Page 172 of Children of Blood and Bone

“Perhaps it’s for the best,” he sighs. “She killed Kaea. A quick death would be a gift.”

My body goes rigid.

I blink hard. Too hard.

“W-what?” I stammer. “She said that?”

I struggle to say more, but every word dries in my throat. Kaea’s hatred flashes back into my eyes.Maggot.

“She confessed to being at the temple.” Father speaks as if the answer was obvious. “That’s where they recovered Kaea’s body.”

He picks up a small turquoise crystal, stained with blood. My stomach twists as he holds it up to the light.

“What’s that?” I ask, though I already know the answer.

“Some kind of residue.” Father’s lips curl. “The maggot left these in Kaea’s hair.”

Father crushes the remnant of my magic until it crumbles into dust. As it breaks, the smell of iron and wine hits me.

The scent of Kaea’s soul.

“When you find your sister, end her.” Father speaks more to himself than to me. “There’s no shortage of people I would eradicate to keep you both safe, but I cannot forgive her for whatever role she played in Kaea’s demise.”

I grip the hilt of the sword and force a nod. I can almost feel the knife carvingTRAITORinto my back.

“I’m sorry. I know—”She was your sun.“I know… how much she meant to you.”

Father twists his ring, lost in his emotions. “She didn’t want to go. She feared something like this would happen.”

“I think she feared disappointing you more than her own death.”

We all do. We always have.

No one more than me.

“What will you do with her?” I ask.

“With who?”

“Zélie.”

Father blinks at me.

He’s forgotten she has a name.

“The physician is tending to her now. We believe her brother has the scroll. Tomorrow we’ll use her as leverage to retrieve it. After it’s in our hands, she’ll destroy it for good.”

“And after that,” I press, “after it’s gone, what then?”

“She dies.” Father turns back to his map, charting a course. “We’ll parade her corpse around Orïsha, remind everyone what happens if theydefy us. If there’s even a whiff of rebellion, we’ll wipe them all out. Then and there.”

“What if there’s another way?” I speak up. I glance at the cities on the map. “What if we could hear their complaints—use the girl as an ambassador? There are people… people she loves. We could use them to keep her in line. A maji we control.” Each word feels like a betrayal, but when Father doesn’t interrupt, I keep going. I don’t have a choice. I have to save her at all costs. “I’ve seen things on these travels, Father. I understand the divîners now. If we can improve their situation, we’ll quell the possibility of rebellions altogether.”

“My father thought the same thing.”

I suck in a quick breath.

Father never speaks of his family.

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