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She met Theon’s gaze once more when she asked, “What element am I going to emerge with?”

“We don’t know, Tessa. Your assessments were inconclusive.”

“And you will use me to help your father take over Devram?”

“No, beautiful. You’ll help me kill my father.”

“So you can have Devram?”

Darkness hovered around him like a faint mist, and she could swear it reached for her when he said, “No, Tessa. So I can have the Underground, and they can have Devram.”

35

TESSA

“Who are they?” she asked, her fingertips still tingling with the crackling light. “Night Children?”

“Gods, no,” Axel barked. “While plenty of Night Children are decent enough to work with, they could never be entrusted to rule over entire lands.”

“Then who?”

“There are plenty of Legacy there from the various kingdoms,” Theon supplied.

“They were sent there because they were a threat to Devram,” Tessa said incredulously.

“A threat to Devram? Or to the ruling Lords and Ladies?” Theon countered.

“Does it matter? The ruling families have ruled since the world was created. The ruling families were selected by the gods themselves.”

A dark look crossed Theon’s face. “So much history gets lost when a select few choose what gets to be remembered.”

Her focus dropped to her hands again. Her palms glowed as though she was holding sunlight in her palms. It reminded her of Theon’s shadows, the way it moved and swirled, only bright and full of life rather than dark and full of death. But the light crackling at her fingertips?

Her gaze connected with Theon’s when she raised her palms, and all three of the males took a step back from her.

“What is this?” she demanded.

The three of them exchanged looks, Luka sliding closer to Theon, before Theon answered, “We don’t know.”

“I don’t believe you.”

“That’s fine. It won’t change my answer.”

“How do I make it stop?”

“You let me help you.”

“I don’t want your help,” she gritted out.

“And yet you need it.”

She curled her fingers in, fists clenching. “Why is it manifesting now? When I haven’t been through the Emerging Ceremony?”

“I don’t know,” Theon said.

“You don’t know,” she repeated flatly. When he only shook his head, she said coldly, “Give me your best guess. I am told you are full of theories.”

“My best guess is that you are so powerful it is breaking through the binding on your power,” Theon answered. “But that is only a theory.”