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3 AELIA

I stood in the courtyard, letting the frigid winter wind whip my hair into knots. Gripping Amolie’s hand, we waited for the sleigh to arrive to take my friends back to the Stormlands. Despite the cold, I chose not to wear gloves, preferring to feel the warmth of my friend’s hand one last time.

“Be strong, Aelia. This is only the beginning of our quest. Your mother will be happy to see you.”

A bitter taste filled my mouth. I kicked the gravel aimlessly. “Only time will tell what she is.”

“No one has seen a Fate in hundreds of years. They are but a distant memory to most people.” Amolie sighed. “I don’t even know how we’ll get to the tower. The Ferry hasn’t run in a century.”

“I’m going to do some research before we step foot anywhere near their island.”

“Good idea.”

The sound of sleigh bells echoed through the still morning air, followed by hoofbeats. Eight massive dapple-gray horses trotted over to us. The diamonds braided into their manes sparkled in the pale winter sun.

Amolie squeezed my hand then embraced me tightly.

“Be safe. I will see you soon,” she said.

I breathed her in, committing the moment to memory.

“I’m going to miss you,” I said.

“I’ll miss you too.”

The sleigh stopped, and the halfling driver jumped down to take Amolie’s things. Caiden and Lucius appeared from behind us with Tharan in tow.

Lucius held out his hand.

Stunned, I shook it.

“You did good, Springborn.”

I smirked.

“Dare I say you’re warming up to me?”

“I wouldn’t go that far. But I don’t hate you the way I once did.”

“I’ll take it.”

Lucius and Amolie hugged Baylis before saying their goodbyes to Tharan.

“I’m sorry we didn’t get to spend more time together. I’d like to get to know you more,” Caiden said, genuinely. His gloved hands wrapped tightly around one another. Hope flickered in his blue eyes.

The wind whipped an unruly piece of golden hair free from its binding, reminding me of the young emissary I met on balconies and kissed in alcoves.

You once knew everything about me.

“Perhaps at the Ostara festival,” I replied.

Caiden’s eyes flicked between me and Tharan. Clearing his throat, he said, “Yes, perhaps.” He shook my hand, letting our fingers linger together for a moment before pulling away and hugging Baylis goodbye.

I couldn’t look away from him, my traitor mind transfixed in place, memorizing every motion as he climbed into the sleigh. Heart tearing in two directions, I fumbled behind me, clasping Tharan’s waiting hand.

The coachman clicked his tongue, and with a flick of the wrist, the horses trotted on. A light snow began to fall. Snowflakes flitted aimlessly through the air. The sleigh disappeared into the forest.

My heart ached at the sight.

“You’ll see them again.” Tharan rubbed my arm reassuringly.

“I hope so.” I leaned on him for support.

“I’m going to miss them,” Baylis said. “Amolie is so sweet.”

“Why don’t we take a walk through the greenhouses, Baylis? You always loved gardening,” I suggested, remembering her penchant for helping the farmers develop more hearty crops.

“Oh, that would be lovely,” she said, pulling her fur-lined hood up over her ash-blonde hair, pale cheeks red from the cold.

I kissed Tharan on the cheek.

“I’ll see you later.”

He nodded and headed back inside. His wolves followed behind him, happily wagging their tails.

Baylis and I crossed the courtyard to where the greenhouses sat. Large glass structures filled with all manner of magical plants. Despite the chilly temperatures outside, a steady summer heat remained inside, thanks to the Alder magic. A sweet floral scent filled the air. The herbologists tended to the flora, barely noticing our presence. Plants of all shapes reached into the heavens. Vibrant colors splashed across massive leaves while sharp thorns clenched like jaws on others. Birds cawed from the rafters, and bees buzzed, spreading pollen throughout the atrium.

Baylis’s eyes went wide.

“I thought you’d like it,” I said, pleased I still knew my sister.

“I love it.” She bent down to smell a bloodred rose. “Remember the garden I had at the River House?”

“I do.”

“I loved that garden… and my dogs…” She swallowed a sob. “Oh, Trinity, Aelia. They’re gone. It’s all gone.”

I helped her to a bench.

“Shhh, it’s okay.”

She buried her face in her hands.

