Page 32 of Ruthless Fae King

“How did you know I was there?” I asked.

“I sensed it,” she said. “I always sense it. You know I know where you are all the time.”

I nodded. My sister and I had always been so close before I’d had to join Falx and Lavinia at the castle, and our bond had allowed her to keep tabs on me although I’d insisted on keeping my distance. I’d always been terrified that because of our sibling bond, the darkness would have spilled over to her, but she was still as riddled with light as always.

“You left before I could come to you,” she said.

I nodded again. “Falx may be dead, but I’m not free from my restraints. I’m bound to the darkness forever, and no matter what I do…”

How could I tell her that I had to distance myself from my family, that I had to keep doing the wrong thing so that I could do the right thing? It didn’t even make sense to me when I put it into so many words.

“I just wanted to make sure you were all right.”

“We’re okay, Erol. We just miss you.” Her hazel eyes were serious, and my heart constricted.

I balled my hands into fists again. If she stayed around me too long, she wouldn’t be okay anymore. I would make sure of that.

Agatha watched me with eyes that knew too much. “She’s controlling you, isn’t she?”

“Who?” I asked.

“Cyrene.”

“How do you know about her?” I snapped. “It’s got nothing to do with you!”

“I’ve been doing my research on what you’re going through, and I had a dream.”

I sank into an armchair next to hers. “What did you see?” The darkness let go for a moment, and I let out a shaky breath. I sagged into the cushions, exhausted.

“I saw a dark goddess, who used Fae for their power, stripping them of the light so that they lived in darkness and fear. There were so many people with power—not only the Fae, but the humans, too.”

“A long, long time ago,” I recalled. “Falx’s high priestess had mentioned it to him once, but nothing had ever come of it, because the humans have no power anymore.”

“They were greedy and used their power for the wrong things,” Agatha said. “I read history books that explained how they expanded their riches with their magic, rather than doing good. Terra realized that it was the perfect kind of power to use against the Fae—Cyrene would turn them all to her darkness if she got her hands on them. So, to punish them, she stripped them of their magic, making it safe for them to exist without Cyrene claiming them, and stopping them from hoarding riches with power that was meant for bigger things.”

I shook my head and laughed bitterly. The darkness swirled inside of me, angry and irritated with my sister’s light. It had only let me rest for a moment. It came back in fuller force now, and my skin burned hot.

“It might have been better for all of us if she’d stripped the Fae of their power, too,” I said through gritted teeth. The darkness revolted at my speech. “None of this would have happened. I would have been a free man, I would have been with you, and you would have been safe.”

“We’re safe, Erol, thanks to you.” My sister reached for me and squeezed my hand.

“Maybe I should have let you die, saved myself, and none of this would have happened in the first place,” I bit out.

Agatha’s eyes widened, and hurt flickered across her face. “You don’t mean that.”

I stood and stomped toward the window, taking in all the gray in the landscape.

“It would have made my life a hell of a lot easier. Do you hear me? It’s hard having to look out for you because I know you can’t look out for yourself.”

I didn’t turn to see her face. On the one hand, I didn’t want to know about the pain I caused. On the other, I just didn’t care.

“Erol…” Aggie said softly. “It’s going to be okay.”

The darkness let go of me again, as if it got tired of holding on so tightly, and I slumped forward.

“Only if I keep doing this,” I said dully.

Agatha frowned when I finally looked over my shoulder at her, so I told her. She’d already known about Cyrene, anyway. Keeping it from her was pointless.

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