Page 84 of The City Of Fractured Memory

Stryx exhales sharply, her gaze locked on the cabin in agitation. “I can’t believe she left,” she mutters, keeping her voice low so Osiris—who’s currently skipping pebbles across the lake—doesn’t hear. “Didn’t even wait to see if you’d harness it.”

I frown. “She probably thought I needed to do it alone.”

“No,” Stryx says quietly, shaking her head. “She left because she didn’t want to answer my question.”

My chest tightens. She’s right, Amari hadn’t denied it. She’d simply turned and walked away.

We head back toward the cabin, Osiris a few steps behind, the soft blue glow of the foliage guiding us through the winding roots and grasses of the glade. The air is heavy with the scent of moss and earth, grounding me as we brace ourselves to face my aunt again.

When we reach the cabin, Amari is inside by the fire, her hands clasped in her lap. She looks up as we enter, her expression unreadable.

“You did well,” she says simply.

“Why did you leave?” I ask. “Stryx said–”

“Our Princess says many things,” Amari interrupts, a faint, sad smile tugging at her mouth. “But she is right about one. There are parts of your past you should have been told sooner. Things we thought hiding would keep you safe. I see now that silence has only delayed the inevitable.”

My throat feels tight.

“So it’s true then? That you–”

Amari lifts a hand, silencing me gently. “What’s done is done, my sweet. All that matters now is what you choose to do with the Veyne, with all you’ve learned.”

Stryx crosses her arms, ears rustling uneasily as she refuses to be placated. “And if what she’s learned kills her?”

“Then she must learn how to stop that from happening,” Amari replies firmly, and for a moment, her eyes gleam with sorrow. “You both must. Velmora’s end draws nearer than you think.”

The words hang in the air heavily, reminding me of the burden pressing down on us.

I glance at Stryx. “We have to go back.”

She nods reluctantly, her gaze flicking to the forest beyond the window, to the glittering vines and the shimmering mist that hides the rest of Lunoreth. “Then let’s not waste any more time.”

“Where are you going?” Osiris asks, leaning against the threshold.

“Anywhere you aren’t,” Stryx fires back, but it lacks the bite of their previous bickering. She stares out at the lake beyond the door, and guilt eats at me as I watch the longing in her eyes. I hate that we can’t stay, for her sake more than mine, but we’ve already been gone for nearly four days. No doubt our sudden absence has already been noticed.

Still, I hesitate before stepping close to my aunt.

“I’ll come back,” I promise. “When this is over, I’ll return.”

Amari smiles faintly as she stands, reaching out to brush a strand of white hair from my face.

Stryx walks out of the cabin without another word, and I turn to follow her, but Amari grabs my arm gently, pulling me back, waiting until Stryx is out of earshot.

“Remember what I said. You can’t fully trust the council of elders. They want to protect you, yes, but I worry what for. They have a burning hatred of mortals that’s not easily swayed.”

Well, that’s unsettling.

“Ma, you’re scaring her,” Osiris scolds, but Amari waves him off.

I frown. “Isn’t there a way for us all to live harmoniously? If both sides could be persuaded, we could all be equals, Echofae and mortal alike.”

“What you speak of is no simple act,” Amari says. “Equality is not measurable, it is simply a construct. A being’s worthiness is determined simply by the eye of their beholder, their beliefs shaped by their own experiences. You would look on us all with equality, because you are fair and just of heart. But another would deem us unworthy, simply because we are different from them.

“Like the mortals, Echofae also have their prejudices. There are those who hate mortals and would see them dead, as they have suffered at their hands, and their suffering has shaped them as such. So no, my sweet optimist, whilst a noble endeavour, we cannot erase the atrocities of the past.”

I sigh heavily. “Why was I allowed to learn something so awful as the Veyne, though?” I breathe, unease burning through me. Just because I can’t trust the council, doesn’t mean I should blindly trust her either, family or not. “The elders said it’s unspeakable to perform the ritual that opens the pathway, let alone on a child.”