Page 91 of Starkeeper of the Fractured Crown

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My Bible, Chapter 6, Verse 23,

There are true monsters in this world. Monsters who wish only to see it destroyed. The world may see me as such, but that is only because they cannot see the truth. Let me open your eyes for you.

Cole

What did you do to her?” I snarled upon Trick’s return.

“Nothing she didn’t need,” he stated coldly. “We’re going to pay a visit to the High King,” he went on, causing me to stop in my tracks.

I wanted to question him further about Kyra, but I knew it was pointless. He would never give me the truth. Not about her. “Why?” Something had happened with her to cause this, I was sure of it. If I couldn’t figure out what happened to her, maybe I could find out what she had done to cause this. Trick hated meetings. He’d never willingly go to one without a good reason.

“Because we’re here, Cole,” he stated, his clothes changing in a swirl of shadows to something more presentable of a High Court. “We need information about what the witches plan on doing, and I don’t see my beloved sister planning any meetings.”

I frowned. That wasn’t exactly what I had been expecting, but it made too much sense to distrust it. “That’s because she’s been catching up with the paperwork you decided not to do. There’s a lot of it.” Among millions of other things he hadn’t been taking care of over the years.

“I hate paperwork,” he said simply. “You can earn some points with the new High Queen if you come with me.”

“I don’t need toearn points, Trick. Where is Kyra?”

“Going home. Would you like to accompany me to see Raphael or are you going to let me go alone and then scold me later for not behaving?”

I sneered. If I didn’t go with him, there was a chance he’d simply take it upon himself to kickstart this war before anyone had time to plan for it and with everything Lora had to deal with in the court, this couldn’t be piled on top, so I resigned myself to go. “Fine.”

“Great.” He walked over and placed a hand on my shoulder. “Don’t mess this up for me, Cole, I need to make a good impression, or they may think I’m not a suitable enough enemy to defeat.”

This wasn’t going to end well, I was sure of it.

We Jumped, landing in the middle of RaphelGerodia’s dining room.

It was the middle of dinner, yet the only person sitting at the large table was Raphael.

His chewing slowed as his gray eyes met mine and then Trick’s. He didn’t act surprised, didn’t call for guards or anything in that manner. In fact, he simply swallowed his food, dabbed his mouth, and picked up his wine glass. “Had I known I’d be feeding such large warriors, I would have set another place at the table.”

“You can tell your knights to stop searching for the person killing all of your civilians,” Trick began, shocking me. “I’m doing it.”

I was forced to keep my expression clear, but I already knew why he was doing it. He must have believed they were part of the Congregation. The Congregation that didn’t exist anywhere but in his sick and twisted mind.

Raphael nodded. “May I ask why?”

Trick inhaled deeply. “Unfortunately, the people I’m hunting stretch far and wide. Some of those people lived here. I disposed of them. As for the four I slaughtered today? That was just for fun.”

The High King of the humans took a drink of wine. “I’ll assume those you kill were for a good reason. In that case, I suppose thanks are in order?”

“No need.” Trick lifted his chin. “I heard about what happened here nearly a month ago now,” he went on, almost bored, “I’ve come to ask you why you’re deciding now to admit to the world the truth everyone knows but is too scared to admit.”

Or was ordered to ignore, I wanted to add myself.

Raphael took a small sip. “We never tried tohide it.” He set his wine glass down. “But people choose for themselves what they’ll see or not see. It’s not my fault that the world collectively chose to put on masks.”

Every decision they had made during the last two wars proved different, but this was Trick’s conversation, not mine. Whatever he was doing, I needed to let him do it and just report it back exactly as it happened so Lora could prepare.

Raphael gestured to Trick. “What are those things, anyhow?”

I glanced over, watching as his shadows drifted gently around him. My brows furrowed. Was he missing another one?

“My friends,” Trick answered easily and then looked around casually. “Will Evanora be joining us?”

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