Page 77 of Cursed Evermore

The curse had just struck when I heard the guards and I could barely move.

Two wars had given me several serious life-threatening injuries, but nothing compared to the excruciating pain that wracked my body when the curse claimed me. Yet through that pain, I found strength to go to my father.

Deep in my bones I knew something terrible had happened. The way prey knew the predator was near. The way the sea knew a storm was a breath away.

Still, I never expected to find him—my father, my king—dead on the floor of the study, lying in a pool of blood, his skin streaked in lines of black poison and a sword wedged through his heart.

The sword was coated in Nightmother’s Kiss. One of the few poisons that could kill a Fae in a heartbeat.

The polished black liquid was sourced from the rivers of the Underworld, where it was filled with pure night and the shadow of death. It killed us by stealing our immortal essence.

I smelled it before I saw it. That faint scent of death and shadow. My father never stood a chance.

I’d always thought the villain responsible for killing my father went above and beyond to plot his death. It made sense now, for Nightmother’s Kiss didn’t affect humans. We’d suspected dark magic at work, but even that didn’t make sense. Now things were falling into place.

My father had done business with the human realm on multiple occasions. An ambassador like Elariya’s father would have been perfect to infiltrate the palace.

None of the guards saw anyone who wasn’t supposed to be there, but that didn’t excuse him. More than likely, that was where magic came in. But it must have been something we couldn’t detect because there was no evidence of magic.

Maybe Elariya’s father used something without a signature like the vortex. It was possible.Anythingwas possible.

My father had always taught me to take everything as it presented itself to me. Doing so hadn’t failed me yet. So, there was no reason to think Lord Grayson was innocent.

Dreynthor’s part in this mess hadn’t left my mind. I kept thinking about how he must have schemed with Lord Grayson to kill his own brother and take the kingdom for himself.

Dreynthor loathed humans, but he didn’t hate them enough to pass up an opportunity like using one to kill my father.

I didn’t care that I had no evidence to lock him down. The warning in my heart told me he was guilty. My mother always told me when you got that feeling, you needed to pay attention. Not cast it aside.

Sadly, all I could do now was what I’d already been doing. Watching him.

Watching him while I worked as quickly as possible to retrieve the ultimate weapon to end his power.

The door creaked open without a knock, cutting into the silence and my thoughts.

I looked up to find Alaric crossing the threshold. He closed the door behind him and made his way over to me, looking around the room as if checking everything was still in order.

I gave him a thin stare. “What?”

“Just wanted to check on you. And the study. Last time you were alone for hours, you wrecked the place.”

I sighed and pushed the goblet aside. “What makes you think I would do that now?”

He didn’t answer immediately. He lowered into the seat before me then gave me a curious stare. “You've been testier of late. Since the little mage arrived.”

“I’m fine.”

He quirked a hard brow and smirked. “Drinking in the shadows is not a sign of being fine, brother.”

My shoulders slumped and I nodded with reluctance. “The pressure is on and time is against me. Thelittle mageis the first andonlylead we’ve had since Father’s death. I can’t fuck this up.”

“I understand.” He leaned forward and rested his hands on the table. “But you need to remember I’m here to help. And that I’m more than just your Bloodsworn. I’m your brother. You may be the eldest, and the one the curse struck, but you don’t have to take everything on by yourself.”

I regarded him. Regarded the concern etched into the hard planes of his face, the genuine need to support me vibrant in his eyes.

I obliged him with a rare smile. “I’ll try to remember that.”

“Good, you need to.” He poured himself some wine from the decanter, took a long swig, then gave me a hard stare. “You said we’d all meet tomorrow morning to discuss the next steps, but there are a couple of things on my mind.”