Page 25 of Lethal Souls

“When you try to alter destiny, it will find a way to come into fruition.” Her throat bobs and she turns away, walking toward the landing. “The person whose blood could wake Selah also had to be the person who could destroy her. Yuri knew this as well as we did, so he made a sacrifice and allowed us to withdraw his energy and form it into a seed. His physical body has died, but his energy lives in that seed. And with this seed, we were to give it to the Cold Tethered child who would defeat our sister once and for all when the time came. We’ve waited anxiously for that person—for you.” She peers over her shoulder at me. “It may seem like I have nothing to fight for, or that I’m selfish, but I need Vakeeli to stand for my daughters. They deserve to live an abundant life. They have Yuri’s blood in them too. Whether Korah and I live or not, those girls should be able to thrive with remnants of us.”

“So you’re saying you want Selah dead,” I interject. “I thought you didn’t want to die for her mistakes.”

“That was before I realized she was coming for the women of Kessel. Coming for us. It’s abundantly clear now that when she wakes, she will try to claim our energy. And there is a possibility she will obtain it if she captures you. She’s powerful—we all are—but she has a dark energy to her, one we’ve never tampered with.”

“She will come, Caspian.” Korah takes a step closer to me. “Do you know what we did with Yuri’s energy? His sacrifice? Hassha fed it to one of the previous versions of you a long time ago. We waited for the strongest of all your generations. We warned your mother about Decius. It’s why she no longer trusted him and why he turned on her when she found out the truth.”

I try not to flinch at the mention of my mother. That doesn’t stop the cold feeling running through me though.

“He knew she would take you away from him—that she’d flee with you for as long as she could,” Korah goes on. “Your mother knew just how powerful you would be and wanted to protect you at all costs, but Decius would always find a way.”

“So all this time you knew Decius could kill me and you did nothing about it?” I demand.

“We’ve always watched,” Hassha insists.

“You’ve seen him tap into my mind? Trap me in my memories? You’ve seen him tormenting me? Tormenting Willow? You saw all of this and turned a blind fucking eye?”

“Watch your tone!” Hassha snaps. “We did not turn a blind eye. He could make all the threats he wanted, but we knew he would not kill you. Not without Selah’s permission. She’d have never wasted your blood. Why do you think he stalled? Why wouldn’t he have just killed you right away like he did all the others? The most he could have done was amplify his power, but even he knew that harnessing it wasn’t a guarantee.”

“I only watch my tone for people I respect,” I growl. “How can you Regals demand respect—demand peace—when you hung us all out to dry? You let Decius rule this land, take thousands of souls, fuel himself and Selah, and you did nothing. You hid on this island and on Earth like cowards. And now you’re telling me that to get rid of your problems, I must harness an unknown power and kill your sister so your people can have peace of mind? What about my people’s peace of mind? What about Willow’s? What about Warren? He’s a bloody creature in a cage now because you did nothing!”

“We could not intervene!” Korah shouts. “Do you think we wanted to see you suffer? That we wanted the twins to be in duress? To feel abandoned and lonely? No. But if it had not been that way, you would not be where you are now. Yes we are powerful and yes we made this world, but we never made you. The Cold Tethered were never ours to control.”

“This is all bullshit,” I mutter, pushing the chair out of my way. “Send me back to Blackwater. Now.”

“Caspian, listen to me!” Hassha yells.

“No! People have suffered while you lived peacefully in Kessel. People have been murdered, hung, beaten, raped, and living in fear all because the people who were meant to protect this world wanted no part of it anymore. This world doesn’t deserve your praise,” I grumble. “They deserve to watch you suffer, just like Selah.”

I storm for the doors, ready to flee this damn palace, but my momentum comes to a halt. A bright blue sphere closes around me, and heat radiates from it like a blazing furnace.

I slam a fist into it, but it doesn’t break. I hiss when it burns my knuckles and, sensing my aggression, thorns materialize within the sphere, inching closer and threatening to close in on me.

SIXTEEN

CAZ

“What is this? Set me free right now!” I turn back to look at The Regals. Hassha has a hand raised to keep the thorny sphere in place. Her burning blue eyes have narrowed to slits.

“You will only be freed if you agree to the instructions I give you.”

I clench my jaw as she steps closer.

“Tell Willow there was nothing we could do to save Warren,” she orders, holding my gaze.

“What?” I damn near choke on the word. “Why in the fuck would I do that?”

“Because it will be better coming from someone she loves and trust,” Korah answers.

“Cowards, like I said,” I growl. “Perhaps I should go to Inferno Isle and wake Selah up. Figure out what her true intentions are.”

That seems to piss Hassha off. Her eyes flare and narrow as she locks on me.

“This is no longer a game, Caspian!” she roars. “You follow my orders or this world burns. How do you not understand that? Everyone and everything you love will be swallowed in flames if you wake her. Is that what you want?”

“Of course, it’s not what I want!” I bellow.

“So do as you are told. Deliver the news to Willow and wait for more instruction. Korah will go with you so she can sooth her mind while you tell her, that way the devastation doesn’t strike so suddenly. The emotions she’ll feel will be muted for at least a day or two. This will give you both time to process what we’ve told you about Selah and your gift from Yuri. Within a few days, Korah will return again to help you with your powers and prepare you for what’s to come.”

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