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Then the magic dims until all that is left is the faint illumination of the few crystals along the basement stone walls. Lucas’ honey eyes meet mine, and the urge to lean in to kiss him is overwhelming.

It takes me a moment to find my voice. “I’ve taken my father’s place and, with it, accepted the power of Preservation in its purest form.”

It’s my duty to the Bauer family. We’ve held the Preservation Domain for two thousand years. I cannot let that reign fall for the selfish reason of wanting to be with two people who cannot and will not join the Order.

But something stops me from voicing this, a hesitation without a clear source. A sense of deep loneliness sinks into my bones, keeping me reliant on Lucas’ arm around me to keep standing. Otherwise, I’d sink to the floor to stare at the ashes that were once my father. Who am I doing this for? Pain lances through me as Astoria’s image appears in my mind. How could I ever forgive her for this?

I try to remember that it’s not her fault. That we all made choices along the way that led to my family fracturing.

“Valen.”

Lucas’ soft whisper is a summoning I cannot ignore. His handsome face, tight with concern, breaks the dam within my heart, and my eyes burn. Then I turn the rest of my body towards him. I embrace him tightly, my arms aching. He doesn’t flinch or complain that I’m crushing him. He simply holds me.

I mumble quietly, “My father is dead, and I will be next.”

Lucas flinches, head snapping up from where it was tucked against my neck. “What?”

He tries to pull away to see my face, but I tighten my hold and twist my frostbitten hand in his hair to keep him against me. I need his warmth to keep the broken, cracked pieces of myself together enough to finish telling him the rest of my truth. “Without his protection, I will be deemed a traitor to the Order. I will be hunted and brought before the Archweaver. My corpse will take the space where he hung Astoria’s aunt. Without my father, there will be no one left to save me.”

“I will save you,” he snarls.

I smile, and a tear escapes. “A romantic through and through. But you’ll leave with Astoria, and the two of you will go far from here. Atticus cannot risk keeping me alive when I pose a threat to Alasdair’s place as his Heir. He will be distracted by ensuring I am eliminated, and it will give you the chance to flee.”

“Come with us.” Lucas tries to break out of my hold again, but I don’t let him.

“It’s too late. Atticus must have sensed the shift in Councilors. If he didn’t know about my father’s fate before, he does now. I need to stay put. I am the leader of the Preservation Domain.”

“Valen.” His voice cracks, and I shake my head.

“I can give you both this chance to escape.”

“No. We will not leave you. You know Tori will never leave you.”

“Are you sure about that?” My throat is raw. “I knew that Viola was dead.”

Lucas goes still before wrenching himself back so hard that he breaks my hold on his hair. His arms are still around me, but he stares down at me in open shock. He searches my face, his honey eyes boring into my soul. “You told Tor that you didn’t.”

“I was taking advantage of a gray area.”

His brows tighten. “What does that mean?”

I swallow, but my voice is still a rough rasp. “No one told me she was dead… but I also didn’t look for her.” My eyes squeeze shut, my heart pounding. “I never confirmed Viola’s death, but I had a suspicion when she went missing.”

Lucas takes a step back, his head shaking. “But Tor knows that. Hell, I know that. I don’t understand why you look so ashamed?”

“Because I should’ve known!” My roar echoes through the stone walls. My chest heaves, my eyes wide. I stumble out of his hold, my hands trembling as images of Viola’s hanged, slowly rotting corpse flash through my mind. She was doomed to haunt this world when her body wasn’t burned and her soul damned to prolonged torture. It was a cruel fate, too horrifying for me to comprehend until now, while I stand trembling before my father’s ashes.

“I knew, but I didn’t want to know. Viola was like family. She was my mother’s best friend. And my father knew. He would’ve seen her every time he went to the Archweaver estate while carefully ensuring I remained at home. He stayed silent, and I never asked. I didn’t want to know. Daily existence was easier that way.”

I can’t look at Lucas. It would only make my grief worse.

I close my eyes when the cavern-like basement begins to close in on me. I need to escape. I can’t stand to be entombed within here for another moment.

“We should go to Memorial Park now. With Atticus aware of my inheritance, Alasdair will know as well. We need to steal the statue while there’s still a chance.”

Lucas sucks in breath, his hand tightening on my side. “What about your injuries? Can you fight?”

My throat aches as I swallow down my pain and grief. “I can endure it. Now let’s go save our beloved.”