Page 163 of Till Death

I paused, crossing my arms, trying to swallow my pride. “It’s Faber. I’m listening.”

“Do you want to know why Death came, had a son, and then abandoned him? All magic comes with a cost, and when Death’s power was restricted by the gods when they made Requiem immortal, he leeched the immortal power in order to create his harbingers because he’s hunting a soul in Requiem.”

“Interesting.” I knew this, but Ezra had said everything had ears, and there were few I trusted enough to share anything with, so I let her continue as I remained silent.

“It wasn’t enough for him to have a single weapon. He’s greedy. So, he took a human woman to his bed, his seed bearing him a son. He believed he stole the power and the very breath of his heir to gain the ability to overtake the magic of the next born Life Maiden. Orin was meant to die after that, and Death was sure the last strand of your Life magic had sent his son to the ether rather than this court.”

My heart plummeted into my stomach. “How could you possibly know this, and why would you tell me?”

“I’ve been here for a long time, Deyanira, and the only thing I’ve sought for years is this answer. I could feel you in my belly. The pure joy and healing and love that radiated from you before you were born was immense. I always thought you would be the new Life Maiden after Sorenia, your predecessor, was killed. But then everything turned dark, and I came here. I knew it was wrong. Broken somehow. If I give you nothing else, daughter, take this knowledge. He will surely cast me into the Lake when he learns of my betrayal anyway.”

“Mother,” I whispered, taking her hand. “What in the gods’ names could you have done to get this information? Surely, he’s not keeping a diary.”

She smiled, so sad it was haunting. “He keeps consorts.” She brushed a dark lock of hair behind an ear, letting the moment and her confession hang between us until the silence grew unbearable.

“I don’t know what to say.”

“You don’t need to say anything. Just listen. Death wants no heirs, no one vying for his position. The bond that you share goes beyond your marriage, but don’t fool yourself. Orin’s darkness is strong enough to swallow you whole, as it was always intended to. His existence was a price paid and nothing more. Believe me, his father sees that power for what it is now. He intends to send him to Requiem as soon as he has control and bring it down. Every person will fall. Every soul will be reaped. And the price for that kind of magic will be Orin himself. And likely anyone tied to him. Run far and fast, Deyanira. Or this lake will look like a sanctuary when Death truly gets ahold of you. He’ll play with his food first, but he never leaves the table hungry.”

I turned to her then, staring into foreign eyes, into the face of a woman who was taken from me before I could even know the love of a mother. Yet she’d still made her own sacrifices. She’d found a way to love me beyond death. “I didn’t grow up gentle. I’m not a reticent person. I don’t like gravy, and sometimes flowers make me sneeze. I prefer the cold side of a pillow, and I’m not a morning person. I taught myself to walk, and when Father hired a tutor to teach me to read and write, I taught myself instead because she was mean. I prefer rooftops over grassy fields, and I’m not scared of heights. I can’t play an instrument or sing, and I accidentally married the wrong man. But he was the right man. The only one for me. He loves me just as much as you do, and whatever part of me that’s bound to him is where my future lies. Be it darkness or light, an eternity at the bottom of this lake or upon a throne of skulls, I will not leave him to suffer his father’s madness. And while I’m grateful for your words, there’s truly nothing you could have said that would have changed my mind. I’ve never been a runner, Mother, only a Maiden.”

“Dey—”

“You’re suffering. I can see it in your eyes. Let me try to bring you a bit of peace. A little of those final moments of happiness in Requiem.” Reaching for her hand, I pulled her into a hug, holding my breath as I called for the power I was always meant to have. She gasped as light formed between us. Not the blue or silver light of nighttime, but something warm and inviting. Calm and healing.

But one moment I was holding my mother, wishing her peace, and the next, the light of her soul was ripped away from her body as skin and bones turned to embers, and she was released. Free. The tiny orb of light circled me once and then twice, and though I wasn’t sure if my mind conjured it or if it really happened, I could’ve sworn I heard her whisper, “Thank you,” before she vanished altogether.

“What the hell?” I said, mostly to myself, as no one was nearby.

But a sinister voice answered. “You’ve released her soul to reincarnate, and now you’ll do the same for me.”

Chapter 63

“If you piss your pants in hell, are you stuck in them forever, or…”

The Maestro’s smile illuminated his dark eyes as he moved toward me. And I let him follow, step after step, as I backed toward Paesha, Hollis, and Ezra standing with my father at the edge of the Lake of Lost Souls.

“Aren’t you the humorous one?” he asked, shifting away from the edge just as my back collided with Paesha’s.

“Depends on who you ask, I guess. But about your request. I’m going to have to turn that down. I’m not here to play at being a god.”

“What are you talking about?” my father demanded, slipping from Ezra’s loosened grip as he spun, searching the fog resting above the silvery water. “Where’s your mother?”

I narrowed my eyes but said nothing.

He stepped forward, the malice on his face something that had haunted me as a child. I’d mourned his death. Justified every hateful action he’d taken against me, and he still had the gall to look at me like that. I’d chosen peace with him relentlessly, but even I had my limits.

“Where is my wife?” he demanded again.

“Free.”

Without warning, Drexel lunged, grabbing Hollis from my side, slipping his arm around his neck, and dragging him backward toward the edge of the lake.

“No,” I screamed, but Ezra held me back, snatching Paesha, as well.

“Don’t get close to the water,” he growled, staring at Drexel, who’d taken my father’s side.

Hollis squirmed, and I couldn’t manage a single breath as my heart began to pound in my chest. I couldn’t lose him twice.