Page 102 of The Mirror of Beasts

The Bonecutter’s gaze slid to my left, to where Neve was still waiting for her answer.

And my world began to cave in, brutal and swift, stealing that last bit of light.

“No,” I whispered, my heart racing harder, harder.

The key to hiding something in plain sight wasn’t to lie, it was to distract. And when I had looked at the history Librarian had left for us, at the illustration on the page, I’d been so focused on the sword, I’d barely noted the Goddess’s light at the center of it all. That telling shade of its blue-white glow.

Morgan believes that the child would radiate the Goddess’s magic. Her light.

The light I’d seen at the edge of my dream. That soft, whispering voice that filled my ears. Protect her. Protect her.

No.

No.

My stomach turned violently as the full weight of the realization bore down on me.

“Tamsin?” Caitriona asked, alarmed by whatever expression I wore.

The soul of the Goddess’s daughter, the one Lord Death had destroyed worlds to find …

“Now you’re starting to freak even me out,” Neve said with a nervous laugh. “What did I say?”

The Bonecutter caught my eye again, nodded.

I could barely bring myself to look at Neve.

“It’s you,” I whispered. “Creiddylad’s soul was reborn in you.”

Neve stared back, as if trying to translate my words into a language she could understand. Then, all at once, she burst out laughing.

“You had me there for a second—”

The Bonecutter sighed, pressing a hand to her face as she shook her head.

Caitriona’s focus sharpened from confusion to fear. “How … how can you be certain?”

“Think about it,” I said to Neve, hearing the quiver in my words. “You were left with your aunt for your protection, with a note not to let them find you. Maybe your mother knew, or she sensed it. Maybe she was the one who instructed your aunt not to teach you magic, in the hope that your power wouldn’t manifest.”

Neve wheeled back, her hand rising to her chest. To the pendant. “No, that’s not—”

“And your power—the light,” I continued. “It doesn’t hurt the rest of us, but it destroys the Children. It came to you for the first time in Avalon.”

She was still shaking her head, backing away. “I’d never been in a life-or-death situation like that before. That alone could have sparked my magic to manifest differently. It’s not proof of anything.” She held out a finger, insisting. “It’s not, Tamsin.”

Caitriona caught my eye, and I knew she understood. The mere possibility that it could be true was enough to upend our plans. Because Lord Death and his hunters weren’t merely pursuing an ancient soul from a story.

They were searching for Neve.

“Where did Percival die?” Caitriona demanded, whirling on the Bonecutter. “Was it Lyonesse?”

The Bonecutter nodded.

“Wait—hang on,” Neve said, trying to insert her body between them. Her shock was shifting to fear as surely as mine was moving to anger.

Of all the people in all the many worlds, why did it have to be her? Why was she the one at risk of being taken by Lord Death, because of an accident of birth?

“If it’s proof you seek,” the Bonecutter said, “you will have it once you find Excalibur. A weapon forged by the Goddess’s hand, imbued with her power, would certainly recognize the presence of her daughter.”

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