What Lurks Between the Fates (Of Flesh & Bone, #3)(115)

I bent down as golden light pulsed up my arm, illuminating my Fae Mark in a wave that began at my fingers and slithered up to the side of my neck and my chest. I grasped the collar, my hand burning as I carried it to the window and thrust open the panes.

I cocked my arm back, resisting the urge to scream as I threw it as far as I could. It landed out of sight, and I imagined it sliding across the white salt of Tar Mesa. As I turned back to face my mate, he raised his chin to me.

It seemed I wasn’t the only one who had been keeping secrets.

His mouth cocked into a smirk, and I glanced toward the door.

“What’s the plan?” I asked, meeting that arrogant stare with one of my own.

I rolled my neck from one side to the other, reveling in the feeling of freedom without that damn collar. I felt more animal than human—than Fae—as I waited to hear what my mate and handmaiden had conspired to do.

“We’re going to make a statement,” Caldris said.

I pursed my lips, glancing toward the door once more. “Is there any particular reason why he’s still breathing?” I asked.

Caldris shrugged as if it was inconsequential to him, making his way to the door. He hauled it open, grabbing Malachi by the arm and dragging his body into the privacy of my room. I stared down at the unconscious but alive body of the guard who’d caused so much suffering.

The memory of his blade cutting through the neck of the human mates brought a snarl to my lips.

“This feels like playing the short-term game,” I muttered as Caldris knelt at Malachi’s side. His attention turned to me, the motion slow and furious as he met my stare.

“You,” he said, baring his teeth. “Have been spending far too much time with Rheaghan, my star.”

I swallowed, grinning back at the face of his jealousy as he plunged his fist into Malachi’s chest. His hand disappeared as breastbone cracked beneath his punch, emerging only when he pulled a heart free.

The God of the Dead rose to his feet, striding toward me slowly. When he reached me, that heart still clutched within his grasp, he knelt before me. Holding up the bloody flesh, he held my stare as he offered me the heart of a male who had caused me so much suffering.

“My Queen,” he murmured.

I smiled down at him, reaching out to take Malachi’s heart in my hand. “Did my status rise?” I asked, making a bark of laughter rumble from him in response.

“It’s only a matter of time, Little One,” he said, glancing back toward Malachi’s body.

With his heart clasped in my palm, I shifted my attention to him and walked around the kneeling form of my mate. Dead, unseeing eyes stared up at the ceiling, his heart ceasing to beat. I cocked my head to the side as I lowered myself beside him, something malicious washing over me.

All those centuries my mate had served as a slave, all those years commanded against his will. Malachi had been a willing part of that, taking free will from the man I loved.

I touched a finger to his cheek, watching as a tendril of darkness spread across his skin like rot. His eyes flung open suddenly as his gaze met mine, leaving me to stand tall as I stared down at him.

The golden thread of his soul lingered just out of reach, unable to reconnect with his body. But I did not desire their reunion, only for him to watch as his body was used against him. To be helpless as I made it mine.

I looked at the specter lingering behind the body, cocking my head to the side as I studied his rage-filled face.

“Your body is mine now, Malachi. You were my enemy in life, but you will fight for me in your death.” I wouldn’t keep his soul from moving to the Void, leaving where he wandered from here up to him to decide.

But I wouldn’t allow anyone to place coins on his eyes or pay his fee to the ferryman either.

He couldn’t speak. Couldn’t answer as I condemned him to his suffering. Caldris stared at me, unsurprised, though I suspected he couldn’t see the specter of the man he’d killed. He knew better than any that some tortures didn’t require physical pain.

Some torments came in forced obedience.

Twyla stepped up outside my door, looking both ways before she stepped inside and closed it behind her. She eyed Malachi’s slit throat and the hole in his chest, reaching into the satchel that hung by her side. Her gaze went to her son, who nodded, making her heave a sigh as she pulled something free from the bag.

The crown was studded with diamonds, a gleaming thing with arches that spiked toward the sky. The gems were massive as she held it out in front of her.

“Are you sure about this?” she asked, glancing toward her son.

“Sure about what?” I asked, propping a hand onto my hip. I’d grown tired of being kept in the dark, of the way Caldris made plans without me.

“Already, Tar Mesa is filled with whispers of what you did outside the palace. People watched from their windows when you made the sky go black,” Nila said, looking at my mate. “Soon enough, the court royals will go home. They’ll carry those whispers with them. You stand no chance of defeating her now. Not when she has Caldris bonded to her, but you can give them something to talk about. You can give them a show they will never forget, so that when you rise, they will follow.”

I drew in a breath, turning to face where Caldris watched me expectantly. I knew if I was too afraid to move forward, he wouldn’t force it. But we’d already killed Malachi. I’d already claimed him as mine. We’d come too far to turn back now.