Page 233 of Of Masks and Fury

I blocked, redirecting the strike past my shoulder. “You taught me weakness by demanding obedience.”

“I taught you survival.”

“You taught mefear.”

“It’s been you all along, hasn’t it? Using your…cursed taint to try to control my mind. I won’t have it!”

Whohad been trying to control his mind?

We traded blows, the crowd watching from below, transfixed.

Each parry jarred my wound open wider, and warmth trickled around my neck and down to my collarbone. Pherin’s roars shook the air, her firecat form a whirlwind of fangs and fury as she attacked guards trying to stop Maddox from leading the prisoners away. My fierce little guardian, family by choice.

Gavelle fought by her side.

I dodged Father’s swipe, my fury surging.

While I was tempted to use magic, I’d end this with the skills Commander Thorne had given me. My true father. The one who’d believed I was worth saving.

King Cyril pressed harder, his blade whistling through the air. Each parry was a reminder of what I’d lost and what I’d gained.

“All magic-wielders must die!” Father’s knife came in low and fast. I swept it aside, but he’d expected the move. His fist caught my shoulder.

Pain exploded through me. I stumbled backward, directly into the defensive position Thorne had drilled into me during training, muscle memory from hours spent learning to move as one.

Father’s next strike met air where I’d been. I could feel Trew nearby, battling guards to reach me. We’d fought together against the Skathes. Trained together in his private chambers. This was just another dance, my father the partner instead of my king.

“Commander Thorne trained you well,” Father sneered. “But you’re still a puny, wretched little thing, aren’t you?”

“I’m bonded to a king who sees me as an equal,” I snarled. “You never stood a chance of keeping me.”

His hand whipped out, smacking my shoulder again.

I stumbled backward, my vision blurring.

Trew’s bellow echoed through the air.

My father was out of his mind, and he would kill me. The realization settled cold in my chest. He’d do it here, in front of everyone, determined to destroy all who possess magic.

Movement at the crowd’s edge caught my eye. Coralee and Naveah had worked their way to the front. Coralee met my gaze and nodded, a slick smile crossing her face.

Behind them, smoke spiraled into the air from the direction of the castle. The thick, black columns spoke of serious destruction.

They’d destroyed the west tower and lit the rest aflame like we’d planned.

I hoped the castle burned. Let the flames cleanse every stone that had witnessed this horror.

Father lunged again. I sidestepped, using his momentum against him, and swept out at his legs. He fell hard but rolled, coming up with the blade still in his hand.

I rushed to the edge of the platform and grabbed the mask from where it had fallen, holding it high so the entire crowd could see.

“I remove this mask,” I yelled, my voice ringing across the square. “And now the Lady of Mercy will remove the lies between us.”

I reached for my veil-sight. The weave here in this square was screaming. I could feel it, had felt it since I stepped onto the platform.Hundreds of threads, frayed and trapped, the magical signatures of every person who’d drunk the ashwine in this square. They hadn’t disappeared. They’d been harvested and held, redirected into the bloodfire bonds feeding the controllers. But they were still here. Stuck in the weave.

All I had to do was show everyone else what I could already see.

I pulled the threads of truth into visibility for all to witness.