Page 37 of Fade With Me

Zeke’s voice sliced through my thoughts. “I’ll say it again.Weare not mortal. Neither of us. We’re not confined by human fragility. We don’t follow the same rules. We’re not bound by biology—and we’re not destined to die.”

His tone softened, almost reverent. “We are something more. Something that exists beyond the natural order.”

The words sounded absurd.

Had he been watching me, studying me, and still misunderstood so completely?

I was ordinary. Entirely human. Was he mistaking me for someone else?

“Listen,” I said, trying to keep my voice steady. “Whatever that was, whatever magic trick you just pulled, I can’t do that. I’ve never evenseenanything like it. Trust me, I’m mortal. Completely.”

He stepped back and interlaced his fingers, calm as ever. “The chains of this world don’t bind me,” he said. “But you…you’re trapped in this cell. Trapped by the limitations of your own reality.”

His face relaxed, but something deeper flickered in his eyes. “I’ve been searching for you for what feels like an eternity.”

A sudden memory hit me.

His voice—from the dreams.Bryn, where are you?

It slipped away as quickly as it came.

I shook my head. “No,” I said firmly. “You’ve got the wrong person. I’m just human. Nothing more.”

He offered a faint smile, touched with sorrow. “That’s the facade they’ve created for you,” he said quietly. “The life they designed for you. But it’s all a lie.Everything…it’s an illusion.”

I didn’t move. His words echoed through me.

A lie?

An illusion?

What did that even mean? It couldn’t be true. Could it? If I had powers, I’d know. Wouldn’t I?

I had to.

The question hovered between us, heavy and persistent.

But I clung to what I knew, desperate to stay grounded in a world I still understood.

“Okay, if…I’m not mortal,” I said, my voice barely more than a whisper, each word wrapped in uncertainty. My gaze dropped to the ground, then lifted back to him, searching for an answer I wasn’t sure I wanted. “Then whatamI?”

Zeke’s expression lit up. He’d been waiting for this.

“We come from a realm of pure magic,” he said, straightening as if the truth itself bolstered him. His hands shifted slightly at his sides, like he could feel the current of it even now. “We’re sacred beings—immortal, with lifespans stretching centuries. We wield strength most mortals can’t begin to imagine.”

He paused, watching me take it in. A glint sparked in his eyes, the corners of his mouth lifting. “You, my dear, have extraordinary abilities. You’re not just powerful. You’re a force to be reckoned with.”

The warmth in his face vanished, replaced by something solemn and fierce. “In our kingdom, you rule. You sit on a throne, revered by those who worship you. You protect them, standing between them and the forces that would see our world destroyed.” Reverence laced his tone. “Our realm is one of light, where dark magic is forbidden.”

His jaw clenched, his lips curling with disdain. “Those with impure bloodlines often turn to it. They’re weak, craving the power we wield, but they can’t truly claim it. Make no mistake,” he warned, his voice now low and cold, “it poisons the soul of anyone who uses it.”

I blinked, my mind scrambling to make sense of what he was saying. “So…you’re saying I’m a…witch? Aqueenwitch?” The words were too bizarre to wrap my head around, and I laughed, an awkward, nervous sound.

A wicked smile spread across his face. “Strictly speaking, you’re an immortal sorceress, and the proper form of address is ‘Your Highness,’” he said, executing a low, sweeping bow, one hand outstretched in a grand gesture. “But, in simpler terms, yes.”

I tilted my head, narrowing my eyes as I studied him. My arms crossed lightly over my chest. “Okay—so if I’m a queen…what does that make you? A knight? Some kind of royal guard?”

Zeke’s lips twitched into a half-smile. “Sort of,” he said, his tone delightfully cryptic.

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