Page 127 of Cursed Heirs

“Constantine makes a great deal of grandiose statements. Don’t pay it any mind.”

“How can I not?”

“He doesn’t know her. He makes a lot of assumptions. He’s a great manipulator and he wants to get inside your head. You’re a threat to him and he’s found your heart—my daughter.”

I looked at Alena, then quickly averted my gaze.

“You can’t shut down. It will hurt her, Orpheus. Give her what you’ve been holding back. She won’t make you regret it. She’ll protect it like you will for her.”

I nodded slowly, taking her words in.

And also the fact that we were actually having this conversation. It was beyond surreal. For so many reasons. Not least of all was her history with my father.

But I couldn’t get any deeper into things regarding Alena right now.

“I don’t want to leave her, but I need to get to the Dark Fae Realm to be with my father.”

“There’s no need to worry about breaking the news of your mother’s involvement in this to Saryan. It’s already been taken care of.” Off my look of surprise, she told me, “We’ve made an agreement to be more transparent with one another.”

“You’re looping him in onExemplarmatters?”

“That I am. After what he’s done for my daughter, it was warranted.” She stepped further into the room. “But there’s more.”

I cocked an eyebrow.

“I can prevent his death.”

“How? You can’t absorb that much black magic without it corrupting you wholly.Exemplarwould never allow it and I can’t imagineyouwanting to allow it either.”

“I have a solution I am working on, but it will take time to reach fruition. In the meantime, I will put him in stasis so the infection cannot spread further.” She looked at Alena, something I noticed she’d been avoiding for the most part since she’d walked in. She was putting on a brave face, but clearly she could barely stand the state of her either and knowing what her daughter had been through as she’d been the one who had seen all of Alena’s injuries.

“However, it would mean that the black magic infection within Alena would remain. With Saryan in stasis, it will cut off the siphoning and she’ll feel it there. It will be a struggle, but I believe it’s one she can overcome until I’m able to cure your father.”

“She’s already suffered enough. They both have.”

“This way your father won’t perish. Alena can overcome the effects withyourhelp.”

As I started shaking my head, she told me, “There is a reason Constantine chose your blood for the Orb of Vorlav. He has a giftfor feeling out these sorts of things. You are the bridge between the Light and the Dark. And you walk that line better than any of us—myself and El included. You can be that for my daughter, you can help her in her struggle with her dark side, which I will admit to you now, comes from me.”

“You? How?”

“I am a Fallen, remember? Not an angel. I’ve just buried my past and the dark deeds and thoughts I’ve entertained. And I now stay firmly in the light. I have to. But that outlook which I’ve enforced overExemplarand our supernatural Laws has cost us lately. Three years ago also. But I can’t cross a single line or I will become corrupted. As a result, and with the way things are altering, I am no longer whatExemplarneeds, what the supernatural world needs. They require a leader who can walk the line. Just likeyou.”

“You’re asking me to take on the mantle of Leader ofExemplar?”

“Alongside El, yes. I intend for my daughter to join you when she’s ready as well. Your fate doesn’t belong in the Dark Fae Realm and I think you know that. Is that not why you have remained here while you’ve surpassed the entire faculty in both knowledge and power?”

I stared at her. “How do you know that?”

“I keep an eye on all powerful beings.” The corner of her mouth turned up. “Especially those in close proximity to my daughter.”

“Then you know—”

“Everything. How the relationship between the four of you began, how it’s progressed, and the line it’s close to crossing now if you can overcome your fear of being vulnerable.”

Moving away from that last unsettling part, I asked her, “If you know how it began, why support it at all?”

“Because you challenged Alena when she was most in need of a challenge, when she needed a push, not from me or the faculty, but from her peers. Although I detest the thought of my daughter suffering in any way, there are times when a trial is required for a being to grow and reach the next stage in their life and development. That is what clashing with the three of you gave her. The other two are much softer with her now, but I know that you won’t reach that stage, it’s not who you are, it’s not how you express your love and affection. Like I’ve said, you challenge her, you push her, and she needs that, as well as relishes it. Together, the four of you bring out the best in one another and guide one another toward your true potentials.”

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