Page 128 of Savage Crown

Vael works in silence, cleaning her wound, stitching the torn flesh.

She doesn’t stir.

My heart pounds in my ears.

I hate this.

I hate feeling powerless.

I hate that I might still lose her.

But, slowly, her breathing evens out, and the fever in her skin begins to cool.

She’s not safe. But she’s alive.

I exhale, the weight in my chest not lifting, but settling. Vael moves to the far wall, pressing his hand against a hidden latch. The stone shifts, revealing a compartment filled with parchment, ledgers, letters. He pulls one out, unfolding it with care.

"I didn’t just bring you here to save her," he says.

His voice is flat, emotionless. But his eyes burn. He hands me the first document.

I take it, my fingers tightening as I read. My blood turns to ice.

Nhilian and Lartina. I know they’ve been working together, but not to this extent.

For years. She had a hand in everything, especially in the destruction of my house. Lartina’s truly evil to the roots.

The orchestrators of my family’s destruction.

The ones who set the fire that burned my life to ash.

"That’s not the worst of it," Vael says.

He pulls out another letter, unfolding it slowly.

I take it. I read. And I go very, very still.

Nhilian knows where the treasure cave is. But he’s kept it from Lartina. They use each other, but they don’t trust each other.

There’s a crack in their foundation. An opening.

I lower the letter slowly, feeling something dark and satisfying curl in my gut.

"I can use this," I murmur.

Vael nods. "You can break them."

I exhale, long and slow. For years, I thought Lartina had been a passing betrayal. A wound that had healed.

But no. She was there from the beginning. She was part of it all. She didn’t just help destroy my family, she ensured I would never rise again.

I’m still here.

And I will tear her down.

Piece by piece.

I fold the letter.

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