Finale (Caraval #3)(49)
She didn’t want to believe him.
He had to be deluded.
He had to be wrong.
This had to be a mistake. She already had one murderous, power-hungry father. She didn’t deserve another one.
This couldn’t be true, even if deep, deep down, a part of Scarlett reminded her how people often commented that Tella looked just like her father, but Scarlett held no resemblance to him. Her mother had also married her father after a whirlwind romance, which Scarlett had heard servants whispering about a few years back. They said it was only a quick marriage because Paloma had been pregnant—and some of the maids had sworn it wasn’t with Marcello Dragna’s child.
“This would have worked better if you hadn’t kidnapped her first,” chided the young woman in the cage. “Poor girl is in shock.”
“Quiet, Anissa, or tomorrow you’ll wake up in a smaller cage.” The Fallen Star turned his attention back to Scarlett. “I can see you’re having a hard time believing this, but you must have had some inclination that you’re not entirely human. Is there anything you can do that most humans are incapable of?”
“But I am human,” Scarlett protested, even as she saw fearful shades of brilliant purple swirling all around her. It was a gift she knew wasn’t normal, just like her more recent ability to see the feelings of others. “I’m not a Fate.”
“No, you’re not a Fate, but as my daughter, you can become one.” His inhuman smile widened. She imagined he was trying to be reassuring, but there was nothing remotely comforting about a man who’d just told a captive woman he’d put her in a smaller cage and that he could make Scarlett a monster, too.
“Tell me, auhtara, what can you do?”
Scarlett swallowed thickly. She didn’t want to answer him. But she knew this was a test, and she didn’t want to find out what would happen if she failed. “I’ve always seen my own emotions in colors,” she admitted, “but recently, I’ve begun to see the feelings of other people as well.”
“Can you see any of my emotions?” he asked, voice still mild. Another test, and this time Scarlett didn’t know what the correct answer was. She imagined most people wouldn’t want her eavesdropping on their emotions. If the father who’d raised her had asked Scarlett this, then the correct answer would have certainly been no. But the Fallen Star was the Fate who’d created all the other Fates. He wouldn’t want a daughter without talent.
Scarlett took a calming breath. She never intentionally attempted to see another’s emotions, and the Fallen Star was a Fate, not a human. But apparently, she wasn’t entirely human, either.
Scarlett stood a little straighter, shoving all her fear and worry and terror aside until she saw glimpses of colors that weren’t her own. She’d expected angry reds and wicked purples. But the Fallen Star was made of magnificent golds.
He was pleased, and growing more delighted by the moment. She could see hints of eager green as he watched her use her powers to read him.
“What do you see?” he asked.
“You’re happy I’m here, happier than you expected to be … and you’re proud. I can see copper sparks of it all around you as I’m speaking.”
“Excellent.” He nodded once and the eager greens around him deepened into a greedier shade. “I knew you’d be talented. There was another Fate with a similar ability. He could control emotions, but the gift never worked on immortals.”
“I can only see emotions, I can’t control them,” Scarlett corrected.
“That’s because you haven’t had my help.” The Fallen Star reached up to pet her head.
Scarlett couldn’t help it; she cringed away. If he wanted to kidnap her or put her in a cage, she wasn’t strong enough to stop him. But she would never accept affection from him. Maybe it wasn’t the smartest way to survive, but not everything was about survival.
The Fallen Star’s hand fell away, but to her surprise, he gave her another inhuman smile. “If you’d accepted me too easily, I would have been disappointed. But you will not keep fighting me. You are my only child. When I ascend to the throne, I’ll share the entire Meridian Empire with you, if you become what I want you to be.”
He waved one massive hand and Scarlett’s horror spiked, as sparks in the air exploded into flames that filled the space above their heads and twisted into shining shapes. She saw an image of herself sitting on a throne in a full party dress with a jeweled diadem atop her head and a line of suitors, some on their knees, others with their hands outstretched with elaborate gifts.
“I can make all of your wildest dreams come true once you come into your powers. I can make you a Fate, like me.”
Scarlett bit back from saying that taking over the empire with him or becoming a Fate was not one of her dreams, as he waved his hand again and the fiery image shifted.
Scarlett was still sitting in the throne room, but she was now at the Fallen Star’s feet, and instead of a diadem resting on her head, there was a cage around it.
“I’ll let you choose which future you want. Think about it while I’m gone. My lovely Lady Prisoner will keep you company, and remind you of what will happen if you try to leave the Menagerie.”
He caressed the bars of the gilded cage and Scarlett realized why this young woman was so familiar. The Lady Prisoner was another Fate. In Decks of Destiny, her card had a double meaning: sometimes her picture promised love, but usually it meant sacrifice.