Page 7 of Crowned by the Shadow (Bound by the Veil #5)

Chapter

Five

Senara

Sebastian leaned heavily on Thorn as we exited the room, but the man moved with growing determination.

“I’ve imagined this escape for years,” he said, his eyes, ones that looked exactly like my own, finding my gaze. “Though I never dared hope that you would be the one to free me.”

My heart clenched at the raw emotion in his voice. There were a thousand questions burning in my mind, but they would have to wait. There were prisoners to free, after all.

I started pulling on levers, ones I’d watched Fenvalur use too many times to even count as he checked on his experiments. The globes descended, and I met a few fearful gazes. “Get out while you can. I don’t know when the guards will come, but they will show up eventually,” I cautioned.

“Which way?” one of the demihumans asked, her cat-like ears twitching while a tail flicked behind her as she looked toward the door as though she was ready to bolt as soon as I said the word.

Sebastian pointed left. “The servants’ passages.

Stick to the small hallways and follow your nose,” he replied gently so as not to spook any of the other prisoners, before turning to me and adding, “I memorized the layout during my first years of captivity, before they realized what I was doing and kept me blindfolded during transfers.”

The ones that were already free of their globes ran for it, not willing to wait and risk being recaptured.

Once the last prison was down, we followed Sebastian’s directions out, hurrying through the dimly lit corridors.

The Mirror grew warm against my chest, its surface occasionally flickering with images too fast to comprehend.

One thing was clear, we weren’t just escaping with an artifact and a prisoner.

We were escaping with my past.

We had also put a massive dent in whatever supposed research Fenvalur was doing.

The other fae and demihumans that had been prisoners peeled off from our little trio amidst whispered thanks.

No one wanted to risk getting caught just because we were in a sizeable group and I was carrying an awkwardly sized mirror.

We moved swiftly through the winding corridors, the dim light flickering as we pressed forward. The walls seemed to close in around us, but my heart raced with a mix of fear and exhilaration. I glanced at Sebastian, his expression a blend of determination and something deeper—pain, perhaps.

As we reached a narrow passage, he stopped, pulling me aside into the shadows.

“I need you to understand,” he began, his voice barely above a whisper. “Everything I said before… it’s true.”

“What do you mean?” I asked, catching my breath.

He ran a hand through his disheveled hair, revealing strands touched with silver. “I’m your father, Senara.”

His amber eyes bore into mine, fierce and unwavering. “I’m Sebastian Cira, elder brother to King Xavier of the Sun Court. Your mother was Aravae.”

“Aravae,” I murmured, her name sounding like music in my ears. I didn’t miss Thorn’s sharp intake of breath, though.

“Yes,” he said. “We had dreams of uniting the courts, an alliance that would strengthen all fae against growing threats from within and beyond our realm.” He took a step closer, urgency sharpening his tone. “But when your mother became pregnant with you, our plans were discovered.”

“Discovered?” The word felt heavy on my tongue.

Sebastian nodded grimly. “They thought it was an abomination, a union between two courts that could disrupt the balance of power. They took her from me.” His voice broke slightly as he continued, “When she vanished… I thought I had lost myself as well.”

“What happened?” My chest tightened at his pain.

“I spiraled into madness,” he admitted quietly.

“Fenvalur captured me during one of my darker moments after I had felt her…” He paused and pulled himself back from the memory that was trying to swallow him.

“When I could no longer feel her life force, or yours, I knew she was forever lost to me, and I thought you were too. That madness held me for years and because of my status they just imprisoned me, kept me here for years. Never putting me out of my misery because I was a noble and my magic was interesting .”

“So you’re saying…” My thoughts raced ahead, trying to piece together this shattered truth. “You’re the true king? But why hasn’t anyone else come for you?”

“I was mad. No one, not even me, would want a mad king on the throne of the Sun Court and now…Xavier doesn’t know who I am anymore,” he replied sharply. “The years changed me; Fenvalur ensured that my memories would fracture under pressure.”

I clutched his arm, uncertainty flooding through me like ice water in my veins. “Is there a chance…Do you think my mother is still alive?”

Sebastian hesitated, anguish shadowing his features before he spoke again with deliberate care. “No. I’m sorry. I felt her life force fade in a way that could only happen with death.”

I hadn’t realized how fiercely painful hope could be sometimes, but with Sebastian’s words hanging in the air between us like a blade, I knew I had just crushed the tiny part of my heart that had hoped when I heard him call me daughter that he wasn’t the only one still alive.

Sebastian shook his head slowly. “I am sorry, Senara.”

A low growl echoed down the hall. A guard? My instincts kicked in; urgency sparked through every nerve in my body.

“We can talk later,” I urged him while looking over my shoulder for any signs of danger creeping up behind us.

Thorn emerged from around the corner where he’d been scouting ahead, glancing back at us with narrowed eyes. “We need to move,” he said quietly but firmly.

Sebastian nodded and started walking again; Thorn fell in step beside him while I lingered back just enough to feel some space between us, the truth thrumming in my ears like an untamed heartbeat.

“What now?” Thorn asked once we were far enough from Fenvalur’s chambers.

“Now we head toward the exit.” Sebastian’s voice held steady resolve even amid the chaos surrounding us.

I moved through the shadows of the corridor, the weight of Sebastian’s revelation hanging heavy on my chest. My mind whirled as I grasped at fragments of my past, each one sharper than the last. The Moon Mark glowed faintly against my skin, whispering secrets about who I was meant to be, who I was born to be.

Sebastian turned slightly, his expression a mix of pride and sorrow.

