Page 27 of The Coveted
And now you see,Momma Celeste said, her voice loud and clear.You must travel to the Akashic Records. Amos knows the way.
Chapter9
Iawoke to hot tears sliding down my cheeks. Strong arms enveloped me, and I was vaguely aware of Daelon pulling me into his lap as he sat against the headboard.
“Shh,” he whispered, brushing away my tears. “It was just a dream. You’re safe now.”
I nuzzled into his chest, unable to stop the sobs that were welling up. I was mourning my mothers all over again, but also our people and our land. It was like one of my limbs had been sawed off. “They stoleeverythingfrom us. Lucius and whoever helped him. They committed such evil that it shatters me,” I choked. I was finding it difficult to breathe, sucking in air as I clutched him. If Daelon wasn’t here to ground me, I was quite certain I would drown in this pain.
“Yes, they did. But we are stronger,” he echoed, reminding me of Seraphina as my heart clenched again. “What did you see?” he asked.
I told him everything once I was able to breathe again. “Did you know about this? That they’re rounding all of us up who survived and refused to assimilate so that they can torture and kill us.”
His features darkened. “Only vaguely. It’s not my area of command, and Lucius likes to pretend none of it is happening here in the castle. He wants all of the elite he surrounds himself with to be perfectly ignorant and content with what he tells them. It’s a mirage of beauty, pleasure, and power.”
“Even as witches are being tortured and murdered below us?” I hissed. The people in this castle could wear their beautiful clothes, drug themselves up at night, and surround themselves with sex and glamor, but they did so atop a mountain of dead witches and charred lands. “I hate them, Daelon. I hate them so much.”
“Look at me.” Slipping a finger under my chin, he tilted my head toward him. “Center yourself. I know how easy it is to get lost in this hate, but we need to survive if we want to change things. Also, while the people here can be selfish and petty, they don’t know all of what Lucius did. They’ve been force-fed a heavy dose of lies, dark power, and sensual pleasures to keep them satisfied and unquestioning.”
I considered that, but I was too angry to concede. I wanted this whole castle to burn along with everyone inside it. “I think Seraphina was right. I feel my power is dimmer here in this place, and it frightens me. Whatever unnatural darkness Lucius has conjured, I fear what it will do to this realm, and if she was right—what it will do to the human and astral realms too. We need to travel to this Akashic Records place before it gets worse.”
“You’re right. But we also need to be extremely careful. One misstep and Lucius will kill us both in a heartbeat.”
“Even though you two are basically brothers?” I asked, frowning at the thought.
“He lost his ability to feel things like love a long time ago. Now it’s more about companionship, ego, and possession. That’s part of the reason he can never know about us. Not only would he fear we were plotting against him, but he would also…”
“Get jealous,” I finished. “Okay, so basically you need to act like you don’t care about me, and I need to act like I hate you. What exactly is my role in court?”
“Like he said in the throne room, he’s painted you as a lost witch who was raised by humans. He told them you were powerful enough to earn a place in court as a servant to the King, but he hasn’t told them you’re an energy reader. I think he’s going to use you as a tool for his paranoia.”
“To tell him whether or not the lords and ladieslike him?” I surmised, raising a brow. Lucius truly did have the mind of a sociopathic thirteen-year-old.
“Yeah, basically,” Daelon mumbled. He scratched his chin. It looked like he was only just realizing how insane that sounded. “I’m a bit too used to his antics, I guess,” he said with a shrug.
I nodded, processing the absurdity of the situation. “I can do that,” I said, though being any kind ofservantto the King had my blood boiling. I was expecting a job with a lot more torture and mind games, but I supposed there was still plenty of time for that.
“He’s going to assign me to be your handler, of course, because he thinks it will hurt you. He will also do anything in his power to keep digging at the pain of betrayal, so don’t be surprised if he carries on bringing up my exploits. As well as…” He paused, looking away. “The things I had to do here to survive.”
I swallowed, unable to keep myself from stiffening. I wanted to say that nothing Lucius could say would bother me, but we both knew it already had. “It won’t change how I feel,” I said, but dread stirred in my gut.
He hung his head, his jaw tightening as he stroked my hair. He held me to him for a while longer before stirring at the sound of a knock on the door.
“I know the drill,” I muttered as I crawled off of him. The smile he returned didn’t reach his eyes.
When Daelon answered the door, I sighed in relief at the sound of Taryn’s voice. She stormed right past Daelon and into the bedroom, ignoring his commands to stop. My eyes widened, and I quickly pulled the sheets up to cover my near-naked body.
“Calm down, love, I already know about this steamy affair,” she said. “You know your secret is safe with me.”
Daelon crossed his arms, his eyes narrowing in on me. “You told her?”
“Well, no. Yes? Sort of. She figured it out after I didn’t come back to my chambers the other night,” I mumbled. “But we can trust her.”
Taryn put her hands on her hips. “Um, why is that even a question? Of course, you can trust me.” She looked mortally offended as her eyes darted back and forth between us.
She has no idea how high the stakes are, Áine.
“Well, then, let’s tell her,” I said aloud, which earned me a chilling glare.
