Page 83 of A Cage of Crystal

“What else would you trade, Majesty?” the sorcerer whispered. “Your kingdom? Your mind? Would you make a blood mage your heir in exchange for a promise that he could bring your wife back from the dead once he gained power over your kingdom? Or…or have you already done that?”

Teryn’s heart slammed in his chest, his lungs constricting.

“Breathe, Teryn,” Emylia said. “Keep your breaths slow and steady. Don’t lose contact now.”

Dimetreus took a trembling step back. “What…what are you saying?”

Morkai’s voice shifted into a softer tone, one far more sinister than anything that left Teryn’s lips before. It was so quiet, Teryn could barely make out the words. “Were you a willing participant after all, my king? Did you…letthe duke take over your mind?”

“No, I…” Dimetreus’ chest heaved, his eyes going unfocused. “No. No, it can’t be. I wouldn’t have…”

“I’m still here, my king. We can make the deal again. Give me your mind and I’ll give you your wife. I’ll bring her back—”

“No!” The roar leaped from the king’s throat. His lips curled up in a snarl, eyes wild. “Monster! Demon! What are you?What are you?” In the blink of an eye, Dimetreus surged toward Morkai, the dagger at his belt suddenly unsheathed in his hand.

The guards darted from the dais, and Morkai threw up his hands and stumbled back. He fell to the ground, eyes wide with feigned terror.

Teryn watched, frozen in place, as Dimetreus tackled Morkai and held the dagger to his throat—toTeryn’sthroat. A line of crimson erupted from his flesh, but Teryn couldn’t feel the cut. No, just the frantic beat of his heart. The race of his pulse. The tightness in his chest.

Spittle flew from the king’s lips as he shouted, “Demon! Demon!”

“What are you doing, Majesty?” Morkai’s voice had returned to normal, brimming with horrified innocence. “Seven gods, Majesty, look at me. Look at me! It’s me, Prince Teryn!”

Dimetreus shuttered his eyes and pulled the blade back just as the king’s guards reached them. They hauled Dimetreus up at once, eyes darting between their king and Morkai. “What happened?” one of the guards shouted.

Dimetreus continued to blink rapidly, then stared down at the knife in his restrained hand. With a cry of alarm, he dropped the blade. “Seven gods…”

Morkai slowly rose to his feet, shoulders almost as high as his ears, expression wary. “The king attacked me. We were talking and then…and then…”

Teryn’s blood burned with rage as the guards showed no sign of seeing through Morkai’s farce. Even Dimetreus seemed to take his performance as truth, a wail escaping his lips. With his crown askew and spittle speckling his chin, he looked every part the crazed king. “I’m…I’m so sorry. I don’t know what came over me. It…it was a moment of hallucination. I’ve never had one so strong, so…”

“Keep him restrained,” one guard said to the others. “This is a matter we must take to Lord Kevan.”

The king went willingly as the guards led him through the nave. Morkai followed just behind. With the guards’ backs turned, the sorcerer’s lips curled into a satisfied smile.

Cold certainty washed over Teryn. This must have been his plan all along. He wasn’t sure of the repercussions, but they couldn’t be good. No, they could be terrible indeed.

Emylia tried to remind him to breathe, but his breaths were already too sharp, too shallow, his vision going hazy at the edges. The next thing he knew, the Godskeep faded from view and sent his mind drifting into nothingness.

35

Cora had gotten used to the smell of burning paper, but she hadn’t grown accustomed to the grim contents of Morkai’s books. Nor the disappointment at finding nothing useful amongst all the references to blood magic, curses, and manipulations of mind and will. It was almost a relief to reach a portion of the bookcase filled with nothing but benign volumes—herbal encyclopedias, folk medicine, a regional guide to plants and animals. These made her feel far guiltier for burning them. Yet she followed her own rule: anything in this room that could be burned would be.

Her heart ached as she watched botanical illustrations blacken at the edges as fire lapped over a guide to flowers, but she reminded herself of the risk involved should she try to salvage anything. Should there be an unremarkable-seeming notation scrawled in the book, hidden amongst legitimate illustrations and documentations but bearing hidden treachery and dark magic, she’d be responsible should anyone find it in the future. She couldn’t risk that. Everything in the tower room belonged to Morkai, bore his essence, carried his energy. It all had to go.

As the book dissolved into ash, she tossed more herbs onto the fire and returned to the bookcase. It was three-quarters empty now. She felt accomplished so long as her gaze didn’t stray to the multitude of other bookcases awaiting their turn at being cleared.

One at a time, she reminded herself.No matter how long it takes, I will do this one at a time.

In preparation to sense the energies of the next book on the shelf, she reconnected to the elements. Shifting her feet, she grounded her energy, rooting her stance upon the stone floor. Then she breathed in the afternoon air carrying scents of herbs and smoke. To connect to the element of water, she glanced at the basin on the floor, filled with clear liquid. Fire was easy. Not only did it fill the hearth, but the open windows drew in sunlight, filling the room with a golden glow, warming her skin, her hands. She cast her gaze out the window and looked upon the vibrant greens of the forest beyond the castle wall, the emerald mountains dappled in chartreuse.

A note of longing cut through her meditation. It was such a gorgeous summer day. What she wouldn’t give to be outside, enjoying the scents of warm soil, a breeze that didn’t carry dark energies and the ghosts of murdered books. She imagined the freedom of the forest, could almost feel the soft earth beneath her feet, could almost hear the birdsong increase.

Mother Goddess, if I could just be anywhere right now…

Her thoughts drifted to the Forest People’s camp, and her longing deepened. She missed Salinda and Maiya so much more than she’d realized. The past several weeks had given her plenty to occupy her mind and time, and the same was true now, but such distractions had only prolonged her grief over losing her adoptive family. Would she ever see them again? She’d promised herself she would find them as soon as her kingdom was secure…

Her heart sank to her feet at the realization that the Forest People were no longer at the camp she’d left. It was well after Litha now, which meant the commune had already relocated, as they did with every season. To find them again would take tracking skills she didn’t have.

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