Viri cleared her throat and picked up her story. “When Reeve moved in, he quickly became close with my family. His adoptive parents were old—so old they’re no longer with us—and mine were always off hunting, so it was just us kids around for most of the time. He and—and Braedan”—Viri choked on her brother’s name, having not said it aloud in seven years until today—“they hit it off right away. Brae’s four years older than me, three years older than Reeve, but the age difference didn’t matter—they became best friends. And where they went, I went.”
“My Little Shadow,” Reeve murmured, a smile tugging at his mouth, though he kept looking up through the water.
Viri pressed her lips together in annoyance, but only said, “That’s how we know each other—we were childhood friends. End of story.”
Wynter placed her hands on her hips. “End of story, my ass. You said you haven’t seen him in seven years. It’s been seven years since your parents died. Your parents who were killed by the Reaper Priest—which means your parents were killedby your brother.” She leaned forward. “Those are some pretty big plot holes, V. How did I not know you had a brother? What happened seven years ago? Why did—” She stopped herself, her voice gentling. “Please, V. Help me understand.”
Viri hugged her elbows, refusing to look at Reeve, though from the corner of her eye she could see him frozen. Sage and Jonas had also tensed now that Braedan—their leader—had come into the conversation.
“You don’t have to answer,” Wynter said softly when Viri remained silent. “I won’t force you to. I just—I’m here if you want to talk about it. I’ve been here for seven years.”
It was the hurt in Wynter’s voice that broke through to Viri, making her realize shewantedher friend to know everything.
With a fortifying breath, Viri said, “It happened on the day of my Impartation ceremony. You already know that—your mom took me in that day, and you saw what a mess I was for months afterward.”
Reeve flinched, but Viri ignored him and kept going, “What you don’t know is that it was Braedan’s Impartation as well. It was his fourteenth birthday, and he wasn’t looking forward to it—he’d always liked the idea of having magic, even if the law said he couldn’t keep it forever. To make it easier on him, our parents decided we would both yield our ellixen at the same time. I could have waited another four years, but they were worried about my magic being prematurely unstable—I heard them whispering about it in secret, so I knew they feared me burning out early. And unlike Brae, I didn’t mind giving up my ellixen, especially if it meant I could do it with him.”
Viri’s mind traveled back to that dreadful day, sifting through the hazy memories she normally kept locked away. “My parents chose the quieter Southern Obelisk for our ceremony, so it was just the five of us out there by the edge of the necropolis, with nothing but farmland and forest in sight—Mom, Dad, Braedan, Reeve, and me.”
“Reeve was with you?” Wynter asked quietly, saying his given name for the first time.
“He was family,” Viri answered just as quietly, seeing him flinch again, this time more violently. “Brae gave his magic to the obelisk first, and everything seemed fine. Then it was my turn, and maybe it was because I was younger, or maybe my parentswere right about me being close to burnout, but I fainted when I yielded my magic. I was only out for a moment, but that was all it took, because when I came to…” Viri had to swallow against the tightness in her throat, her voice rough as stone as she finished, “Mom and Dad were dead.”
Wynter was pale, her question hesitant. “Are you sure it was your brother?”
“Positive.” Viri swallowed again. “Braedan killed our parents. I know what I saw.”
Reeve spoke up then. “You don’t, though. You said it yourself—you were unconscious.”
Viri whipped around. “So I justimaginedMom and Dad on the ground, their ellixen drained from their bodies, and Braedan standing over them with newly blackened veins?” Her heart felt like it was breaking all over again, her grief raw and timeless. “There was no one else with us, Reeve. Hesiphonedfrom them. Hemurderedthem. And then youleftwith him before the hunters and Nox arrived. Youchosehim.”
And with that choice, he’d abandoned her, right when she’d needed him the most. The pain of that would never leave her, the hurt a scar that would never heal.
Viri was breathing heavily, her eyes burning as she turned back to Wynter. “I was so horrified by what Braedan had done that I lied to the council about it, telling them he’d been killed with my parents and dragged away by the reaper, leaving no body for the hunters to find. Your mom could see how upset I was, and even though she was wrong about the reason, it was a relief when she promised we’d never talk about him again. That’s why you didn’t know about him—and why anyone who ever did thinks he’s dead.”
Wynter’s face revealed her shock, but also her understanding. “That’s a lot for you to have carried by yourself, V. I wish you’d told me.”
Viri didn’t know how to explain that she hadn’twantedWynter to know. She hadn’t wantedanyoneto know. The pain, the shame…they were too much—then, and now.
Steadying herself, Viri forced the last part out. “When whispers of a new Reaper Priest started circulating soon after my parents’ deaths, along with mentions of him being young—tooyoung—and powerful—toopowerful—I knew then that what Braedan had done hadn’t been an accident, or some awful mistake that he’d instantly regretted. It had been calculated. Premeditated, even. He hadn’t wanted to let go of his magic, so he’d found a way to make sure he never had to, not just choosing his dark path, but also setting himself up to be a merciless leader revered by all other reapers. I don’t—” She sucked in a raspy breath. “I don’t know how that part happened, how he got so powerful, especially since he was only fourteen. But he’d always been mature for his age, and ambitious—so ambitious.” Another raspy breath. “And he wasn’t the only one.”
She turned to Reeve, swiping angrily at a tear dribbling down her healing cheek as she locked eyes with him and declared, “You stood by him as he became a monster—and in doing so, you became one yourself.”
Reeve said nothing in his own defense, just held Viri’s watery glare.
Sage, however, bit out, “You know nothing, hunter. If you hadanyidea—”
“Sage,” Reeve murmured. “Let it go.”
“No, please, I’dloveto hear your thoughts,” Viri said cuttingly,her grief hardening to rage as she gestured to Sage’s blackened veins. “Was Braedan the one who convinced you that killing innocents would be a winning life choice? Has your dear Reaper Priest lived up to your expectations as a murderous leader?”
“V.” Wynter looked nervously at Sage, whose hands were clenching her sheathed daggers. “Maybe we should go for a walk. Take a breather.”
“I don’t need a breather,” Viri all but snapped at her friend, her blood boiling at the thought of anyone defending her brother’s decisions. Reeve’s, too. Her fury was such that she almostwantedSage to attack, if only so she could have an excuse to fight back.
“Well, I do,” Wynter insisted, grabbing Viri’s arm and dragging her away.
Viri barely kept from snarling.“Wyn—”
