“Our island has slowly begun to die. The laskas that strengthens our people and our land, are growing weak. The soil is less fertile, the water levels lower, and our people no longer have access to the same amount of power they used to have.
“They are falling ill, unable to completely heal, and they are dying younger than ever before. Everything is tainted with the laskas’ sickness, but we have no idea how to fix it.”
“But you don’t believe that I carry this sickness?”
“All I know is you have not stepped foot on Bhasura since it began, so you were likely untouched by its taint. I am even more convinced now that I’ve seen the strength of what you can tap into. However, there’s also the chance that you’ve somehow connected to the laskas, so you could now be tainted as well. I don’t know.”
She didn’t respond, lost in her thoughts. Jaren wanted to tell her she should return with him either way. Tell her she belonged on Bhasura with her people. With him. But he didn’t.
Instead, he tapped her thigh, pulling her from her thoughts to look up at him. “My turn again. Do you want to marry? Become a Matherin Princess?”
Jaren was needling her, but he couldn’t move past it. Couldn’t get over the idea of the pretty-faced princeling having her, touching her, using her for whatever game he and Sulian were playing.
With irritation, he saw in his peripheral that Trey had pulled back to be within earshot. He wasn’t looking at them, but he was definitely listening. Apparently, Jaren wasn’t the only one who was curious about her answer.
“Why do you care?”
“General curiosity, I suppose.” He smiled wickedly at her, exposing the tips of his canines.
Her lips parted, and he watched, unable to look away, as her eyes went slightly unfocused. His pulse spiked, and he nudged himself forward to press firmly against her as he leaned down and whispered in her ear.
“You haven’t answered my question.” With utter delight, his eyes followed the gooseflesh trailing across her delicate skin.
“I’m not naive enough to believe the emperor will give me a choice. Marrying his son was the only reason he saved me.” Her voice sounded small as if she’d already accepted a future she didn’t want. The sound tore at him, demanding he bring her fire back to the surface.
“What do you mean, saved you?” He tried to peer around to see her face, but she turned her head, avoiding his eyes. A fiercely protective instinct began to knock at his chest.
“You don’t seem like the type of female who wants to be kept. So, what is it that you want, little star?”
“It’s my turn.”
He narrowed his eyes. “Pha. Admit it. Just admit the truth. You don’t want that future. Say it.”
“I don’t want to be a pawn! I don’t want to be tucked away in a palace for the rest of my life, only useful for my name and womb.” The words lashed out, like curses torn from her throat. She paused, and her body shook as she took a deep breath.
Jaren didn’t think she’d say more, and he didn’t push further. She’d said exactly what he’d been waiting for. Exactly what he needed to convince both himself and her, to leave together. The corners of his lips had just begun to lift, when a whisper of words, barely audible, hit his ears. They echoed straight into his soul.
“I’m tired of being invisible.”
“You could never be invisible, little star. You burn too bright. Sulian may seek to hide you away, to steal your future and crush your spirit, but even he could not hope to smother the intensity of your fire. You are more than the pretty trophy he wants you to be.”
He tapped the underside of her chin and let his fingers caress her jaw as he pulled away. “You know I speak truth. You can feel fate whispering in your ear as strongly as I can. I’ll be here when you decide to follow it.”
Chapter 19
EITHAN
Iknow I’ve disappointed you, father.”
“You cannot even begin to fathom the extent of how I feel.”
“Father—”
“Disgusted is a more accurate description.”
Eithan’s hands curled into fists, but he forced his face to remain blank. This wasn’t the first time Sulian had forced him to appear before him for punishment, and it wouldn’t be the last. He wanted to get a rise out of him, but Eithan had learned long ago how to shut out his emotions.
After twenty-six years, he was quite skilled at hiding his true feelings. He stood still, his court mask in place, letting it all fester. No matter how violent or desperate the storm inside him brewed, he never allowed it past his walls. He refused. He’d hold off until later when he could control it in a more constructive outlet.
He bowed at the waist, “Forgive me, father.”
Silence.
The midnight blue carpet mocked him as the minutes ticked by, and he remained frozen in a deep bow, his spine screaming at maintaining the position. He took a slow, steady breath and held it for a count of five before releasing it, prepared for the long haul. It was just another power move, a chance for Sulian to revel in exerting his control.
Once, when Eithan was still a boy, he’d been caught trying to sneak out of the palace. His father had sent a servant to inform him of his mother and unborn sister’s deaths, not even bothering to tell him, himself. Distraught and confused, Eithan had run.
He hadn’t planned on any specific destination. He’d just needed to escape, needed the chance to understand and come to terms with his anguish while safely outside of the suffocating, stone walls.
As punishment for his display of weakness, he’d received two lashes before being forced to bow, hands behind his back, at the foot of the dais until his body gave out. He’d fallen, face first, unable to catch himself. The ugly carpet doing nothing to soften the impact.
He may have only watched one parent be buried, but both his parents died that night—if his father had ever existed in the first place. From that day forward, Eithan cemented his court mask to his face, perfecting his ability to smile for his father on the outside, while raging at Emperor Sulian on the inside.
He didn’t expect anything less degrading today, especially given the allegations. So, he continued the cycle—inhale, hold, exhale—refusing to show weakness. He’d walked into the throne room prepared, anticipating a drawn-out punishment.
Vera was gone, and it was entirely Eithan’s fault. Most of his anger wasn’t even directed at Sulian, but himself. He’d had her in his hands, literally, and he’d let her slip away.
“You may rise.”
He forced his body to rise steadily, not daring to express the relief he felt with the blood no longer rushing to his head. He looked up at Sulian, seated on his monstrous, stone throne, and willed his face to remain blank.
“Did you know, this morning after your complete and utter failure, a stable boy reported two horses missing? It appears they were taken during the night.”