Page 58 of Lady of the Drowned Empire

Most said the contract was created with a piece of the original Valalumir. But that only seemed to be true part of the time.

“It does seem like Mercurial has some piece of the original light,” I said. “Why else would it be acting this way?”

Morgana shook her head. “I don’t know. It’s plausible that he’s telling the truth. Some of the Afeya must have had access. And it seems like when a contract ends—when a deal is fulfilled—their star and soul return to them, which would mean the light also returns. But no one else is reporting that it heats up or glows. Father made a deal.”

My stomach sank as I recalled that detail. Father had made a deal with Mercurial, a deal that had led to his death, because I’d broken my blood oath.

“Not your fault,” Rhyan said quickly as if reading my mind.

“I know,” I said.

“The point is,” Morgana said, “I saw Father right after, I read his mind. And I saw him the next day—his Valalumir acted nothing like yours.”

“So we’re right where we started.” Rhyan groaned in frustration. “Mercurial’s lying and did something to the contract, and we have no answers.” His eyes met mine, pained.

“I know you don’t trust him. Neither do I.” I reached my hand across the table. Rhyan watched it but didn’t move to take it. “It really might be that he has the light. He’s old enough to have been there at the Drowning, and, I don’t know, maybe that’s why I reacted…because of who I am. Or maybe it was because of the kashonim. Maybe it’s not the contract at all.”

We were clearly dancing around the fact that I was the reincarnation of Asherah, a Guardian of the light, and now, possibly, that a small piece of that light was inside me.

Rhyan exhaled sharply. “It hasn’t bothered you since yesterday morning?”

“No.” It hadn’t bothered me. It had only glowed last night at his touch.

“Enough, we’re officially going in circles. If we’re not going to get answers about that, then we need to move on to how Lyr’s going to find her power,” Morgana said.

I plucked at another scroll and unrolled it. It featured a rendering of a craggy mountain with decorative flames.

“What’s that?” Morgana asked, grabbing the scroll from me.

“Hey,” I snapped. “You have to be gentle with these.”

She squinted. “This looks exactly like the scene from Meera’s vision. There was fire and snow on mountains that had this exact shape. And I saw Lyr—or Meera saw Lyr. She was Asherah, and she was holding part of the Valalumir. The red shard.”

I looked up at the painting of Asherah again. Asherah was the Guardian of the red ray of the light, and then, when it had crystalized, she was the Guardian of the red shard.

“That was in her vision?” I asked, voice low. I eyed Jace, who was still standing at the doors to the entrance hall and looking, despite his earlier promises, rather bored.

“This looks just like it.” Morgana scanned the scroll again before looking at the painting. “It doesn’t offer a location though. Or a description of where this is.”

“Can I see?” Rhyan asked.

Morgana slid the scroll across the table to him.

His green eyes widened. “This was in Meera’s vision?”

Morgana nodded.

Rhyan’s jaw tightened. “I know these mountains. I know them like the back of my hand. They’re almost always covered in snow back home. This is Gryphon’s Mount.”

“Gryphon’s Mount, isn’t that….” I squinted, recalling something Rhyan had told me a month ago. “That’s where the seraphim statue is, right? The one made of moonstone.”

Rhyan nodded. “Meera’s never been to Glemaria.”

“No,” Morgana confirmed.

The bells began to ring from the clocktower.

Rhyan had to go. It was too soon for us to be parted. Too soon for him to be running right back into danger.