Page 225 of The Bonds of Indigo

“Are you…” I can see the hope in Lucifer’s violet eyes.

I nod. “Weeks before they were killed, my parents cast the spell on me—unwillingly. I didn’t want it…”

Both of them tense, and I offer a soft, weary smile. “I wanted a normal life. My siblings said immortality is lonely, and… I knew that was what awaited me. Loneliness.”

It’s obvious by their demeanor that they’re relieved at the revelation, even if they think I’m not. Which they are wrong. Immortality doesn’t scare me the way it used to. It’s not that I fear being without anyone anymore.

I’m scared of running for an immortal life alone.

“I honestly thought I’d only have a Mundane lifespan with you when the hex was gone.” The pure relief in Kayn’s voice has my heart skipping. “You won’t ever be alone, Amarah, ever again.”

My lips roll together, and I nod softly. “I know…” Taking a deep breath, I continue before we go down another rabbit hole, “The older a Yldarwright is, the more they can consume and hold onto magic.”

“And you’re pretty dang old. How’d I become the youngest?” Lucifer says with a handsome smile that eases me further.

“Technically I’m still the youngest. I don’t see me being in that state as living. But anyway, I had to tell you that so you’d understand the Night of Emethye, Verraketh, and why I agreed to meet with Lucifer.”

“From my understanding, Verraketh is a… mirror?” Kayn asks, stopping his pacing and damn near bouncing on his toes.

My anxious Vampire. I’ve never seen him like this before.

“It was created with a spell—Aetherforge, and a strong one at that. I’m not entirely sure who made it, but it was said to have been stolen by a Demon and gifted to Proserpina as a wedding gift. So, it’s why I met with Lucifer, and luckily that part was true.”

I take a deep breath and lean back on my hands, staring up at the ceiling. “It can trap someone in it. It kills their body but keeps the mind and soul intact.”

“And you trapped the person who actually killed everyone in Sylverton in it. Why not just kill them?”

That is complicated.

“The woman that did it is as old as I am, but she lived the thousand plus years, unlike me. I was lucky that Vendra favored me, and I was able to overpower her. Unfortunately, trapping her was the only way to make her vulnerable enough to destroy the vessel.”

“Can you break the mirror?”

I shake my head. “No. That would release her.”

“But if she has no body…”

My nostrils flare. “Hexborn have been reanimating Necroth for hundreds of years. She has support somewhere that would find her a body.”

I lean my head up to look at Kayn.

“Her goal that night was to summon Belial to do her bidding. She would’ve done catastrophic damage before bringing him to Vaeloris, who would have executed him in the Vayl for overstepping the binding law of the three realms. Setting off a war, and likely the decline and annihilation of the Beyond.”

“You think so little of my people that we would be defeated by those Gods?” Lucifer asks, obvious hurt in his tone.

I shake my head quickly. “Of course not. I’m not saying this would have been an overnight fight. It would’ve raged for centuries, if not longer. So, so much death would have come from it.”

My head shifts to look at Kayn. “That war would be here. Because neither side would invade the other until they had the upper hand. The mortal world is the neutral ground that would have suffered. The protection that my people and Vendra put over earth would only keep Belial and Vaeloris from stepping on it simultaneously. It doesn’t keep Angels and Demons from it.”

“Why was she doing it? What’s her name? Not that it matters, I only know of one Yldarwright.” Kayn, for the first time since I sat down, smiles at me.

“I can’t tell you her name, but she was doing it for favor. Vendra sort of cast her aside, and she wanted Vaeloris’s hand.”

“Hand?” Lucifer asks. “As in… marriage?”

I nod.

“Well, shit.”