Page 181 of The Forsaken Heir
Bastien released a low growl, but said no more. The answer came a few seconds later as young Bastien reached the boys.
He reached for his clothes with his free hand, but the other boys stepped out of reach.
“Does the Laurent brat want his panties back?” Jean-Paul asked, his voice a sing-song babyish mockery. “Tell me why you beat upJack. If you don’t, I’ll burn these, and you can walk back home and tell your mommy why you’re naked.”
Young Bastien let out a screech of rage. “I beat up Jack because he won that race at school. Now give me my clothes.”
Jean-Paul looked at Bastien with a contempt I’d only ever seen when someone had stepped in dogshit.
“Really? Are all you Laurents that pathetic? You can’t handle being second place?” Jean-Paul shook his head, and looked at his friends. “Get him. I’m gonna chuck his clothes back in the pond.”
“Noooooo!” The scream came from Bastien, as the two other boys began to kick and punch him.
“It seems you had to face the consequences of your actions,” I said, leaning in close to speak in his ear. “How many times did this happen? Can’t you see how pointless it is? You can’t achieve power by hurting other people. You can only achieve it by inspiring devotion and love. The way Aurelius does with his people.”
Bastien spun and swung his fist at me. I was fast, but not quite fast enough. His knuckles grazed my cheekbone, snapping my head around. Even as I fell to the ground, I used my control of the dream walk to reach into Bastien’s mind and pull out a new vision.
Mom stood with her hands on her hips, glaring at Bastien. My brother had his head bowed in deference.
Standing, I rubbed at my cheek and glanced around. We were in one of the many rooms of our family estate. From the wayMom looked, this had to have been around the time I’d been sent away.
“Your sister can’t shift,” Mom said, clucking her tongue in disappointment. “You know what that means, right?”
Bastien raised his head and smiled. “It means she’s worthless. I always told you all that she was. Now you see, don’t you? Am I going to be the head of the family?”
Mom slapped him, and the sound of it cracked through the air like a gunshot.
“Shut your mouth, boy. We have to be very careful with how we deal with this. I don’t want you blabbing about it. She’ll be sent away, but it needs to be done in a way thatno oneknows why. We can never let the world know our family birthed a broken shifter.”
“I’m the best,” Bastien said, his eyes burning with fervor as he looked at our mother. “I’ll prove I’m the best. You’ll see. I promise I won’t say anything.”
“You’d better not. We have big plans for this family, and we’ll need someone to lead us. Someone who won’t skirt their duty, who won’t flinch when things get dirty, or when hard choices need to be made. Your other siblings…ugh…they aren’t what we need. Hard as we’ve tried, your father and I can see how soft they are. They are all disappointments. It will be up to you, Bastien. Donotlet us down.”
“I won’t,” Bastien said, and with those words our mother faded to smoke and vanished.
He grinned at me. “You see? Even back then, they knew I was destined to lead.”
I shook my head sadly. “Bastien, don’tyousee? They didn’t pick you because they loved you more. They chose you because you were the most soulless of all of us. The one who enjoyed hurting others and couldn’t stand coming in second. It’s why you hate Aurelius so much. He’s better than you in every way, and he leads without using fear. Mom and Dad didn’t choose you because you were strong. It’s easy to hurt people, but it’s difficult to make them love you. You weren’t strong enough to do that, and neither were they. They picked you because you were like them. They chose you because you were weak.”
“No!” he screamed and half-shifted.
This time, I wasn’t even afraid. When he clawed at the air, I dodged aside, and kicked him right above the knee. It forced him to the ground, and he howled in pain. He punched at my hip, sending me spinning, but I didn’t fall. Stumbling to right myself, I twisted and kicked him in the side of his head. He collapsed back, the impact surprising him, and he shifted to his human form again. Wanting to end this, I straddled him, and put my hand on his head, reaching out with my mind for the wellspring magic that made this all possible. When I touched his skin, I allowed the magic to flow through me into him. Dozens of scenes flashed by, quicker than before, several sticking out in harsh relief to the others. I could even sense my brother’s emotions surging up from experiencing the memories again.
Bastien attempting to negotiate a new contract for an office building for our family businesses, but being told he’d been outbid by Decimus Holdings… Rage and insecurity flooding his mind when he heard… Aurelius staring back at Bastien, bloody but unbroken… Shame filling Bastien when he saw he couldn’t break Aurelius… Finding out Freddy had helped Aurelius escape… Terror and worry nearly sent him into a panic attackwhen the news reached him… Karinius telling them that King Decimus had me in his custody… Boiling, seething hatred that clawed at him.
Bastien lay beneath me, whimpering as those memories and hundreds more washed across his mind. I let go of him and stood.
“Make it stop,” Bastien cried, putting his hands to his head as if it might explode.
The hazy mist around us faded, and the crowd of onlookers became clear. Aurelius stared at me in awe. Delphine gave me a thumbs up. On the other side of the crowd, my parents looked distraught, faces ashen and gray as they stared down at their trembling son.
Bastien rolled onto his stomach and pushed himself to his knees. Tears streaked down his face as I walked over to him.
“It’s over, Bastien.” I held my hand out to him. “It doesn’thaveto end in death.”
He let out a small sob and took my hand, allowing me to help him up. “I know. I know,” he muttered, then his sad expression became a mask of malevolence. “But itwill.”
Before I could react, he yanked me close and shifted, his head transforming into that of a wolf. His teeth nearly snapped closed on my neck, but I ducked and shoved against him, pressing my back to his stomach and sending him tumbling over my shoulder to the ground. He shifted again, glaring at me as he jumped to his feet. I’d truly hoped the dream walk would change him, but if anything, it had made himmoreangry.
