The dress ripples around my pumping legs.
I cling to fistfuls of fabric, trying to free my restricted steps. The hall passes in a blur, sunlight streaming from the many windows I race past. None of the Imperials lining the wall so much as twist their heads at my mad dash and disheveled appearance.
I’m panting by the time I skid to a stop before the front doors. They are sealed shut, framed on either side by a dozen Imperials. Several eyes dip behind those white masks, scrutinizing their queen. I bite back the vicious retort on my tongue at the sudden realization of my bare legs. Dropping the hem of my skirt, I let it flutter to my feet before declaring, “Open the doors.”
The Imperials obey my command, and I try not to look overly shocked by this. I bound down the stone steps that descend into the courtyard, sparing only a glance at the decorated coaches awaiting me. Kitt stands beside a particularly gilded one, where he converses quietly with Easel while surrounded by a swarm of Imperials. He, too, has changed into something less extravagant, though a ceremonial sword swings at his side.
“Kitt!”
His head whips in my direction to find the queen rushing toward him. My leg slips in and out of the tear that climbs up my dress, only amplifying my disheveled appearance. Kitt even allows concern to crinkle his brow at the sight of me. “What happened?”
“I figured it out,” I pant. “Calum was your father’s Mind Reader, and I know his Fatals were hidden from you, so when the Resistance leader showed up after that third Purging Trial, you didn’t know who he was—”
“Slow down, Paedyn,” Kitt urges, his body tense. “What are you trying to say?”
I blow out a breath. “Calum worked for your father. The whole Resistance was a sham and…” My mouth grows worryingly dry. “And he is my father.”
Uttering the words aloud sounds like a death sentence. I watch them land on Kitt, watch every emotion ripple over his face. Confusion, disbelief, worry. We stand there, staring blankly at each other until Kitt finally sputters, “What?”
My eyes drift closed so I don’t have to watch his world shatter beneath my words. “Your mother, Iris, she… she had an affair with Calum but passed the child off as your father’s. When I was born an Ordinary, the king wanted me killed, but his Mind Reader placed me on Adam Gray’s doorstep instead. The whole thing was covered up and—”
“My mother died over twenty years ago,” Kitt counters.
“The records were forged.” The words tumble out in a rush. “The kingdom hadn’t seen Queen Iris since your birth—the king kept her hidden away, paranoid of her safety. So when she became pregnant with me, Ilya never knew.”
Kitt’s gaze grows vacant. “And then she died.”
“Yes,” I murmur. “And the king was able to cover up my existence by telling the kingdom that Iris died giving birth to you—not an Ordinary. That is what you and Ilya have believed for decades.”
“And the staff…”
“You said so yourself.” I shake my head. “They have been keeping secrets for decades.”
A stifling silence smothers us.
“I know it sounds crazy, but Calum admitted it—”
“We are half siblings,” Kitt finally blurts.
I blink at my husband, then down at the ring on my finger. The thought had somehow never crossed my mind until this very moment, and now I feel as though I may be sick.
“Holy shit,” I breathe, because there is little more to say. We were just bound in holy matrimony less than a single hour ago, only to find out that our lives have been knit together long before then.
Kitt’s hands are suddenly gripping my arms tightly. That glimpse of paranoia is back in his gaze. “Did he say anything about me?”
“Wha—” I shake my head. “Kitt, he has been controlling you. Calum is a Dual, just like you are. Everything he asks, you do.”
Kitt only stares at me, processing this information before my eyes. “Think about it,” I urge. “You never wanted to marry me, and yet, you did. Calum wanted you to, and I’m afraid to find out why. Don’t you see? He is using you—”
The doors swing open with a thud.
My dagger is clenched in Calum’s fist as he slowly descends those stone steps. I stiffen, feeling fear course through me at the sight of a man meant to be my father. My head is still spinning, my chest still hollow, after what I learned. Only a handful of minutes separates me from the life that was and the one I’ve now been thrown into. Everything I thought I knew is a lie, and everything I didn’t know is even more hurtful.
Kitt drops his hands from my arms before taking a step forward. Imperials dash to their king’s side at the scene unfolding, but Kitt waves them off. I watch Calum slowly descend the stairs with a calming smile spreading across his face. “Kitt, let’s not do anything rash. Paedyn is clearly confused.”
My skin flushes with anger.
Kitt meets my father at the bottom of the steps, and for a long moment, they do nothing but hold each other’s gaze. There is a single, terrifying moment in which I fear they may smile, perhaps take a bow. It dawns on me then that I could have misjudged everything—that is, until Calum’s body goes rigid. It’s eerie, watching one’s face drain of all color.
“Don’t do this, Kitt—”
A sword sings as it’s pulled from a sheath.
Kitt’s responding growl echoes through the courtyard. “Get out of my head.”
His blade sinks into my father’s chest.
I blink and the world spins to a sudden, jolting stop. Blood gushes from the wound in Calum’s chest as his king callously yanks the blade from his body. I watch those blue eyes widen on Kitt, then flicker with fleeting life.
My hand lifts toward the jaw I’ve dropped above. This is not the first time I’ve lost a father. This is not even the first time I’ve lost one to a sword through his chest, or an Azer brother at the other end of that blade.
But this death is different. Watching this man die feels like a relief.
