Page 55 of Kingdom of Briars and Roses

“Is that why you killed the Obsidian yourself without giving me a chance?” I demanded.

“What are you talking about?”

“The Obsidian in the Emerald Forest. The day Heliconia came and spoke through it. You killed it, knowing it was meant as a test for me. You didn’t even give me a chance to fight.”

“I was protecting you. Like I’ve always done.”

“And my father? The male”—I couldn’t bring myself to say demon “—whose magic I wield? Where is he now? Does he not care enough about me—or you—to help us fight?”

Sonoma stepped forward, gaze burning. “Everything I’ve ever done is because I love you,” she said firmly. “More than I can ever offer in words.”

“Except that words are exactly what I’masking you to give me,” I hissed. “Seven years ago, you promised you wouldn’t lie to me ever again. And now you tell me this? ThateverythingI knew about myself is a lie.”

“I’m sorry?—”

“Don’t,” I snapped. “I don’t want your apologies. I want only answers. From him, not just you. Where can I find him?”

“Your father cannot come to us. Not yet.” My anger rose, but she added quickly, “This is not my choice. Or his. The sacrifices we’ve made are many, Aurelia. And I am sorry they are hurting you. But there is much more at work here than what you can see or know today.”

I had no idea what that meant, but it was clear she’d told me as much as she was going to about him.

I told myself I didn’t want to know. If he couldn’t be bothered to meet me all these years, he could go to Hel. “And the favor you asked of the other two? For protection?”

“I promised I wouldn’t speak of what happened to anyone in this realm. Including you. They protect their own realm as fervently as I have protected you in this one. I kept up my end, and now they owe me a favor. They’ll ward the castle when I can no longer do it myself. You will have the time you need to search for a way to end this curse.”

Me.

Not her. Not us.

Just me.

The weight of it landed on my shoulders like a whitestone boulder.

I wanted to argue. To scream and rail at her about the lies. The omissions. What else had she kept from me all these years? Why had she bothered to stay here, to practically help raise me, all the while, watching me call another female Mother? Hadn’t that been painful for her? Hadn’t she wanted to tell me the truth? If not for herself, then for me?

All the times I struggled with my magic—or lack of it. Allthe times I worried that I was so different from the summer fae. Wielding furyfire and feeding off souls rather than conjuring rainstorms or coaxing roses to bloom. And the entire time, she’d known the truth of what I was. Where I’d come from. And what I had always been meant to do.

I still had endless questions. But I wasn’t sure I could handle anything more. Knowing I was the child of a King of Hel and that my parents were no longer my parents was hard enough to wrap my head around.

So, when Sonoma finally walked past me, murmuring about giving me time to adjust, I let her go, and when the door clicked shut behind her, I slumped into the nearest chair, pressed a pillow to my face, and screamed.

Chapter Eighteen

Aurelia

Acrash woke me. I straightened, disoriented, taking in my surroundings. I was still in the library, slumped over in the chair where I’d fallen asleep. The fire had burned down to nothing but embers. Now, there was no trace of the Furiosities who’d appeared from within it. Sonoma’s discarded glass was on the table beside me, and next to it, the bottle of whiskey stood nearly empty.

My mind felt hazy, both from sleep and the drink. Memories returned slowly. The fire, the blood offerings. The Furiosities who’d named me their niece.

The heir, Sonoma had called me.

A title that had nothing to do with the Summer Court throne.

Because I was the daughter of a Furiosity. And Sonoma was my mother.

I shoved those things aside, trying to place what had woken me. Another crash echoed through the castle, louder this time. I shoved to my feet, fast enough to send the empty glass thumping to the rug. I left it where it fell and ran, heart hammering in my chest.

The sounds were coming from inside the castle, which was alarming enough, but worse—they came from the floor above me. My heart dropped. My entire family was up there. Lilah. I forced my legs to move faster, breath sharp in my lungs as I raced up.

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