone. He melts into a puddle of blue liquid, his crown of stars splashing down in the center. It dissolves as if in acid, sizzling until it’s gone. A cool breeze blows through the room, and I draw a deep breath.
But behind me, Seven pulls away, grunting in pain. I whirl to find him doubled over. “Arden, stop!” I yell. “It’s hurting him.”
Her hands are fisted at her sides and she sways on her feet. “I’m not doing it! I want it to stop, but I can’t.”
I wrap my arm around Seven, trying my best to protect him from whatever is happening. He’s leaning on me, hard. I can’t let him go. I keep one arm around his waist and hold the other out to her. “Come to me, Arden.”
But she can’t seem to move.
“Go,” Seven growls and shoves me.
I rush toward Arden and reach her just in time. Her eyes roll back in her head, and she tumbles into my arms. I collapse onto my knees from her weight but save her from the worst of the fall. Cradling her, I rock her gently. She’s barely breathing.
“You’re okay. I’ve got you. I’ve got you.”
