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“Our tale is clear,” Forbi said, turning to continue down the steps. “But without the call, the dark him will rise. Beneath him, we fade.”

I was left befuddled, with a touch of bile in my throat. With a cautious glance over my shoulder, I found Silas in the shadows. He stood by no one but me, almost as though others frightened him more than the blood spilled in the Row.

“My delay would cause your souls to fade? Is that what you’re saying?”

“Risks from twists and fate. More time, a dark him has more strength.”

I pressed a hand to my chest when my heart felt as though it might shatter its way through. “So, because I waited . . . Davorin’s fate grew stronger?”

“How could you know, Little Rose?” Silas asked from behind us.

“No.” I held up a hand. “No, don’t coddle me. I knew there was a path I needed to take, and I ignored it. I fought against it out of fear.”

I shook my head. Damn tears. They stung the backs of my eyes and made it difficult to see properly. What a fool, what a weak-spined fool I’d been. The song that broke these kingdoms, the curse, the new story Silas and I had brought into fruition weakened because of my cowardice.

It had given that wretch too much time to strengthen, to grow, to return and attack the people I loved most.

I’d never forgive myself should they be harmed because I refused to move forward.

Out of these fated crowns, I was the weakest.

Elise was willing to sacrifice her own bleeding life for Legion Grey, a cursed beast whose true name was hidden.

Malin was willing to face the tyrants of her land, to accept a throne with a bloody history, all to stand at the side of her Shadow King.

Saga was afraid of her own heart, yet she boldly handed it to the Golden King despite the risks. She faced the man who’d tried to break her, and brought war to his feet.

What had I done? Learned my true name, learned I had a place in all this, then dug my head in the sand for the better part of ten turns all to hide from the feeling, the burn that I, too, had a place in this brutal tale.

Cuyler opened the door to the cellar, the others spilled into the room. Once inside, Silas kept to the corners, his hood pulled over his head. Cuyler strode over to the opposite wall where the horrid creature appeared dry and sickly. His face seemed to rot off his bones, the holes in his flesh revealed his teeth.

Skin flecked off in scaly pieces, and every rib showed through thin, iridescent flesh whenever he drew in a gasp.

Cuyler reached for a water basin and ewer off a wobbly table near a shelf with crates of turnips. “Thirsty, sea singer?”

The creature opened his yellowed eyes, dried lips parted, and his breaths grew harsher when Cuyler poured a long stream of water into the basin.

“I could wet your tongue should you speak.”

The sea singer chuckled, rough and raw. He was such a hideous thing. How had I ever felt a flicker of desire? Then again, the song of a sea singer was one of the grandest illusions.

“No?” Cuyler shrugged one shoulder. He lifted the bowl to his own mouth and took a sloppy gulp, intentionally allowing water to spill down his chin. He let out a gasp of relief, grinning. “So refreshing.”

“Why speak when . . .” the sea singer began, “when I am . . . dead anyway?”

Cuyler returned the bowl to the table and snapped his fingers. “Good question. You’re right, you are dead. But how quickly and painlessly you die is up to you. Where is the battle lord?”

The sea singer tilted his head. “The dark earthen fae?”

“Whatever you call him, he’s not one of you. He fled to your watery world like a coward. He’s bringing war between our worlds, is he not?”

The sea singer didn’t sneer. Truth be told, the poor bastard looked more exhausted than anything. He stared longingly at the bowl and ewer. “He takes enemies back to their truest hatred. To the torment he enjoyed most.”

“He’s attacking each kingdom in ways he tormented them before.” The words spilled from my mouth before I could stop them. I blinked and looked to Cuyler. “I-I don’t know how I know that.”

“It is his role in the tale,” Silas said in a soft rumble.

“What do you mean?”