Chapter 21 #3
“Oh, it’s no inconvenience. Not anymore.
” Mael straightened, gesturing expansively at the ruins of the ballroom around them.
“Look at this. Look at what you’ve accomplished with all your plotting and your fae assassin and your little rebellion.
” He laughed, the sound echoing off the high ceiling.
“Nothing. You’ve accomplished nothing. You killed Mother—congratulations, I was going to do that eventually anyway.
You’ve been a nuisance to the Rosovs—and now you’ve handed us the perfect opportunity to cement our alliance by executing you publicly.
Here. At the seat of our power. And you’ve brought your precious fae right back to where your silly little game with her started. ”
He turned his attention to Nadi, and his smile widened. “Hello again, my dear. I did warn you, didn’t I? I offered you a partnership. A future. And you chose him.” He shook his head sadly. “Such a waste of potential.”
“I chose myself,” Nadi said, surprised by how steady her voice came out despite the pain, despite the fear, despite everything. “I chose not to be anyone’s pawn. Not yours. Not his. Not anyone’s.”
“Strangely, I believe you. But look where that’s gotten you.” Mael spread his hands. “On your knees. Bleeding. About to die. Tell me, Nadi—was the independence worth it?”
“Yeah.”
The word came out without hesitation. Because it was true. Whatever happened next—whatever horrors Mael and Lana had planned for them—Nadi had spent the last weeks living on her own terms. Fighting for what she believed in.
Loving who she chose to love.
She wouldn’t trade that for anything.
Lana descended from the dais, her heels clicking against the marble floor like a countdown.
“How touching. The little fae assassin found true love with the monster who murdered her family. I guess that means there’s hope for everyone, hm?
” She stopped in front of Nadi, reaching down to grip her chin and force her head up.
“Do you know what we’re going to do with you? ”
Nadi said nothing. Just met the vampire’s magenta gaze with all the defiance she had left. “You assume I care.”
“We’re going to execute you publicly,” Lana continued as if she hadn’t responded, her voice silk over steel.
“And we will hang banners announcing your death from every building. We will ensure all the fae know precisely how pointless their little uprisings are. Same with every human who’s started getting ideas above their station.
” She smiled, showing her fangs. “You’re going to be an example, Nadi.
A symbol of what happens to those who defy us.
And when we’re done breaking you—when we’ve made you beg and scream and plead for mercy while your precious vampire watches, we’re going to do the same to him. ”
“The fae rebellion ends with you,” Mael added, circling behind them like a shark scenting blood in the water.
“Kalo’s little uprising tonight was the last gasp of a dying cause.
We’ve already taken care of his forces—those who didn’t flee are being rounded up as we speak.
By tomorrow, there won’t be any organized fae resistance left in the metropolis.
Just scattered survivors, too broken and terrified to ever challenge us again. ”
Raziel let out a sound that might have been a laugh. “You always did love the sound of your own voice, brother. All that talking, all that posturing—it’s just noise. You’ve always been more interested in looking powerful than knowing how to wield it.”
Mael’s golden eyes flashed with sudden fury. “And you always did have trouble knowing when to shut up.” He nodded to one of the guards. “Break his jaw. I’m tired of listening to him.”
The guard stepped forward, raising his fist—
“That will not be necessary.”
The voice came from the shadows at the edge of the ballroom. Soft. Female. Carrying a weight of authority that made even Mael pause. It was the kind of voice that expected obedience—that had received nothing but obedience for centuries upon centuries.
Everyone turned.
A figure was emerging from the darkness—or perhaps the darkness was birthing her, the shadows peeling back like a shroud to reveal what lay beneath. She moved slowly, deliberately, each step measured and precise. And she was draped, from head to toe, in white silken gauze.
The woman looked for all the world like a ghost.
And to Nadi, as goosebumps covered her, and a cold shiver ran through her—she might as well have been. Or at the very least, the herald of death.
Layer upon layer of bandages covered every inch of exposed skin.
Her face was invisible beneath the layers of sheer silk, only the barest hint of features visible through the fabric—the suggestion of eyes, the outline of lips.
Her hands, too, were hidden, and she moved with careful deliberation.
As if each movement had to be carefully premeditated.
Step forward. Step forward. Step forward.
But despite the strange appearance, despite the slow and shuffling gait, the power that radiated from her was immense.
Nadi could feel it pressing against her skin like a physical weight—ancient and terrible and utterly overwhelming.
Every instinct she possessed was screaming at her to run, to flee, to get as far away from this creature as possible.
This was what it felt like to be in the presence of a god.
And she had felt it once before.
Lilivra.