“I have to. I don’t belong here.” I shake my head.
Her face changes. The softness, whatever was left of it, drains away. What replaces it is cold and rigid and nothing like the woman who held me moments ago.
“For the last time…don’t leave. I need you safe and at my side.”
Something breaks in me, but something else lets go. “I can’t do that. Goodbye, Mother.”
I turn.
“Isla! No!”
I ignore her.
“You leave me with no choice. Guards!” my mother screams. Her voice tears through the quiet of the tower, loud enough to reach the corridor outside.
I spin back, my magic flaring to life beneath my skin, shadows gathering around my fingers.
But before the door opens, before the first boot hits the carpet, Sebastian steps from the darkness.
What is he doing here?
No!
40
Isla
My mother’s eyes flare the moment they land on Sebastian.
The warmth and the tears vanish in a single breath. The color drains from her face.
“You?” she says under her breath, her eyes narrowing on him.
Before I can answer, a thunderous banging erupts from the corridor. The door shudders in its frame.
“Ruler General! Is everything alright?” The guard’s voice sounds muffled but urgent.
“Mother, call them off.” I keep my voice steady. “Please. Tell them everything is fine. Let’s talk about this.”
Her eyes are glinting now. I see it for what it is – hunger for power.
“Call out, or we will break the door down,” the guard yells.
She doesn’t look at me. Her hand goes to the wall behind her desk.
“Don’t,” I beg
She’s too quick, my mother yanks on a braided cord by the drape, and somewhere deep in the castle, a bell tolls.
“No!” I lunge for her, but it’s too late. The cord swings back into place, and the damage is done.
Wood groans, then splinters. The heavy door buckles inward with a cracking sound that echoes through the stone chamber. Four guards pour through the wreckage, swords drawn, shadows coiling along their forearms.
Sebastian moves, putting himself between the guards and me. His stance is low.
Why did he come here?
This was never supposed to happen.
