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“The heavens found out what I was doing.” I didn’t want Haden to be angry with me, but at this point he had every right to be.

I was the villain in his story. “They thought I manipulated you into a bond, but there was a real bond to begin with anyways.

They tried to kill it, but they couldn't stop it.”

“You manipulated Abram, the God of Fates.” Malamay glared. “And then you helped hide him from us. He must be punished for his treasons.”

“I did not manipulate Abram. He was glad to help me.” I smiled smugly at Malamay. They would never find him either.

“So, you have manipulated me.” Haden’s voice cracked. “I don’t understand.”

“Yes.” I felt his betrayal pumping through our bond.

“Your parents disrupted the balance of the realm by creating you and your siblings. You should have been born naturally, Haden, but they created you to be monsters. They wanted you to be evil. The old gods found out immediately what was happening. What they didn’t realize was that your piece of shit father was also just as tainted as your mother.

“He tricked the old gods to take pity on him.

They agreed to give him the position of leading the star counsel—something the old gods had been in charge of forever.

The old gods took turns staying in the stars to look after the gods who died.

Back then the gods had the choice to be reborn as a god, be reborn not as a god, or ascend to the heavens.

“Your father has been collecting the dead gods up in the stars, hoarding them like his own personal collection of power. I started having visions of it, and I told the old gods what he was doing. But I also told them that I saw you and your siblings break free from Hell. I saw what the seven of you would do, Haden. I had to tell them—it was my duty. But I also wanted you.”

I was crying, but Haden just stared at me as he tried to process all of this.

“Did you know only some gods have to have their soul removed to kill them, but most gods also have a weakness that will kill them too? Your father did not rip your mother’s soul from her.

I did. I killed her, and she went to the stars.

But your father followed after her. Then they started this plan to take over Elloryon by getting your siblings freed.

“The heavens and old gods demanded that I make it right since I was having the visions. But also, I voted in favor of your father to be in charge of the stars, not knowing he was a fucking snake. And at first, that meant manipulating one of you for information.”

“So, you picked me.” Haden’s voice broke softly. “You gave me magic, you gave me images of you, and what—gave us a fake mating bond? Do I even love you, or did you manipulate that too?”

“She gave you her magic?” Malamay butted into the story. His eyes were full of wild anger when he turned to me. “You never told us any of this.”

“Why would I?” I smiled when his face fell. He had no idea how deep my deceit went. "I was supposed to kill you, Haden. But I fell in love with you and convinced Abram to help me protect you."

Malamay's eyes filled with betrayal as my secrets tumbled out of me.

Malamay stepped forward like he would strike me.

I wished he would. I would rip the soul from him and evaporate it so he would be gone for good.

But there was still one problem—one of the old gods was helping them, and I needed to deal with that because I figured out who it was.

I stared at Haden as an array of emotions went through his eyes, and none of them looked great for me.

“Tell him why the bond was with Holden instead of him,” I demanded of Malamay. His jaw clenched tightly. He was fucking fuming that I went there, but Haden deserved to know the truth. His father was a piece of shit too.

“No,” he whispered.

“Because your father killed me.” I looked at Haden. Haden looked as if he had been slapped. He looked at me oddly. “They tried to get me to stay in the stars, but I got away from them and came back, but it fucked with our bond. It was given to the wrong brother.”

“Why would they kill you?” Haden glared at his father. “When did they kill you?”

“It was an accident.” Malamay lied through his damn teeth, but I let it slide because I still had to finish my plan.

“An accident.” Thea glared.

“I was trying to rip out the mating bond, and it took her soul instead.”

“Why her mating bond?” Haden stepped forward, pissed off beyond reason.

Malamay refused to answer him.

“Your mother wanted me mated to Mateo. They killed me after you declared you’d use your turn to break the curse.

I came back almost immediately because I am the Goddess of Life, but it messed with my memory for a while.

I did not remember you until I saw Holden.

Those images you planted in my mind in Akecia surfaced when I saw him. It made me remember some things.”