“No, it’s not. I’m missing so many memories. Caiden and you are my only tether to who I used to be.” She lifted her head to face me, and a tear trickled down her cheek. “I don’t know who I am or what I did while I was with Gideon.”

My heart ached for my sister.

“I know everything you’re going through right now. I was there once, too. But I promise it will get better. I will help you. I can help you…” It occurred to me Baylis had no idea of my powers or her own. So much needed to be explained. Caiden’s indifference to me, my scars, her powers, our mother, but where to begin?

I breathed deeply, racking my brain for a way to tell her all the things I needed to say without overwhelming her more than she already was.

“How much do you remember from before you were with Gideon?”

Her gray eyes squinted, trying to pull the memories from her mind. “I remember you leaving—Father’s death. The siege on Elyria, Caiden putting me on a horse and sending me into the wilds…”

“Do you remember how you came to be in Gideon’s… company?”

Her expression darkened. She stared off into the distance, looking but not seeing.

“I was riding fast through the fog-filled lands to the south. Blood riders caught me.” She winced. “I was their captive, but they had strict instructions not to harm me.”

“And they took you to Gideon?”

“Yes, he was waiting for me in front of the castle in Ryft’s Edge.”

My throat thickened at the thought. Once, Gideon had waited for me in front of the castle with his endearing crooked smile plastered across his handsome face. I remember the way he took my hand, so confident and reassuring. The same hand that would be plastered across my mouth later as he whispered disgusting things into my ear. I shuddered at the thought, half embarrassed of how young and naive I had been, and half terrified of what torments he inflicted on Baylis. “And then what happened?”

Baylis stared into the distance, avoiding eye contact with me. Her legs crossed over one another. She picked a leaf from a nearby rosebush, gently pulling it through her fingers. Its jagged edge pierced her skin, drawing blood.

“Ouch.” She sucked on her thumb for a moment. “They treated me to dinner, and then the next thing I remember, I was here… five years later.”

“So, you really have no memory of your time with them at all?”

“No. It’s as if I closed my eyes, and the next time I opened them, five years had passed.”

My stomach dropped and I bit the inside of my cheek, dreading what I knew I had to do. “So you don’t know about my— gift ?”

She shook her head.

A sigh slipped between my lips.

“I have the power of telepathy. Gideon and I—we share the gift—an unbreakable bond, for we drank the same sylph’s blood. It connected us… forever.”

Her pale face contorted in shock, and her mouth fell open as her eyes raked over me, searching for a hint of the monster lurking within.

“Don’t worry, I can only read your mind if you let me… or if I break in… and I don’t plan on doing that.”

She ran her thumb over her lower lip. Her brows knitted with concern as if she were putting puzzle pieces together in her mind.

“So, can you two communicate all the time?”

“No, only when we’re close. Then there are no secrets between us. We can enter each other’s minds freely unless one of us puts up a mental barrier.”

“Why would you agree to do that? To bond yourself to someone like that?”

I swore I could hear a touch of disgust in her voice. The same disgust I’d heard in Gideon’s voice a thousand times. Was it real or was I giving my sister attributes she didn’t deserve. How would I feel if I were in her shoes? Was she judging me or just in shock? The sister I remember would not be so cruel.

I pinched the bridge of my nose.

“I didn’t really have a choice. The blood was fed secretly to me at first, and then when I refused it…” I swallowed the lump growing in my throat. “It was forced upon me. That’s also how I got these.” I raised my upper lip, revealing a sharp incisor.

Baylis leaned in, examining me—looking for the invisible tether linking Gideon and me.

“Did it hurt?”

“It was torture—every minute of it. My powers were wild. I could hear every thought of every person in the palace. I thought I was going mad until Erissa told me of her little experiment.” Bile rose in the back of my throat. Memories long buried bubbled to the surface. I breathed deeply, letting the specters of my past pass through me.

“I’m sorry, Aelia. I didn’t—know. Once you left for Ryft’s Edge… you were so distant. I thought you wanted to forget us. And I wouldn’t have faulted you for that.”

Pressure built behind my eyes.

“Forget you? You were—are my best friend. I risked my life to free you. And I’d do it again.”

“Those were dark times, Aelia. We were all lost.”

She moved closer, putting an arm around me like she had when we were children. That was the Baylis I knew. The caring one. Not the one who looked upon me with disgust just moments earlier.