“Earlier, what I said…I need to make sure you understand. Senara, You carry the marks of both Sun and Moon Courts. It is a blessing and a curse, but it was a risk we were willing to take for the greater good, we just hadn’t expected not to be around to help you. ”

“And they imprisoned you because they thought you were dangerous? Mad?” I pressed, each word a careful step through treacherous ground.

“They feared what I would do to find answers, and if you had somehow survived, they were terrified of what you would become under my influence,” he said simply. “And in doing so, they sought to control me.”

A flicker of anger sparked within me at their thoughtless cruelty. They hadn’t just taken him; they had stolen pieces of my identity along with it.

“Now really isn’t the time for this,” Thorn interjected, his voice steadying me as if he sensed the turmoil swirling inside me. “If we can get out, then we have to get to Wyn and Volker…”

Sebastian nodded gravely. “Once you leave the court grounds, you should be able to use the Veilshard Pendant to travel. It can open paths between our world and others, but we need someone knowledgeable in dark magic to harness its true potential against the Void Dragon Empress.”

“Then we find that person,” I declared, determination seeping into every syllable.

Thorn caught my gaze; his own eyes held an unwavering resolve. “We can’t take unnecessary risks. We don’t know how far Fenvalur’s reach extends or what other threats lie waiting.”

The walls felt closer now as shadows danced around us like specters eager for our misstep. Yet I couldn’t let fear dictate my actions any longer.

“Listen,” I said firmly, turning to Sebastian again. “What do you see when you look into the mirror? You’ve witnessed my past, yes, but what do you foresee?”

He hesitated for a moment before taking a breath and letting it out slowly, as if preparing himself for an unwelcome truth.

“I see light battling against darkness,” he said softly. “But also a choice, one that will shape not just your destiny, but that of all fae kind.”

“And if we don’t find this mage?” I asked, urgency creeping into my voice.

“Then darkness will consume us all,” he replied, his tone laced with sorrowful gravity.

I swallowed hard, but something deeper than fear ignited within me—a fire kindled by defiance against fate itself.

“Let’s not dwell on what could happen,” Thorn urged gently, but with an edge of steel behind it. “We focus on saving Wyn and then finding this mage.”

With newfound determination pushing us forward, we navigated through hidden passageways lined with cold stone until we reached a narrow stairwell leading upward toward what seemed like freedom.

But then there came a noise, a low rumble that reverberated through the surrounding air like thunder echoing across an endless sky.

“What was that?” Sebastian whispered urgently as he halted mid-step.

“I don’t know.” Thorn kept his voice low but intense as he surveyed our surroundings cautiously. “But we need to move faster.”

We pressed onward until we emerged onto a balcony overlooking the sprawling chaos below; the capital teeming with fae bustling about in alarming disarray as news spread about Fenvalur’s sudden downfall and disappearance. It wasn’t just that, though, there was too much panic.

Before my thoughts could settle, Sebastian’s voice cut in, “This way!” He gestured down another flight of stairs leading away from prying eyes and noise alike.

I followed Sebastian and Thorn down the winding staircase, my heart pounding in rhythm with each step. The air felt charged, alive with an urgency that clung to my skin like a second layer. I couldn’t shake the feeling that danger lurked just beyond our sight.

Sebastian moved ahead of us, his stature commanding even in shadows. I could hardly believe he was my father, the man who had been a ghost in my life until moments ago. Every memory of longing and loss coalesced into a singular thought: I would do everything to protect him now.

“Do you think Fenvalur will come after us?” I whispered, glancing back up the staircase we’d just descended.

“He’ll try,” Thorn replied, his voice low but steady. “But we can’t afford to think about him now. We need to reach Wyn before it’s too late.”

The thought of Wyn sent a fresh wave of determination coursing through me. She was just as much my family as Sebastian, more so in fact. She was someone I had fought alongside, someone worth every risk we faced.

Sebastian turned sharply, eyes glimmering with a mixture of pride and sorrow as he caught my gaze. “You’re stronger than you know, Senara,” he said quietly. “Don’t let fear cloud your instincts.”

“Easier said than done,” I muttered under my breath, but the warmth in his words wrapped around me like armor.

We continued down another corridor, its walls adorned with faded tapestries depicting ancient battles between light and dark, a stark reminder of the stakes we faced. Shadows flickered at the edges of my vision, making every footfall feel precarious.

Suddenly, a clatter echoed from behind us, heavy boots thudding against stone floors as shouts rang out in the distance.

“Move!” Thorn commanded, propelling us forward with urgency.

I sprinted behind Sebastian, adrenaline sharpening my senses as we rounded a corner into an expansive hall lined with towering windows overlooking the city below. The sunlight poured in like liquid gold, illuminating our path but also exposing us if we lingered too long.

“Out there!” I pointed toward a balcony leading to the gardens below—the only escape route visible.

Thorn nodded without hesitation and bounded toward it first. “Stay close!”

We darted across the hall just as the sound of voices grew louder, guards converging on our location. My pulse quickened; each footfall seemed to echo like a war drum against stone.

Sebastian reached the balcony first and motioned for me to follow him out into the open air. “We’ll have cover among the hedges!” he urged.

I hesitated only for a moment before leaping through the threshold onto cool marble beneath my feet, quickly joining them on solid ground again.

“Go!” Thorn urged again as more shouts rang through the halls behind us; panic surged within me as I pushed myself faster toward freedom. The garden stretched before us—a wild tangle of blooming flowers and thick foliage perfect for concealment.

I dove into it without looking back.