Page 234 of The Spider Queen

“I think that means she agrees,” Thane yelled back. His arms were around me, and I was nestled between his powerful legs.

Auri’s gold-scaled wings flapped, cutting through the air. She was marvelous. I stroked her neck to thank her for her generosity in taking us home, but also in thanks for the spectacle I was witnessing.

We flew over the Desert of the Forgotten, and I shuddered when I saw the tawny sand dunes slide and morph. Dark specks below, too small to be desert scorpions, trekked across the soft sand.

I wondered if they were the desert soldiers made of iron. But I didn’t ask Thane because I didn’t want to think about the desert ever again.

We soared over forests and swamps, mountains and valleys. It was a dangerous sort of beauty, one I hoped to one day explore. With Thane by my side.

His hand snaked around my belly, and he let it rest there. It was comforting, warm. Solid.

I’ve been wondering something.

Go on.

Queen Aisling said you’d never sacrifice yourself for me. But clearly she was wrong. You were petrified in place of me.

I felt Thane pause, obviously choosing his words.Sacrifice looks different for everyone. I knew I had to be the one to absorb the magic spell. Because the prophecy stated it was you who would be the one to turn the tide of the battle. Not me. But, even if that hadn’t been the case—even if I’d been given the choice to sacrifice myself for you, I would have. In a heartbeat.

But you’re Guardian of the Bridge. You couldn’t have done that.

I always thought I would’ve chosen my duty and obligation. But I would’ve saved you, Poppy. Even at the cost of being Guardian.

I let his words sink in.But what would’ve happened if you had died? What would’ve become of the Guardian?

I’m not sure. The obligation might’ve passed to you. It might’ve passed to another. The Guardian is chosen. I was chosen over Xan.

But you said a woman has never been Guardian.

Magic is fluid. There are rules, yes. But it adapts. It finds a way. When one Guardian dies, another takes its place. It just so happens that my father’s line continued on.

Xan didn’t want to be Guardian,I said in realization.He wanted something else.

Xan wanted power. His deal with Lucifer was all about power. Sure, Xan wanted me out of the way, but he didn’t kill me when he had the chance. All those years ago, when I was imprisoned, he chose not to kill me, and he absolutely could have.

So why didn’t he kill you?

Because he wanted me to suffer. Because he wanted to cause trouble. His end game was never about being Guardian. It was about besting me. And you can’t torture a dead man.

I’m sorry.

Magic, power, greed, jealousy—it corrupts those with already corruptible hearts. Xan was weak. He was destined to be lesser.

I’m still sorry. You shared a womb. You were more than brothers. You were best friends. I’m sorry you had to be the one to stop him.

I’m sorry you had to be the one to kill the man you once loved. I’m sorry I couldn’t spare you that pain.

I leaned back against him and turned my face up to his. As the wind flogged my cheeks, I closed my eyes and touched my lips to his.

Though I was immortal now, I couldn’t ever imagine the guilt over Hunter’s death fading with time. So I’d learn to live with it.

Thane leaned back but kept his arms tight around me.I don’t think you’ll ever know how much I love you.

I do.

I waited for you. For thousands of years. You were my destiny, Poppy.

Auri dipped through the clouds to reveal Thane’s fortress made of black stone turrets and gothic archways. I’d never seen it before—when Thane and I had begun our journey, wards hid his citadel the moment we left the safety of his land. I hadn’t expected it to look like this, a dark castle that was nestled among green hills with a tropical jungle flanking one side. A beach with white sand and gentle lapping waves of the ocean was on the other.