Page 19 of A Petal in the Crown

Gray’s veins flooded with fury, and he clenched his fists, his shadows writhing in his bloodstream. "No—"

Lea held up a hand, stopping him. "Then I return beyond the veil, and even in death, we will be separated."

Gray’s vision went black with rage, and his shadows exploded outward, pressing against the walls as if needing to escape. He couldn’t speak—his fury and terror wouldn’t allow a single word to form in his throat. Every candle and torch within the room shrank, flickering until only tiny, soft halos of golden light illuminated the space.

"I must be the one to kill him, Gray. The goddess made that very clear. It must be my hand that delivers the killing blow. And I have to do it soon. I won’t risk losing you again." Lea’s voice was shaky. Unsteady and unsure. "Please listen to me. I know you. I know you will try to keep me out of harm’s way. But you could be killed, too." She grabbed his hands, pulling them to her chest. "Ineedyou to understand what the goddess said. You can’t protect me from this."

Gray felt sick, his skin clammy and his heart racing as he thought about Lea facing Alaric again. What Alaric had done to him had been brutal. Horrific. He couldn’t let her get close to him ever again. Refused to allow her within half a kingdom from him.

And yet, it seemed that was the only way.

Gray stood, pulling on his pants and pacing back and forth across the room. His fists clenched and unclenched at his sides as he tried to form a plan. "We’ll find him, Lea. We’ll start now. We’ll find him, and we will kill him.Youwill kill him." Gray had never meant anything more. He wouldn’t rest until they found him, and would do anything possible to help Lea fulfill her destiny. He had no choice. Because he refused to ever let her go again. There was no world, neither here nor beyond the veil, that he would allow them to be torn apart in. Not again.

Never again.

Lea sat up, wringing her hands together. "I’m afraid, Gray. Of who I am now. Of who I’ve become—orcouldbecome."

The confession took his breath away, making his heart ache. He forced himself to stop pacing and sat, pulling her into his arms. "You're the same woman I fell in love with. Everything you are now, it was always there. You’ve always been Fae. You’ve always had this magic. It was just hidden away."

She shook her head. "When I saw what Alaric had done to you, something broke inside me. This darkness, it’s overwhelming me already." Small black flames danced along Lea‘s fingertips, her shadows writhing in a haze around her. "I tried to take Alaric’s magic, and when he disappeared, when I watched you cut the mate bond from your skin and your eyes glaze over with death, I almost…" Lea’s nostrils flared as she took a deep breath, several candles in the room extinguishing completely. The black flames along Lea’s skin grew taller, hotter.

"I could have killed Erik for holding me back. Could have killed all of them—people Ilove—for trying to keep me from you. There’s this voice inside me, telling me to kill. To destroy." She bit her lip, exhaling shakily. "I’m afraid that voice will win, Gray."

Lea finally looked up at him, the vulnerability in her eyes so shocking compared to the harsh planes of her face and determined set of her jaw.

Gray knelt before her, holding both of her hands firmly in his, steadying their shaking. "I know—as much as I know that I love you—that you can control it. You are strong. You are capable." He tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "I will not allow the darkness to claim you, Lea. It will no more take you from me than the gods."

Lea exhaled slowly, nodding as she closed her eyes and forced her flames and shadows to recede. "There’s something else we need to discuss. Something I’ve been thinking about since we went beyond the veil," she said, the moment of vulnerability fading as she lifted her chin. Firestill crackled around her, black and red and so hot, it burned just kneeling next to her.

"Many things," Gray agreed. "Your father is here—"

"Do you know how Alaric found us?" Lea interrupted, several more candles extinguishing. Gray’s shadows surged in response, answering the call of Lea’s darkness. Gray took a moment to examine her, her differences. It went beyond the physical changes that had occurred once her primary magic had been set free. There was a harshness to her eyes and a black haze surrounded her body, as if the shadows were so deeply a part of her they could never be separated.

But even more, Gray couldfeelthe power inside her in a way he couldn’t before, crashing and rolling like waves in the ocean that drag an unsuspecting swimmer into its depths to his death.

Lea’s confession of her fear of that darkness echoed through his entire being. She didn’t feel evil, but she did feeldangerous.

It changed nothing. This was who she was always meant to be. The strongest, bravest woman he knew. The only one with the power and resolve to defeat Alaric.

Gray tried to tug on the mate bond to see what Lea was feeling but found nothing to grab onto, no link to his mate to allow his magic to mix with hers. A lump formed in his throat as he realized he’d forgotten it was gone. How many times would he reach for her only to find the scarred remains of where their bond used to be?

What he wouldn’t give to be able to read her thoughts again, her emotions and feelings. Maybe it could help him understand her better, and what she had become. Maybe it could allow him to find a way to help her control that which she was so afraid of.

"Vincent’s been interrogating everyone. But no. As of now, we don’t know who the traitor was."

Lea tilted her head, a cruel smile dancing across her lips. "Then that’s where we begin. Bring me my sword," she said, her words as sharp as broken glass. "I think it’s time we discover who betrayed us."

Chapter 11

Erik

The wreckage in Bearswillow was absolute. Chills ran down Erik’s spine as he wandered the dark, cobblestone streets. They’d cleared the bodies they’d burned days ago, but the evidence that something wicked had occurred in this place remained.

Even in the dark, Erik could see the bloodstains throughout the village—the black, fingerlike scorch marks that trailed like spiderwebs everywhere the eye could see. Up the side of buildings, across the roads, over roofs, and through the meadows. Erik shuddered as a vision of Alaric’s soldiers appeared in his mind. Their gaping black mouths would haunt him for the rest of his life.

Whatever Lea had done to them had been of pure might and darkness. And still, they hadn’t won. Neither had Alaric, but he may as well have. Their queen was dead.

Their week of mourning was almost up, days full of nothing but grief and darkness. Gray had hardly left Lea’s side since he’d placed her on his bed, and had needed to be reminded to eat and bathe. He took all his meetings in his room, his hand on Lea’s chest, as if waiting for her heart to start again. It was morbid and wildly upsetting to some of Gray’s advisors. But he would not be deterred.

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