Page 62 of Beyond Those Gilded Walls

“Yes, many times,” he said, his voice strained. “And don’t ask me how because you shouldn’t have been able to.”

“Keep going,” I whispered, still attempting to rationalize this new information. I’d been to the Beyond, the world of the dead, realm of Kalyx. I’d been to the Beyondmultipletimes. I focused back on Tallon, trying to keep my breathing slow and even, despite my heart thundering against my ribs. I dug my thumb into the center of my palm, twisting it into the healing wound.

He raised his head and looked at me briefly before continuing. “I made a deal with King Gavriel, a foolish deal but one of ironclad terms. In exchange for him showing me what living as a human was like, he would have complete control over me and my magic for a period of seven years. I had nothing to lose, I thought. I was enjoying myself here in the castle, getting to meet people and live as I had seen others do. I was foolish. The deal had only been in place for a year when Gavriel asked me to release the plague onto Veressia.”

“Why?” I couldn’t stop the interjection, outrage amplifying my voice.

“He was losing his control,” he replied with a shrug. “There is nothing like fear to reassert that. Death is inevitable, but death like this is… it induces a panic, and people look to those in charge to help save them. King Gavriel wanted that control back desperately. But he’d never used my powers like this before, he’d only given me small tasks before, like killing political rivals and criminals. His first attempts at using them for death this widespread were clumsy. I asked him who to target with the plague, and he said to do it at random. So I did. Without limitations, my magic is destructive, and I wasn’t able to set those limitations myself due to the bargain. I tried to inform him that he needed to be more specific with his commands, but he refused. I’m sure you can predict what happened next.”

“The queen.”

He nodded. “Yes, Queen Evanya. When she died, he was furious with me, but his grief was stronger. He asked me to kill him, but the deal prevented that. We could not harm each other, lest the binding magic exact the same thing onto the other. When he flung himself from the tower, I thought the deal had been broken. But it simply transferred to Prince Eadric, and…” He took a deep breath and shook his head on a dry chuckle. “Well, let’s just say the prince is far more creative than his father ever was, and far more willing to use the bargain between us to get what he wanted.”

The pieces slotted into place. “You are trapped here, too, aren’t you?”

He shrugged. “In theory, I could have gone back to the Beyond. But one of the first things Eadric did was make it so I could only return there for short periods of time. He blamed me for his parents’ deaths, and rightfully so, but he sought to punish me for it. He said that since I wanted so desperately to know what being human was like, to know what humanity had to offer, he would throw a party in my honor. One I could not decline. He told me he would throw me a party every night until the bargain expired.”

“Why is he still having you kill people?” I asked, trying to fight back the sympathy welling in my chest. “Surely he knows he won’t have a kingdom to rule much longer if he continues.”

He cast me a dry look. “Odyssa, he does notcareabout the kingdom. Why do you think he has not ascended to be king yet? He cares only about punishing me, about controlling me and making me his pawn. Nothing else matters to him. None of these people matter.”

I chewed on my lip, considering my words. I didn’t forgive him, but the hatred and betrayal I’d felt earlier had started to fade. While nowhere near as malevolent, I could relate to his plight. My mother, my brothers, all I’d ever been to them was a means to an end. Someone to get them what they wanted. All I wanted in return was their love, but Tallon had just wanted to live. My stomach churned, flashes of Talyssa’s body still fresh in my mind. “My sickness. That was you.”

“It was all me. I am responsible for every death from the plague in Veressia and for every death that will come in the next days and weeks.”

“And the Soulshades?” I asked.

He shook his head. “Those are something else entirely. Outside of the castle, they are just remnant spirits who would not cross over to the Beyond. But here… I don’t know how, but they are part of the castle. Eadric can control them to an extent, but they aren’t mine and they aren’t Kalyx’s.” His brows furrowed. “Do you truly believe I would have set them after you and let them hurt you like that?”

I struggled with how to respond. I had thought that, though I hadn’t wanted to. “I don’t know, Tallon. That is why I asked.” I took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “You said you wanted to explain. Keep going.”

“After Gavriel and Evanya died, Eadric had me continuing the random affliction, with guidelines now of course. Lately though, he’s giving me names. Specific people to afflict. He’s running out of people, though, and I’ve told him if he doesn’t slow down, the kingdom will be gone before my deal is over and he will have to begin killing off the people inside the castle.”

“Why did you keep this a secret from me? Why lie to me this entire time? Were you ever going to help me get the treatment for my brothers?” I froze, icy fear washing over my body as I came to a realization. “Tallon,isthere even a treatment?”

He nearly lunged across the bed, sprawled half on his stomach and side as he reached for my hands. I drew them back, more out of being startled than of not wanting him to touch me. His hands rested just beside my thighs, clenched tightly into fists. “Odyssa,yes,there is a treatment. I would never lie to you about that.”

Tears stung my eyes. “Then why have you not gotten it for me yet? Youknowwhat I need it for. You have been stringing me along for days, Tallon. How am I supposed to trust you now?”

He shook his head, hesitantly taking my hands in his. When I didn’t pull away, his grip tightened and he adjusted himself on the bed until he was pressed against my side. Warmth blazed at every point of contact and all I could focus on was his thumb rubbing across the back of my hand. “I was trying to find a way around the deal, but to steal the treatment from him would be considered breaking our terms. I kept putting it off because I hoped…” His eyes blazed silver once more, and he reached his hand up to cup my cheek. “I hoped you would be smart enough to figure it out without me.”

“I almost did, but you took me away before I could.”

The little snort he let out almost had me smiling. He let his hand drop from my face and rolled over onto his back, looking up at me. “He was in his study, Odyssa. If you’d gotten in, he would have killed you.”

My heart sank to my stomach. “Oh.”

Silence fell between us.

“Can I hold you, Odyssa?” he asked. His eyes were so open, and there was no trace of deception or hidden truths in them. He seemed almost vulnerable. “Please?”

I was moving before I realized I’d agreed, settling my body in beside his and looking up at him. His heart thumped beneath my hand resting on his chest, and his hand curled around my hip. The room was thick with tension, and I didn’t want to be the one to break it. Not yet.

His eyes darted down to my lips, and I almost pushed forward to press my mouth to his, but I held back. The visions of tonight would take time to fade, even now that I knew the truth. It felt like a betrayal to Talyssa, to them all, to be here in his embrace, let alone to give in to our desire for each other. I turned my face into his chest instead, inhaling his scent and warmth.

He merely tightened his hold around me.

“What now, Tallon?” I asked. “Ineedyou to help me. I understand why you’ve done the things you have, and that you have no control over those you afflict. But you killed my mother, you nearly killed me, and one of my brothers is likely dead already. You must help me get this treatment.”

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