Calum is the reason for my true father’s death, and this is the retribution I have searched for since Adam Gray died in my arms. The blood of every Resistance member is on this Fatal’s hands, and he deserves to meet this brutal end.
Kitt staggers back, letting Calum slump to the stone steps. Blood drips from the king’s sword in a way that makes him suddenly resemble his Enforcer. I step carefully beside Calum’s crumpled body, ensuring the growing puddle of blood oozing down the stairs does not stain my pure attire. His blue gaze falls sluggishly to mine as I pry my dagger from his fingertips. Then I lean in, letting his dwindling power pluck words from my mind.
This isn’t a goodbye, Father. Only a good way to say bye until we meet again. Because I will haunt you in every lifetime. A shadow of the woman you loved, trapped in the body of an Ordinary you hate.
I smile. His eyes widen as though the torture has already begun.
Until then, Father.
His blood drips from the blade of my dagger, and I wipe it off on his tunic before standing. As soon as I have slipped the knife into its sheath on my thigh, Kitt is turning me toward him with a heavy hand on my shoulder. “Paedyn, did he say anything about me? About my father?”
I open my mouth—
“What the hell happened?”
My gaze lifts to the top of the stone steps where the Enforcer scrutinizes the scene below him.
King. Queen. Dead body.
Kitt’s grip on my arm slips away beneath his brother’s stare. “The better question is where the hell have you been?”
Kai joins us beside the cascade of blood. His raw knuckles don’t go unnoticed. “Sorry I missed the ceremony.” His eyes flick to me. “Congratulations. Now, what the hell is going on?”
The king turns to me, urging a quick explanation from my mouth. I recount my interaction with Calum, all that I discovered and all he told me. A dark shadow crosses Kai’s face when I speak of what the prior king had done, but it’s a shade of recognition I see when mentioning Calum’s true identity.
“He always looked so familiar,” Kai mutters. “I must have seen him pass me in the halls growing up. And at that battle in the Bowl, I knew I recognized him. I should have known—”
“It’s not your fault,” Kitt reassures. “He was manipulating all of us. Paedyn thinks he was a Dual, and it makes perfect sense.”
Kai’s attention falls to me. “A Dual?”
“I think he was a Controller and a Mind Reader. Look,” I say in a rush, “I know it’s rare, but whatever he says always goes. Kitt had no intention of marrying me until Calum said so.”
“She’s right.” Kitt shakes his head. “He always had this… pull. Like, I couldn’t help but do what he wished. Either way,” he sighs, “Calum was a danger. A liability. So, I did what I had to do.”
Kai blinks. “You killed him?”
I stiffen.
He thought it was me.
“I did,” Kitt says simply. “Like I said, he was a danger.”
Kai stares at his brother, even as Easel approaches timidly. I had nearly forgotten our wide-eyed audience. “Your Majesty, I must insist that we head to Loot for the second ceremony.”
My stomach churns at the sudden reminder of what we have learned. “No, we can’t possibly—”
“Holy shit.”
I glance over at Kai to find his features arranged in equal parts shock and repulsion. “Took you long enough,” I sigh.
“You’re fucking related,” Kai spews. There is something like awe in his voice. Because this is hope. This is a way out of a marriage neither of us wants. “You can’t possibly go through with this ceremony.”
“Majesties, if I may,” Easel cuts in, “this wedding must go on.”
Kai almost laughs. “Like hell it will.”
“Easel,” I begin sensibly, “we are half siblings and—”
“And you are already married.” Firmly, he stands his ground. “If the kingdom so much as catches a whiff of annulment rumors, they will dash every bit of progress that has been made toward this united Ilya. Your marriage is a symbol, and if you rip that away, the people will never accept these new rules—even if they are meant to save them.” He takes a deep breath. “This kingdom, and your relationship with every surrounding one, rides on this marriage. An Ilya who welcomes Ordinaries is who Dor, Tando, and Izram will trade with. And for now, Paedyn is our greatest asset. We need more time.”
Kai doesn’t even take a moment to consider this. “No. We will find another way.”
“He’s right.” Kitt’s murmur has the Enforcer shaking his head at the sky. “The kingdom needs to see a united front for them to follow.” His gaze meets mine. “What do you think?”
“I don’t know what to think,” I blurt. “I just found out my mother was a queen, and then watched another father bleed out in front of me.” I let out a quivering breath. “I need time to think about this. On my own.”
Kitt nods. “That is only fair.”
“All this time,” Kai mutters. “You had a claim to the throne.”
Easel tilts his head, that shock of mint hair slipping over a shoulder. “It is weak as a bastard, but yes, I suppose Paedyn does have a claim.”
Kitt shifts on his feet. “We will need to find the true records. Discover what really happened.”
“Calum said they had been sealed away somewhere,” I say dully.
I feel nothing. All my life, I have been nothing.
I barely survived to discover my true heritage. It’s steeped in secrets and buried further in disloyalty, but it was always there, pumping in my veins. The blood of a queen flows through me, an Ordinary from the slums. The juxtaposition is jarring enough to almost make me laugh.
So much of my life was ascertained in a collection of short-lived moments. I didn’t even have the time to process one before another revelation rolled in. So, in this slow moment, I allow myself a single breath.
One crisis at a time.
“Let’s get to Loot, then figure the rest of our lives out.”
