Page 212 of Blood of the Stars

Aeliana stared in horror as Mayvus swept them up in her hand and smeared them over her arm. A tingle started on Aeliana’s right palm, and she scrambled away from Mayvus. With Mayvus’ distraction, her branded soldiers had lost their edge, and several lay on the floor with vacant expressions. Iris was also down, but Lukai bent over her, hopefully able to fix her ailments. Velden, Gaeren, and Cyrus still fought Mayvus’ soldiers, but on the east side of the balcony, Sylmar rushed toward Jasperus, ready to counteract Mayvus’ brand with their own.

Aeliana ignored the way the itch on her palm grew to a burn. She stepped away from Mayvus, reaching for Cyrus’ arm and shoving him toward Jasperus. “Stall them.” Her voice came out harsh. “Stop them any way you can.”

She followed him to the eastern side of the balcony, putting as much distance as possible between her and Mayvus, while pulling out the vial of Durriken’s blood. As she stepped over a soldier, she pulled a dagger from his belt and sliced open her itchy palm. Even if it was too late to brand Durriken, maybe this would interfere with Mayvus’ attempts.

She turned back to Mayvus, hesitating over whether to stoop as low as this witch. But she saw her mother crawling along the same balustrade Aeliana had just sat at, reaching for Aeliana’s dagger with its daisy pommel.

As soon as her mother grasped it, she lunged, but her body was weak. The dagger sliced open Mayvus’ shoulder, and the two women crashed into each other, falling to the stone floor, where they rolled several feet. Mayvus’ eyes rolled wildly, and she stopped, knocking Aeliana’s mother against the stone so hard her head made an audible crack.

“You’re going to get us both killed,” Mayvus shouted.

Aeliana forced herself to look away, to let her mother’s interference distract Mayvus but not her. She poured the blood over her palm, then stumbled as it bubbled and burned, forming dozens of tiny black marks. She moaned and reached out to the wall for support, trying to remember what Cyrus had told her to do. Her starlock burned against her skin, instinctually insisting that she heal the wound. At the same time, the blood oozing out from her wound called to her, demanding to be used, offering to aid her in defeating Mayvus once and for all.

Durriken growled from his perch on the balcony’s edge, shifting his grip and shaking his left paw in irritation.

Aeliana’s gaze fell on her mother, who was held back by a soldier while Mayvus resumed her branding ceremony, hand over her arm and eyes shut tight.

“No,” Aeliana whispered, running Cyrus’ instructions through her mind once more. “Seal it.”

Instead of letting the power flow through her arm to knit it back into place, she let it spread like a bandage, covering the wound and encasing it. The bubbles on her hand grew, connecting until there were two large shiny marks instead of several tiny dots. Two separate brands? One incomplete brand? “Please work,” she whispered.

If it didn’t…

A coldness swept through her, one that started in her mind, but soon it was as visceral as the wind. Her actions had summoned the dark spirits. It wouldn’t be long before they came, demanding payment, expecting reward. She’d seen it often enough for Arvid and Vera, but she felt sick knowing this time they were coming for her.

She sought Gaeren out from among those still fighting. He pulled a sword from between a soldier’s ribs, its blade slick with blood. Then, as if he sensed her watching, he turned to catch her gaze.

“Please,” she whispered, but conflict still warred behind his eyes.

As the marks on her right palm solidified, a cooling sensation swept over them, and Aeliana suddenly felt invaded, like someone else occupied her mind. The Sun slipped behind the horizon, leaving an orange glow in the sky. In the distance, blackness drifted, like the wings of a bird.

Or the trail of a dark spirit.

Durriken? She paused, waiting for his confirmation. He huffed from the other side of the balcony and adjusted his paws with a rumble deep in his chest. His eyes shifted between Mayvus and Aeliana, his head cocking in confusion.

“Aeliana.”

Her gaze snapped to Mayvus, the command leaving her aunt’s lips but also reverberating through her mind.

“Aeliana, come to me.”

And Aeliana did.

CHAPTER 85

As Daisy took slow steps toward Mayvus, Gaeren’s breath hitched. Her eyes held no emotion, the purpose driving her moments ago vanished. This was what he’d been waiting for. This was the moment she wanted him to kill her. He lifted his sword, gauging whether he could reach her before she reached Mayvus.

Did it matter? He couldn’t imagine running her through. And not just because she was the Daisy of his childhood, but because it still went against every instinct in his body, even after all he’d learned about her blood magic and family line. Maybe especially because of everything he’d grown to learn about her. At this point, if Mayvus commanded Daisy to kill Gaeren, he wasn’t sure he could defend himself.

Not if it meant hurting her.

“I sense the power raging inside your veins.” Mayvus took a deep breath in through her nose, as though she could also smell it. “Why don’t you use it? It’s such a waste.”

Gaeren glanced at the remaining soldiers in the center of the balcony—only three left to fight Velden, Lukai, and Iris, who stood once more, her defensive posture a bit unsteady. Velden and Lukai alone could take the soldiers while he snuck south around them toward Daisy. But if he was within distance to strike Daisy, maybe he should strike Mayvus instead.

“I only use what I need,” Daisy said, her wooden voice sending a shudder through Gaeren. “That way I don’t make too much.”

Mayvus laughed. “Too much? There’s no such thing.” By now Daisy had reached her aunt, and Mayvus patted her on the head like an obedient child. “You are mine. You protect me above all else. But you also protect yourself. Because keeping your power safe helps keep me safe.”

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