Page 123 of Once the Skies Fade

Matthias gave a half-hearted chuckle, and part of me longed to hear the booming laughter he’d let out the other night. “The king thinks I work too much, wanted me to have a chance at love, I guess.”

“And he thought a murderous queen was the perfect match, eh?”

“It’s not quite that simple; she—” Matthias started, but his sister cut him off.

“—Murdered that couple today, Matthias! She ripped apart those poor kids’ mother! Or did you forget?—”

“No, I haven’t forgotten.”

“She’s a stars-damned Shadow Keeper! The same type of monster who killed my husband, your best friend.” Her voice cracked as grief took hold of her, and I winced from the pinch of guilt, as if he had died by my own shadows.

“I know, Sera. I miss him too. I know what she’s done, but even monsters have their reasons,” Matthias said quietly.

“You cannot seriously be defending her!”

“She’s hurting,” he tried to explain. “She’s lost everyone she loved. Grief makes you do insane things sometimes.”

“You didn’t see me go on a killing spree when Gabriel died.”

“It affects everyone differently. You know that.”

His sister was speaking again before he’d even finished his sentence. “For all we know, she really did kill Brennan. You saw what she’s capable of. You saw how little compassion she has for others. All she cares about is herself and her insane law. Why is she banishing the humans? Why?”

“I don’t know,” Matthias muttered.

The other woman quietly spoke. “I don’t think she did it.”

“What?” Sera asked. “Raven, you’re the one who basically accused her to her face.”

“And did you see her reaction?” The woman—Raven—asked. “That wasn’t the wail of someone trying to get away with murder. That was the desperate cry of a mourning heart. Matthias is right. She’s hurting.”

“So you don’t think she’s the one ordering the poison?” Matthias asked.

Raven was silent for a moment but then answered. “I had my suspicions, but if she was the one securing it, why would she exile the very people who stand to benefit? It doesn’t make any sense. The poison is being brought in to help the humans and weaken the fae.”

“Only in Emeryn, though,” Matthias added. “The rebels aren’t targeting Arenysen at all.”

“True. Seems the rebel network here was simply helping to transport it to the other kingdoms.”

“Maybe she exiled them to stop the traffic of poison?” Matthias asked, though he didn’t sound convinced. “Or…I don’t know.”

“I can’t believe you two are so willing to overlook the blood on her hands,” Sera said, bitterness coating every word.

Matthias quietly responded, “I’m not overlooking anything. I just don’t think it is quite so black and white.”

“And what happens if you win this tournament? You just forget everything she’s done and marry her?”

Matthias was quiet for so long, my insides knotted uncomfortably. He’d made a vow to be loyal to me if he won. Would he purposefully try to lose the tournament to avoid that? Had he been doing that all along? He’d come in last in the first two trials not knowing he’d end up in the lead anyway.

A quiet growl shook in the back of my throat.

I wasn’t doing this in hopes of finding love. I was doing this to keep my kingdom. I shouldn’t care what one male thought about me.

Stomping loudly down the hallway, I called out, “General!”

Without hesitation—as if he had known I was there listening the whole time—he answered, “Over here, Killer.” His tone lacked the playfulness usually present when he used that nickname. I chided myself for missing his flirting teases.

Stopping in front of a set of bars, I looked down to see him sitting against the dank wall next to the gate, his legs outstretched before him and crossed at the ankles. In his hands he spun his father’s ring, but he didn’t lift his eyes to me.

---