The demon lord pulled back, clapped his hands, and silenced the room. “The sooner we move on, the sooner you can each face each other and deal with the reactions to these damning secrets. Until then, I appreciate that you keep your emotions to yourself as I really would like to get through this as quickly as possible.”
Why was Bahmet in a rush? I hadn’t noticed it, amongst the bedlam, but there was an air of rushing around him.
“Hector Briar, it is your turn.”
I wiggled my finger. “No shit.”
Bahmet’s piss-yellow eyes narrowed an inch. “Go ahead, confess.”
I had two options. Lie, break my fingers and thumbs, and fail. Or, tell the truth, leave the trial whole, and save myself a world of physical pain. There was no point giving Bahmet the enjoyment of the former, so really there was only one thing I could do.
“I confess,” I said, jutting my chin in defiance, even though I knew I was willingly entering his web.
“Go ahead.” Bahmet swept a hand.
“I’m no longer the host of the shard of your broken power.”
It was the truth, although the half-arsed answer. I missed a big chunk, and Bahmet knew that.
“Is that all?” Bahmet asked, gloved hands reaching for the thumbscrew.
Before his fingers could brush the metal, I finished.
“I gave up the shard of power when we brought Kai back from the dead. It was the sacrifice that had to be given. And now, that power lives inside of him. Kai is the host of Bahmet’s lost power, and without it…”
“Yes…” Bahmet hissed like a serpent wearing an Armani suit. He stepped around my chair, coming to stand behind it. He leaned down, hot breath itching the side of my face. Repulsed, but not wanting to move a muscle to give the demon the satisfaction, I faced forwards and steadied my breathing. “In the spirit of transparency, let me help you with this next part. I only give this guidance because the root of your truth is far too delicious to skip. What, Hector Briar, would happen if, let us just say, Kai here would no longer have the power that was stolen from me?”
“Without it,” I choked, throat closing as if gloved hands wrapped around it and squeezed, “he woulddie.”
39
ARWYN
Everything hurt. My stiff body ached, my flesh itching to get out of this chair. My brain buzzed with all the secrets that were being laid bare. I knew that physically I was trapped in this room, but I felt like I was floating somewhere outside it… watching on, listening and taking in the world-shifting facts.
Kai had been coerced into sleeping with someone else to break Romy’s heart.
Verena had just turned my concept of family on its head.
Hector. Just thinking his name sent waves of pain through me. Hector had given up the weapon we needed to destroy Bahmet, to bring Kai back from the dead. I didn’t blame him considering it was my idea. Hell, if I had to sacrifice something to save Hector from Bahmet’s clutches, I knew I would’ve traded the world without hesitation.
I only wished he had told me. But it was something I could get over, something we would overcome just like all the other obstacles laid out before us.
It was the other revealed secret that I couldn’t move past.
Verena, the aunt I never knew I had until days ago. She was Romy’s mother. Her birth mother.
Which meant Romy was… family. My blood. I had thought myself undeserving of anyone that I could call family. Hector was the closest to such a concept. My father was the only one, and I’d renounced him a long time ago, long before I even realised I had.
But Romy. The strong woman who’d welcomed me with her sunshine smile and open arms. Romy, the friend who I’d betrayed as much as Hector during the previous Witch Trials.
Romy… the obvious victim ofthistrial. Every secret had been a way to hurt her. Break her. I didn’t know what Bahmet’s reasonings were, but I trusted he had them.
Blood or not. Family, or not. A violent wave rose within me, an awareness that was so innate in my bones that I would’ve done everything I could to save Romy from any more pain.
If only the bindings around my wrists were weak enough to break. I would’ve reached out, taken her hand, and showed her that everything would be okay.
Romy could protect herself, I didn’t doubt that. But that didn’t mean I wasn’t going to try to ease that task if I could.
