Jade Fire Gold(103)

“Gao Long isn’t my biological father. I am not of royal blood, which means you’re the only one left.”

The strange look on his face catches me by surprise. “What are you saying?”

I watch as his lips form sounds that travel to my ears. I hear his words. But somehow, I can’t understand. I don’t understand.

I’m saying that you, Jin, are the one true heir of Yuan Long. Only you can undo the dark magic in our land.

I was right, after all. I am the only way to right all those wrongs. In the end, it is my blood that will atone for the sins of my ancestors.





50


Ahn


Soldiers line the fortress walls, swords unsheathed, faces nervous. Tension fills the air. Are they merely following orders? Do they think what my father is doing is wrong? He stares at me, a hand gripping the hilt of the Obsidian Sword. While Zhenxi’s poison was working, I couldn’t feel its pull. Even now, it’s fainter than usual. The toxin lingers in my veins, but I can feel my magic returning.

My father nods and the girl who escorted me here shoves me forward. She kicks the back of my knees and I fall in front of him.

“Father,” I beseech, tugging at his robes. “Why have you brought me here? What is happening?”

He pushes me aside. “There is no need for pretense.”

“I’m not pretending,” I lie. Something must have happened. He must’ve discovered our ruse. I spare Leiye a glance. He’s unconscious, and from the growing puddle of blood on the ground below him, I can only pray that he is still alive. “Father, please—”

My father crouches down, squeezing my chin, fingers digging into my skin. “Do you truly take me for a fool? What were you planning to do?”

“I don’t know what you’re—”

“I caught him with my sacred book. He thought he was clever, replacing it with a replica. But I could tell the difference. So, I bided my time and waited, waited until the thief came back for the missing pages. Never did I expect it to be him, the ingrate!”

Disappointment, true and frightening, pools in his eyes. My father believed in Leiye. He cared for him. He won’t let this betrayal go unpunished.

“But I don’t understand, Father. This has nothing to do with me.”

His gaze is sad for a brief moment before fury takes over. “Nothing to do with you? Do you honestly expect me to believe that?”

The first slap catches me by surprise. A real sob hitches in my throat. The next blow only angers me. I keep my head hanging down, face hidden by my hair. I have to get us out of this mess. I focus on my breath. Testing. Searching for an elusive tendril of magic to latch onto. A quiet hum starts to build. My magic must be coming back. My eyes dart across my surroundings again, etching everyone’s positions into memory. How many guards and priests can I kill at one time?

“Let me ask you again, what were you planning with that traitor?” my father says coldly.

I refuse to utter a sound, concentrating on my breath and the threads of energy all around me. It’s not enough. I need more time.

“Wake him,” my father commands.

The priests on either side of the poles work the pulley ropes, bringing an unconscious Leiye down. Fresh bruises bloom on his face and whip marks lacerate his torso. A trail of blood seeps through his trousers, dripping down, adding to the dark crimson on the ground.

They throw a bucket of water at him. He gasps. Coughs. Looks up feebly. The first thing he does when he sees me is to grin, mouth all bloody and raw. I’m fine, I can almost hear him say. He shakes his head slightly. Don’t tell him anything.

A fiery plume blazes from my father’s hand. The look on Leiye’s face tells me he’s willing to be sacrificed. I steel my heart.

My father takes a step closer to Leiye. Still, I say nothing.

“Very well.” My father extends his hand, flames growing larger, searing into bare skin.

Leiye starts to shriek.

“Stop!” I scream. I can’t bear to watch. Can’t stand to hear his pain. “Please, stop!”

The flames vanish and the priests douse him. He looks faint, the flesh on his right arm red and blistering. Once, he marked me with his fire, a healing fire, but fire nonetheless. Now, because of me, he has a mark of his own.

My father glares. “Answer my question and he lives.”

I wrench my eyes away from Leiye and tell my father of my plan to rescue Ama, making sure to leave out Altan and Tang Wei.

When I’m done, he sneers. “Not much of a plan, is it?”

Anger roils inside me like a ball of energy. At this point, it feels like I’ve nothing to lose.

“You’re right, but I can still do this!”

I throw out a hand in his direction, but my eyes catch his face at the last second. Memories flood my mind. Of a time when my mother was alive. When my father didn’t wear a mask. When they were happy and whole.

A faint splutter of something comes out of my fingers. All that happens in a slight shift in the air. I freeze. Stunned. I thought I was ready. I thought I could stand up to my father.

But I was wrong.

“Weak.” My father shoves me to the ground. “Just like your mother.”

What happened to him to make him such a monster? What made him put this terrible ambition for his country ahead of his family? Ahead of the people he claims to care about?