Haden looked at me. His eyes burned so fucking red that I shrank back at the wrath pumping through him. He looked at Malamay and moved toward him.

“No,” he said with venom. “Mateo does not ever get to have her. She is mine.”

“Wait!” Malamay pleaded. “Your precious Della gave your siblings the Book of Dark Magic so they could use it to take the souls from the gods and their mates. I traded her the Book of the Dead for it, and she agreed. She also agreed to break your siblings’ curse to free them from Hell.

She is also betraying the entire realm.”

This motherfucker.

I looked at Haden, who stopped walking, and opened my mouth to speak, but his power rippled from him and made me shut the hell up.

“She knew she would fall from the grace of the stars; she did it intentionally so it would free them.

Your little wife is more evil than you could ever hope to be," Malamay hissed. “Then she wiped her own memories so that she wouldn’t give herself away to you or me. But it seems she has gotten them back and knows the extent of her treasons.”

My eyes darted to Cassius, who frowned at me when he realized he gave me these memories back. Haden stared at me, his wrath fading to betrayal.

“You knew this whole time you would fall from the grace of the stars to free them? How fucking dare you lie to me about this!” His eyes flashed red."I thought I caused this. The guilt has been eating me alive that I couldn't save you."

“Calm down,” Malamay demanded. “She knew it was the right move. They will be on the winning side of this when they come to the surface. They will take over everything. She did it to save her and you.”

Malamay looked at me, and I shook my head with rage.

“You really think I would choose this?” Haden snapped at me. “I will never go down this path with you.”

I couldn’t wait until I gutted Malamay at the end of this. He was doing a great job of painting me out to be the villain. My mating bond was burning, letting me know that I was hurting Haden with what I did.

“Everything about us was a lie?” Haden frowned. “You manipulated me. You have been the villain this entire time!”

Malamay opened his mouth to argue with Haden, but I quickly interrupted him.

“Yes.”

Malamay looked at me and stepped toward us. He looked me in the eyes.

“What are you doing?” he whispered. “You are supposed to convince him, not let him walk away," he snapped.

“Saving him the guilt of what is about to happen to me.” I answered. “I was never going to let him follow me down this path.”

Malamay’s eyes filled with rage as he looked at me. There was an understanding in his eyes as I let Haden become angry with me. If he hated me, it would probably be even better.

“What the fuck are you up to?” He looked frantic.

“I don’t know what you are talking about,” I said innocently.

“You deserve this,” Malamay said softly.

I saw Haden’s eyes pulsing red as he looked at me. He was so angry and disappointed in me. But I would take the hatred. I would take everything so that he did not wonder if he could have saved me.

“Ardella, please,” Malamay begged with one last attempt. “Tell him to come to our side. This was not part of the plan. He is my son, and I don’t want to end him with the other gods, but I fucking will.”

“I will not allow it. Haden will never be like you.”

“What else are you hiding?” Haden yelled, shaking the ground below us. I looked at him, and I could feel the devastation radiating from him. He was pacing back and forth, his eyes shifting from red to black and back again. Shit.

“You two go back to the stars,” Malamay demanded of the other two stars. They seemed to hesitate before they disappeared.

“Is it that bad that you had to send the other stars away?” Haden scoffed.

“I was born of two stars, the star of Zipher—a normal star—and one of Balinier—a dead one,” I confessed.

Haden stopped breathing as he looked at me.

“It wasn’t always outlawed that gods had to be born of a living star.

That is how your mother was born of a dead one, and afterward we understood the difference in her.

It was outlawed to be born of more than one star.

You were the last god born of such circumstances. ”

“You are a God of Hell?” Thea asked.

“No,” I whispered. “I am the Goddess of Life, but I am also the Goddess of Deceit, but no one knows.”

“Do I even fucking know who my own wife is?” Haden sneered.

“I understand that I came from Hell and planned on seeking revenge against the heavenly gods, but for fuck’s sake, Ardella, even I am not this calculated and manipulative.

You were only interested in me to kill me and get information.

How will I ever trust anything about you? ”