I didn’t want them to kill her.
“Well, Kalen and the others suspected it at first, seeing how Morgan sent that call for help and then showed up in Albyria seemingly unharmed.” He arched a silver brow, bright against his brown skin. “It was so strange and made very little sense. But to complete the ritual to transfer Bellicent’s soul into another’s body, a mark must be carved into the vessel’s skin. A tattoo of sorts. Tessa has one from when Oberon prepped her for the ritual.”
I pressed my lips together, knowing where this was going.
“The thing is, Morgan showed her back to the others, and she didn’t have one of those marks. So everyone accepted her story.”
“They still didn’t trust her,” I pointed out. “Kalen put her in the dungeons.”
“Kalen was worried she still served Oberon in some capacity.” Gaven took a step forward, the light from the hearth glinted in his silver eyes. “But I could not get past that mark. Fae have never been able to endure tattoos. Our bodies heal and spit out the ink. Of course, this is magic, and magic leaves scars, but…this was a different kind of magic. Something that came from the stars. I started to suspect her body accepted the tattoo just long enough for Bellicent to complete the transfer, and then her skin healed over it.”
My heart pounded. “What convinced you that you were right?”
“This conversation right here.” Gaven closed the distance between us, his bright eyes only inches from mine. Up close, he almost seemed taller and broader than he did from a distance, as if he had thrown off the mask that hid just how powerful he truly was. And that was when I noticed the fire that licked across the back of his knuckles where his fist was raised.
“You’re an elite light fae,” I said, swallowing. Just like my father had been.
“Yes, except I don’t use my power to threaten innocents into submission.”
“Is that not what you’re doing now?”
“You are no innocent, King Ruari. So tell me, were you ever going to mention that the woman locked in our dungeons is none other than Bellicent Denare, the creature who has sucked the life out of so many others just so she could survive?”
I lifted my chin. I would not let him intimidate me. “I hadn’t decided yet. I thought that if you knew, you might kill her.”
“Any reason I shouldn’t?”
“She’s Kalen’s mother, too.”
The flames vanished, and I sighed in relief. Frowning, Gaven paced back over to the open door and shut it behind him. It was oddly comforting. If he didn’t want anyone overhearing our conversation, perhaps he didn’t plan on spreading this knowledge yet. Or maybe he just didn’t want any witnesses when he burned me alive.
“Tell me,” he said quietly. “How far gone is she?”
“I don’t recognize her as the woman who raised me, but even back then, she was deep in the power’s thrall. It doesn’t…it doesn’t take long to consume you.”
“I’d hoped you wouldn’t say that.”
I tensed. “It’s not her fault. She didn’t ask for this. Based on the stories I’ve heard about her, from before, she would have hated the person she’s become.”
“So it would be a kindness, don’t you think, to relieve her of this burden?”
His words were a punch to my throat. I sucked in a sharp breath. “You intend to execute her.”
“Tell me there’s another way. Give me another option, and I’ll consider it.”
I barked a bitter laugh. “Let her go.”
“Is that what you want? To release Andromeda’s most faithful follower? What do you think she’ll do, Ruari? Fight on the side of humans and fae? Or will she join with the immortal creatures who wish to destroy us all?”
For a moment, I couldn’t speak, or even breathe. His words weighed on me and then echoed in my ears. And I saw it all with brutal clarity. My mother—the essence that resided within Morgan’s body now—had spent many days praying to the gemstone. I’d witnessed it countless times. Her knees would be raw and red after hours spent kneeling on the stone floor, and her face would be stained with tears. Those were some of the few times I’d ever seen any emotion from her other than disdain or irritation. She had prayed and prayed and prayed for salvation, and Andromeda had given it to her.
I closed my eyes. “She will choose the gods.”
My words were her death sentence, I knew. Gaven could never allow a god’s ally to live. Strands of regret wound through me, tangled with relief—because Gaven spoke true. Whoever Bellicent Denare was now, she wasn’t who she’d once been. She wasn’t even close. That woman—the queen of shadows—had died a very long time ago.
“What about your king?” I finally asked. “How will he feel about this?”
Gaven sighed. “I’m coming with you to fight, despite my reservations about leaving Endir without any of the Mist Guard. So I’ll tell him in person. This is not the kind of thing to share through a communication stone. Which means…no, we will not have her executed yet. And in the meantime, perhaps we can get some information out of her.”
