He nickered, and then chomped his powerful teeth into the fruit. Despite the sorrow weighing me down, I smiled. As he ate his snack, I nibbled on a piece of dried meat and turned my thoughts to the present. I’d been avoiding the truth for as long as possible, but I couldn’t ignore it forever.
And the reality was, I needed a plan. I could not stay here on the beach for days on end. I didn’t have enough food or any shelter, and eventually, shadowfiends would find me. But where could I go? What in the name of light did I do now?
Returning to Endir did not seem like an option. Kalen would be forced to kill me now, and even though I deserved it, I couldn’t bear the thought of him stabbing me in the heart. I lifted my eyes to the misty horizon. There were the human kingdoms, of course. I could journey to Sunport and board a ship to sail away from Aesir.
I could leave it all behind, find someplace rural that only a few people called home, build a little cabin in the woods and then a fence to protect the world from me.
I could abandon everyone.
I closed my eyes, sagging forward. “But I can’t do that.”
The horse nudged me again. I glanced up at him and frowned as he angled his body to the side, and then lowered his head, facingawayfrom the sea, toward Albyria. It was almost as if he were trying to communicate with me…
But that was impossible. He was just a horse, and why would he want to return to that burning city?
“There’s nothing for us in Albyria,” I said to him. “The streets have been ravaged by flames, and Kalen’s warriors are patrolling the city to keep the light fae from retaking it. If we go there, we’ll probably both be in trouble. You could get hurt just by being with me.”
I could have sworn the horse narrowed his eyes. With a stomp of his front hoof, he nodded east again.
He blinked at me, and I blinked at him. Frowning, I gazed toward the mountains that obscured my view of the burning city. We were too far for me to see Albyria with the naked eye, even if the mountains weren’t there, but I looked toward it all the same. What was the point in going to Albyria? What was the point in doing anything at all, other than leaving this continent in the hands of those who would protect it, not ruin it?
The fae would be forced to fight the gods now. The fate of the world was in their hands, and they’d be far better off without me in the way, making matters worse. Buthowwould they fight them? Kalen didn’t seem to have the answers any more than I did.
But there was another who might know what to do. Kalen’s mother.
Something stirred in my chest, sparking in my blood and clearing the fog in my head. Kalen’s mother had journeyed to the human kingdoms and heard a prophecy about the future of this world. She knew things about the gods that no one else did—she’d been communicating with half of Andromeda’s essence all this time.
“The Crones,” I said, sucking in a sharp breath before turning toward the horse. “They gave me that vision of Oberon’s past. They know everything…or at the very least, all of it is in their heads. If I could get to them and go through more of their visions…”
Maybe I could find the answer to fighting back.
Maybe I could right my wrongs.
Another flash of pain went through my heart. There was a chance I could fix things, but I was just as likely to do something wrong. Everything I did made things worse. Because the truth was, I was a monster, just like the gods. Their darkness lurked inside me; their destructive power was coursing through my veins. I’d felt it all my life, never knowing what it was. But I knew it now.
I was the Daughter of Death.
The horse stomped his hoof. The thud broke through my dark thoughts. Maybe I was right, and I was too dangerous to stay here while the fae fought the gods. I should leave. And I would. But I had to do something to help before I left this continent. I had to try to give the fae an edge—or at least even the odds. I would find out what I could from the Crones, and then I would pass the information along to Kalen’s Mist Guard. It would be my parting gift—the only thing I could give them after dooming them all.
And then I would leave Aesir and never return.
* * *
The secret entrance into Albyria still stood among the rubble. I pulled aside the tapestry with its ends charred and curling, and peered into the silent street. A few fires still dotted the cobblestones, but most of the smoke had cleared. I could have heard a pin drop for how quiet it was.
My heart ached as I took in the destruction. The buildings nearest the wall had once been homes, but they were nothing but blackened shells now. How many light fae had died in that fire? Those who had survived, where had they gone? Were they hiding out in the city somewhere, or had they crossed the bridge to brave the mists?
Silver—it seemed the only fitting name—nudged me, and I bit back a sigh. “Yes, all right, all right. I’m going through.”
I pushed past the tapestry, holding my breath, and gazed around. Kalen’s guards could be anywhere nearby, and they would hear and see me far before I would see them. The last thing I wanted was for them to catch me here. Then they’d be forced to deliver me to their king.
I clamped down the pain that threatened to roar back to life. For a moment in time, it had felt like fate had turned a kind smile on me after so many years of cruelty, pain, and hate. Kalen and I had found each other—twin flames—despite everything, despite the world working against the both of us. I’d thought he’d be by my side for years to come, but fate had a different plan in mind.
Swallowing, I blinked my burning eyes. Now was not the time for those thoughts. It wasn’t fate’s fault we’d ended up like this. It was mine.
I cast a glance over my shoulder where the tapestry half-covered the hole in the wall. Through the ripped shreds, Silver watched me with a steady stare. “You should move away from there so that no one spots you. I’ll be back soon.”
Hopefully.
