Page 42 of Between These Broken Hearts (Cursed Stars #2)

My heart feels too clunky in my chest. Like a smashed wheel that is fighting to turn. A sister. We had a sister that he sacrificed

for nothing but power.

He gives a subtle nod, as if he can see my thoughts on my face. He probably can. “I think our mother knew that and that’s why she risked her own life to protect you when we were born.”

“What kind of horrible magic works in such a way?”

“The kind that is very old, very dark, and very ugly,” Konner says. “And anyone who wields it becomes the same. The hunger

for power like that is a curse. There’s never enough.”

It might be a curse to him but it’s worse for the rest of us. He destroyed our mother. Killed our sister. And Elora is falling

apart under his rule. “What can we even do in the face of that kind of power? That kind of evil? He’s a true immortal, then?”

“Close, but no one but the gods can be a true immortal. He can be killed, but only in two ways, the first being the sacred Sword of Fire, which Mordeus promised to return

to him if he brought him back to rule from the Unseelie throne. His other weakness was a punishment for what he was willing

to sacrifice. He could be killed by a female down his bloodline.”

“ Any female,” I say. “Meaning that if he knew about Leia, he’d have her killed.” Imagining anyone hurting that precious curly-haired

baby makes my chest ache. I can’t imagine having something that precious brought into your life knowing there’s someone who

wants to take it away.

Konner closes his eyes, and for a beat I see years of worry written on his face. “Yes.”

As ridiculous as it is in the face of all this horrible information, I find myself flooded with relief. Relief that the Konner

in this world isn’t so different from the one in the illusion. Relief that my brother is a good enough male to want to stop

my father. “And that’s why you captured me? To keep me alive so I could kill him before he found out about your daughter.”

He nods. “I knew you hated me, that you believed I was your enemy, and that you were raised to hate everything the Magical Seven stood for. I hoped that what I planted in your mind would help you see I’m nothing like Erith.”

“But how could I trust that when I had no reason to believe I could trust you?”

“I get that, but if that king hadn’t shown up, if I’d had a chance to talk to you...” He stands and starts pacing again.

“I was jealous when I found out about you. Jealous that you got to have a family—a real family, not this toxic servitude our

father tries to pretend is family. I wished that Mother’s nursemaid would’ve sent us both away.” He straightens and his wistful

expression fades. “Our father is a monster. He’s exploited so many in Elora and still he’s hungry for more power. I know you

fear him, but if you will do this, I will be by your side. I will protect you with my life. Because by protecting you I’m

protecting my daughter.”

It’s not that simple , I want to argue. I can’t risk Hale , I want to argue. But can I risk that sweet baby girl? My niece? Hale’s fate can change. We have the advantage of forethought

to protect him, but so long as Erith lives, my niece will always be in danger.

How ironic that when Hale finally agrees that I shouldn’t kill Erith, I find myself wanting to risk it. “We’ll find a way,”

I finally say. “I won’t let him take another family member from me.”

The relief on Konner’s face is immense, and I feel it too. After years of running from my fate, it almost feels good to embrace

it.

“I need time to prepare and to speak with my friends”— time to find a way to protect Hale —“but I’ll find a way.”

“Erith’s away for now. All we know is that he’ll be gone until Mordeus’s return—that he’s facilitating the resurrection somehow—and that he left that prick Seamus as his proxy. Wherever he is he’s using so much of his already considerable magic that he can’t monitor what’s happening here.”

I look down at the drink I have yet to taste. “Does that mean if I take my true form, he can’t track me?”

“Not until the Unseelie king’s resurrection is complete.”

The relief of that washes over me like cool water on a hot day. It shouldn’t matter in the midst of everything that’s going

on, but my true form calls to me. Being in my own skin is a comfort I desperately need right now. “That’s why you came for

me months ago instead of him. He wasn’t even tracking me anymore.”

“Wherever Erith is, he’s confident no one can get to him, including you. Seamus was supposed to be keeping tabs on you, but

once I took you from the dungeons of Castle Craige, he couldn’t do that anymore. He didn’t even know I was the one who had

you all that time. He could’ve had me killed if he’d found out.”

“And why Shae—why did Erith give him so much power? Why does he trust him to act in his stead? Is he really so powerful?”

“Seamus is nothing more than a pawn. He offered up information on you and your family years ago to earn Erith’s trust, and

he’s been his devoted sycophant since.”

“I thought Mordeus was the one who told Erith about me,” I say, searching Konner’s face for the lie, part of me hoping I’ll

find it.

“I’m sorry,” he says softly.

Maybe I shouldn’t, but I trust him. I drink from the bottle, swallowing the potion fast. It fizzes on my tongue and when it

hits my stomach, I immediately feel more alert.

Konner smiles. “See?”

I blink down at myself. “How was that so fast?” I turn the bottle in my hand and study it. “Where did you get it?”

“Our father formulated it. He doesn’t have the patience to sleep every time he wants to return to his own form.”

“He’s an Echo too?”

Konner nods. “Believe me when I say that’s the least of his talents.”

“What do we do now? What do we do until I can get to Erith?”

He stops pacing and turns to me, chest expanding on a deep inhale. “We do what your people have been waiting so long to do—we

set our sights on tomorrow and plan for an Elora without the Patriarch of the Seven.”

A crack echoes off the walls. We turn to the door just as Misha throws himself through it, chest heaving, eyes wild. He throws

out a hand, sending magic pulsing across the room. Konner flies through the air before hitting the wall and falling to the

ground.

“Misha! Wait!”

He throws himself in front of me, still glaring at Konner.

“Don’t hurt him.” I grip Misha’s shoulder. “I’m fine.”

He spins and looks me over, blinking when it seems to register that I’m unharmed and in my own form. “You’re okay. I’ve been

searching this whole damn palace for you, but you’re okay.”

Konner gingerly picks himself up off the floor and glares at Misha. “You know how to make one hell of a first impression,”

he mutters.