I swallowed the sob growing in my chest.

“I know. I hoped they were over.”

“Fate is a cruel master.”

I let out a little chuckle. “Speaking of. Do you remember that mother is a Fate?”

“I do. I was there when they carted her off in front of me.”

“Well, you share her gift.”

She fiddled with the thin golden chain around her neck. Was that a gift from Gideon or a remnant of our old life? My memories were too blurry to remember something so simple.

“Me? A seer? I’ve never had a vision in my life.”

“You have. I’ve seen you do it.”

“No,” she whispered, the word barely escaping her lips.

“I’ve seen you kill a god, Baylis.”

“Me?” She clutched her chest.

“Yes, you. Do you remember this?” Pulling Little Death from its sheath, I presented it to Baylis. Its iridescent blade sparkled in the pale winter light.

Cautiously, Baylis reached for the dagger, turning it in her hand.

“I… I recognize its feel.” She closed her eyes, focusing on the weapon.

I waited with bated breath.

Her eyes sprung open, and her gray irises turned white.

“Blood, so much blood. Running down my hand.” She traced the path of the blood down her delicate wrist. “A face… older than time. I… I…” She dropped the knife to the ground, burying her face in her hands. “I’m a monster.”

“Shh… you’re not a monster. Gideon is the monster.” I couldn’t tell her she’d killed Tharan’s father and, in doing so, made Tharan the Alder King. Truths would have to come slowly. The mind could only take so much.

Sobs shook her body violently. She turned, gripping me tightly. Fingers digging into my arms. “I don’t know who I am anymore, Aelia.”

“I will help you find out. We have time now.” I inhaled the scent of elderberry on her hair as she cried on my shoulder. “It’s okay.”

I would have to ask her to infiltrate her mind, there was no other choice. As Hand to the king I had a duty to protect the realm. But I was also her sister, and she was still so fragile. Pulling the memories could traumatize her more than she already was. Now was not the right time. But would there ever be a good time to go in? My heart twisted in my chest.

“I want to go back to the River House.” Her words choked in her throat.

“Me too,” I whispered. “There’s something else I need to tell you.”

She wiped her tears on her sleeve. “I don’t know how much more I can take.”

I stared at my toes, unable to look at her.

“That bad, huh?”

I nodded, trying to figure out where to start.

“It’s about Caiden and me.”

She arched her brow.

“The fact that you two act like strangers? I noticed.”

“Yes… There’s an explanation for that.” I rubbed my palm with my thumb, trying to calm my churning stomach. “We struck a bargain. To him, I am a stranger.”

“Aelia, no,” she gasped, covering her mouth with her hand, eyes widening.

“Once you were safe, I would erase the memories of our relationship from his mind.” Thorns grew in my throat. “You are safe, and I am a stranger to him now.”

“But you two were so—in love.” Her gaze softened and her shoulders relaxed.

I clenched my jaw, holding back the ache splitting my heart in two.

“Our love died in Ryft’s Edge, and that’s all I’m going to say about it for now. We both hurt each other in ways we could never repair. It was for the best. At least one of us can move on.”

“I’d say you’re moving on just fine,” she said through sniffles.

“Yes. Everything worked out the way it was supposed to.” I tried to bury the pain, but the ache of losing Caiden still resonated deep within me.

“Tharan is good to you and for you . I’ve never seen anyone look at someone the way he looks at you.”

Heat flushed my cheeks. “I am afraid of the feelings I have for him. We fit so perfectly together that I’m scared to get my hopes up. So many things could go wrong.”

She squeezed my hand. “But so many things could go right, too. You deserve someone who loves you, who burns for you. And I can tell he does.”

“I haven’t allowed myself to hope in a very long time.”

“Perhaps now is a good time to start.” Her face brightened.

A sigh escaped my lips. “Maybe after we finish visiting Mother.”

“And when will that be?”

“Soon. I don’t know exactly when. Once we get to Ruska, we’ll have to find someone crazy enough to take us to the Island of Fate.”

Baylis nervously bunched up the fabric of her dress. “This is a lot to take in. So much so fast.”

“We don’t have the luxury of time. Burning Ryft’s Edge to the ground will only embolden Gideon, Erissa, and their allies.”

“Then I guess I better get ready.”