In the Wake of the Wicked (Veridian Empire #1)

73. Rose

73

Rose

“ W hat did you do to him?” I screamed at Gayl. “Bring him back!”

“What happened?” Rissa asked frantically. I looked around the room for the first time to see my friends each restrained by a guard—in Horace’s case, two. We were in a large, dark chamber I didn’t recognize, with no windows, a few sconces to light the way, and only one door far across the space.

Rissa struggled against the man pinning her arms behind her back. “Rose, where’s Leo?”

“He—he was right behind me—” I whirled around and slammed my hand against the wall. “He’s still there. On the island.” My breaths came out in shallow spurts as I turned and slumped against the stone.

“And there he will remain until I choose to lift the enchantment,” Gayl said smoothly.

“Why are we here, Your Majesty?” Arowyn asked, sneering at the guard behind her. Next to her stood Nox with his hands bound, a look of pure wrath I’d never seen before on his tan features. My brow furrowed. Why wasn’t he using his magic? He could shift and take down every single person in this palace in a single breath.

My eyes caught on the black metal cuffs surrounding his wrists. My lips parted. It looked like the cuffs used by the Mysthelm soldiers in my second trial dreamscape. The kind that took away magic.

Could those possibly exist? Is that why none of the others were attempting to fight back?

Gayl regarded Arowyn with his mismatching eyes. “I’m afraid, Miss Garrolas, you were simply in the wrong place at the wrong time.” He lifted two fingers, and the guards holding Nox and Arowyn grabbed their charges by the arms and began marching them toward the single door.

Arowyn yanked from the guard’s hold. “Where are you taking us?” she demanded.

“You will remain unharmed,” Gayl said, his cloak sweeping over the floor as he faced me. He ignored the sounds of the two challengers scuffling against their restraints. A moment later, the chamber door shut behind them with an echoing clang. I glared at him, shoving all of my fury and determination into my features.

His lips thinned. “Do you not believe me? They will be safe. They won’t even remember what happened,” he said softly, that powerful voice not showing a hint of his emotions.

“How can you expect me to believe you after everything?” I spat. “What about my friends? What about Leo ?”

“I warned you, Rose. The first night we met. I never promised mercy to those who seek to undermine me, and I have let your friends carry on for far too long.”

“You’ve disgraced the integrity of the tournament, Your Majesty,” Lark said in a shaking voice, as if still trying to play the part of the dutiful head architect. Her shoulders rolled backward at an awkward angle from the guard holding her. “All we’ve built, all we’ve worked for?—”

“ I disgraced it, Miss Everest?” Gayl hissed, striding across the room to stand before her. “You think I didn’t know of your betrayal? How you entered my home seeking to trick me?” He brandished an arm. “Tell me what you have built. Tell me what you have worked for, if not to commit treason against your emperor.”

When she said nothing, he tilted his head and stalked toward Horace, who thrashed against his two guards. “Imagine my disappointment upon learning one of my trusted guards, of the mightiest in the empire, had fallen to the rebels. Your position was an honor, Horace Banathery. A symbol of the most elite men and women who keep this empire safe.” Gayl leaned in closer to Horace, but his quiet voice carried through the room. “Tell me why I should not have you executed for your actions, soldier.”

“I can’t, Your Majesty,” Horace said. “There are some things worth dying for.”

Gayl lingered a moment before turning to Rissa, who stood tall, her expression giving away nothing. He took his time appraising her, letting the pressure and anticipation build until it was so thick I could taste it in the air.

“It has been a long time since I’ve seen you, Clarissa Aris,” he finally said, with what almost sounded like reminiscence. “You’re not the young girl I remember.”

“No, I’m not,” she responded.

“You look so much like him.” He paused, and I could only see his profile as he stared at her. The lost heir and the man who stole her future. “Tell me if it was worth it, young Aris. Leading your people to their inevitable failure.”

She held his gaze, her chin high, eyes flashing. “Every step.”

The corner of his lip twitched.

I gritted my teeth. “So this trial, this entire Decemvirate, was your way of what—removing the rebels from the equation?”

“And to teach a lesson.” His eyes stayed on Rissa. “Rising to power always comes with consequences. The higher you climb, the farther you have to fall. If you desire to take something, you must be willing to lose everything.” He faced me again, the wrinkles on his forehead deepening as he truly looked at me for what felt like the first time that night. “You were never meant to be part of this, niece. You were…unexpected. ”

“Sorry to disappoint,” I shot back.

He shook his head, dark hair brushing his shoulders. “You are not a disappointment, Rose. You brought back a past I thought was buried. We are alike, you and I. Have you not realized it?”

Something oily slid along my skin as he stepped toward me. Something toxic and claiming. And, perhaps…true.

“Both outcasts in our lives, both searching for something more,” he continued. “Such as freedom from the constraints that this world—this magic —has forced on us. Pride in our own abilities, in the extraordinary things we know we’re capable of, if only others could see.” He was an arms-length away from me now. His dark blue and white eyes delved straight through me, as they always had.

“I see you, Rose. And I think, for the first time since your father, I had someone see me, as well. I know how much you care for the people of this empire. I do, too, even if you don’t always agree with my ways. But it’s because of that, because of your fierce determination, your aim for truth, that I think you could be great.”

The world seemed to slow. “What are you saying?”

“I will never have an heir of my own, niece, but you are my blood. Think of what we could do. Together .” He reached out a gloved hand and, when I didn’t stop him, took mine. “Join me. Let me teach you all that I know, and one day this empire could be yours.”

I blinked. He wanted me to be his heir ? To rule in his place once he was gone?

For a single moment, I imagined it.

I imagined life in this grand palace, surrounded by all the magic my heart desired. Learning, growing, changing . Living constantly in the unparalleled rush that overtook me every time I practiced my magic. Using our powers to create good.

But this future…it wasn’t mine. I didn’t know if I could create good . And this empire desperately needed someone who would.

“You’re right,” I said, looking from his hand back to his eyes. “We are alike. We both crave a certain type of power, something I hadn’t fully realized until you showed me.” I swallowed thickly. “But that’s a dangerous desire, and even more dangerous when people like us actually get it.” I slipped my hand from his, lowering my voice. “I don’t want to be like you, uncle. My father walked away because he saw the warning signs. Because he saw what this magic and power would do to you. I choose to follow his path.”

Gayl’s hand clenched into a fist. “And where did that path lead him?” he whispered, his voice deadly. Sinister. “Your father could not handle what I had to offer him. He was weak when it mattered most. And that is why he is gone .”

Frozen in place, a thought entered my mind. One too terrible to voice, that I didn’t want to voice, but the truth swelled inside me.

I sucked in a breath. “Did you—did you kill him?”

He pulled back from me, his eyes shifting across mine. “I killed them all , Rose.”