At the time, I couldn’t fathom a world where I stopped trying to kill the demon king. My blood sang for his demise. My very bones thrummed with the need to plunge my witchwood blade through his heart. And yet . . .
Bile rose in my throat as panic and fury swirled in my gut.
Kaden had coaxed me into making that bargain without telling me the full truth. He’d made me agree to kill his fatherknowingit would end his life too.
I wanted to scream and cry and pound my fists against his chest. How could he ask that of me, after everything we’d been through? After he’d wormed his way into my heart and made me love him against all odds.
Kaden had tricked me.
He must have known I’d realize when I saw the threads of fate. That was why he’d made me promise. So I couldn’t change my mind.
Well,fuck him.
“Have you a request for me?” Morta asked, fixing me with a look so astute that I began to wonder if she knew exactly what I was thinking.
I turned back to the tapestry, my throat suddenly dry. My heart was beating so hard I was sure the Three could hear it.
I couldn’t vanquish the Dark King without severing his ties to all those souls, and I couldn’t kill Semphrys without severing Kaden’s thread and ending his immortal existence.
My gaze drifted over the mangled section of the tapestry — all those poor mortal souls whose threads had been twisted and stretched. Souls who would never find peace because of the demon king’s greed.
They were keeping him alive, through no fault of theirown. And if I didn’t find a way to end him, he would just keep taking more. Year by year, the realm would grow more depleted until there was no longer enough magic to sustain life.
There was only one thing to do.
One choice to make.
I only hoped it didn’t damn us all.
Chapter
Twenty-Eight
LYRA
Blood pounded in my ears as I stormed up the stairs.
I was going to kill Kaden myself for hiding something so important from me.Again.
I was going to grow claws and use them to rip his fucking heart out.
I was going to —
The ground shook as I reached the landing, bits of bark and dirt raining down as the impact threw me back. My shoulder hit the inside of the tree trunk, and Adriel stumbled beside me.
“What was that?” I cried, eyes struggling to adjust to the near total darkness.
“No idea,” the royal guard mumbled, his face tight with wariness.
“Kaden!” I called, pounding on the outline of the entrance scored into the bark.
As if in answer, a terrible roar rumbled from the other side, followed by a low growl.
Horror sank into my bones.
Something was out there with Kaden and Sorsha, and we were trapped in here.
“Fuck,” Adriel barked, ramming against the spot where the entrance had been as if he might blaze right through. But he only managed to rattle more bark loose and send it raining down on our heads.
