Starkeeper of the Fractured Crown - Page 185

“What?” he asked, interrupting what I was about to say. “You never told us about that.”

Trick’s eyes hardened. “Because the next day I left, the war started, and nothing else seemed that important after that.”

I closed my mouth, looking between the two boys, feeling the tension become humid and thick. I honestly wondered if there was anything left to heal between them. Trick, Rose, and Lora had saved him, pushed him to become this great man. Wasn’t that worth hanging onto?

Although I guess I couldn’t imagine being around someone for 1,000 years. The fights, the arguments, the disagreements. Maybe there was just too much history forthere to be anything to salvage.

“The Knights of Oblivion weren’t there,” Trick finally said, pulling my attention up. “I can’t be sure which one represented the Order, but neither were present.” His eyes flicked to my hand and back, something settling in them.

“Was it just the Order or all of them?” Each species had multiple gods, save for the wolves and vampires. I didn’t think anyone knew which of the Knights represented them in the Order.

“Just the Order.”

I nodded, glancing to his wings, watching the stars glisten. They looked familiar, the pattern, but I couldn’t quite place why. “Um…” I cleared my throat. “This is going to sound strange, but were there any…any snakes at this meeting?”

His brows pulled together. “Snakes? I don’t remember, why?”

I shook my head, embarrassed that I had even asked. “It’s not important. Can we talk about the other territories then? This is also going to sound crazy, but I…last night I had a bunch of different dreams all at once. I saw war, the war maybe, and I saw division. It wasn’t just the Courts, it was their territories. People rebelling against their own Courts. Fae against Fae, Fallen against Fallen, and so on, but the thing I remember most is that…the humans were the ones leading it.”

“Leading the war?” Cole asked.

“Leading all of them. Including some of yours. Not the witches, the humans, and they didn’t look like Immortals, they looked…normal. Just before I woke up, there was this image. Mark was sitting on the throne, but Raymond, he was the one wearing the crown.”

Trick’s eyes became troubled.

I kept my eyes locked on his, feeling as if I were falling, terror filling me, and I wasn’t quite sure where the feeling was coming from, but he was the only one keeping me from spiraling. “Raymond, he had hazel eyes, not silver, and they were…they werereallyfamiliar. Evanora, she and Raphael’s arms were bound together, his right, her left, and she was smiling at him, but he looked…” I swallowed, the image filling my mind again.

“He was pale, there was nothing left in his eyes. I think he might have been dead. Mark was holding something in his hand too. Something silver. He had this serious look in his eyes, it was so unfamiliar and cold, and I was scared. I was scared of him.”

Trick’s brows pulled together. “What was in his hand?”

I shrugged and shook my head. “It kind of looked like a swo—”

Mark screamed and Letak roared.

I was across the cottage before Trick and Cole had even gotten up, both having to follow me because neither had magic now.

I sprinted out the door, around the edge of the cottage, slipping on the ice, nearly falling over as I skidded to a stop, eyes widening at what stood before me, my heart slamming against my ribs.

Letak unconscious near the tree line.

Evanora, hands flaming in silver magic, over a dozen Soldiers behind her.

Raymond on her left with a sword in hand, and on her right?

“Mom?” I whispered, stomach twisting violently.

Norella smiled, although it was cruel and wicked, twisted and deformed by the amounts of charred flesh that covered her body. She had no hair left, no eyelids, it looked like I could even see her muscle in some places, I was sure. “Hello,creature.”

Bile rose in my throat as my eyes shifted back to Raymond because wrapped up in his arms was Mark.

He whimpered as Raymond tightened his grip into his hair, the sword poised over his jugular. “Kyra, help me, please.”

I held up my hand towards him, such a rage filling me, my insides sparked and pulsed, my skin burning. “It’s gonna be okay, little fox, I promise.”

“Oh, don’t lie to the boy, Kyra, it’s a horrible thing to instill in him,” Evanora ordered.

I found her eyes, feeling the presence of my boys standing behind me. Trick on my right, Cole on my left. I couldn’t see them, but I couldfeelthem. I could feel the temperature chilling on one side, warming on the other. “What do you want?” I asked, voice clear, despite how my gut twisted and lurched.