The sting of tears again pricked behind Mariah’s eyes. “I hated him at first. He was rude and annoying and took every opportunity to knock me down and push me away. But we were drawn to each other. Then I learned he’d only been that way to protect me, and that’s when everything changed. We decided we could face whatever came our way together.
“But then the Royals made their move. They used what we’d found against me and tried to break me with it. Tried to breakuswith it. And honestly, they almost succeeded. It took time to recover from that; time to heal the wounds we’d dealt each other.” The scars on her back itched, the first reminder of them in days. “But we did. We found each other all over again. Just for it to be snatched away by a vengeful god who hates me simply for being Chosen by the goddesses who locked him away in the first place.”
Mariah took a deep, steadying inhale, aware of the tears singeing her cheeks and falling into her lap but making no effort to wipe them away. “Now I’ve lost my magic, our bond is silent and dead, and I’m not sure what to even do next. He asked me not to come back for him, but the thought of leaving him there, with that monster…” Her eyes clenched shut, fighting off the burn.
“He’s endured so much pain, and he thinks he deserves all of it. But he doesn’t. Beneath his walls, he’s soft and kind and moreself-sacrificing than anyone I’ve ever met. He can’t stay there. Even if it kills me, Iwillfind a way to get him out.”
Silence dripped through the room with her tears, no one daring even as much as a breath. Wex again leaned forward, taking her hand. Ellan followed, and Matheo’s arm wrapped around her shoulder, tucking her fully into his side.
“If anyone can find a way,” Wex finally said, “it’s you.”
Mariah blinked her eyes open, the sunlight streaming in through the open kitchen windows momentarily blinding. But she turned toward it anyway, toward those burning rays, the daily reminder of what—who—had taken so much from her, who still held a piece of her heart in his shadow-wrapped clutches.
As she stared, there was a soft rustle. A brush of feathers through the wind, of wide rapid downbeats.
Shock raced through her, mixing with her grief and rage and pain, as the golden eagle—the same one from the morning before—alighted on the window ledge, just on the cusp of being inside the home. It cocked its head, gleaming golden eyes scanning the space, settling on Mariah.
Watching.
Waiting.
Female. Mariah wasn’t sure how she knew, but a locked-away instinct called to her. This creature, with her beautiful iridescent feathers and sharply taloned feet, was female.
“Is that…” Ellan’s whisper fell away, his eyes widening.
“An Attlehon eagle,” finished her father, awe mystifying his own face.
Matheo had gone slack-jawed. “What’s it doing here? Have they ever been known to leave the Attlehon Mountains?”
Wex shook his head. “Not that I am aware. I only ever saw them—and by saw, I mean heard their cries, because catching sight of one is nearly impossible—during my time in Verith. Notonce was there ever a sign of their presence in Andburgh or anywhere else around Onita.”
“That’s what I thought,” murmured Matheo, still a little dumbstruck.
Mariah’s shock, though, had left her system. A sense of calm settled over her, pooling in her gut, tugging her forward.
She stood from the table, eyes still locked on the eagle, and took a sure, steady step forward.
“Mariah,” her father whispered, but she ignored him. She moved, not stopping until she stood beside the window. So close she could see the black and silver flecking the bird’s golden eyes, could see the wicked crook of her beak, could watch the light play with the shimmering patterns of her feathers.
“You know,” her father said softly, “they say that the eagles are more than mere birds. That they are far more intelligent than we realize, which is why they have shared a world with us for thousands of years and we still know nothing about them.”
Mariah nodded. She could see it there, in the way the bird watched her. This was no mere beast; this was a sister soul, a kindred spirit.
She reached out a hand, moving slowly.
The eagle clacked her beak, ruffling her feathers as she let out a low whistle.
Mariah thought it sounded a bit amused, like a low chuckle or a laugh. The bird gave her one last look, dipping her regal head once, before turning and lifting off from the windowsill, feathers blending with the sky in just a few mighty beats.
Slowly, Mariah turned back to the others.
“I think…I think she followed me here,” Mariah said. Ellan and Matheo straightened, but Wex only nodded with a knowing smile.
“I think she did, too,” her father said. “And I think the reason goes far beyond the power of your crown.”
Chapter 13
Andrian paced a worn track through his rooms, frustration and restlessness clawing down his spine.
