Page 142 of Where Darkness Falls

I gesture to her captor. “You can’t trust this creature,” I say.

“Creature?” the Minotaur bellows, taking a step towards me. “You dare to call meCREATURE?”

I grip Scrisis’s hilt tightly as I inch forward, ready to deliver this beast to its death, when Maeva’s voice rings out. “I’ll show you.”

The Minotaur turns to Maeva, shortening the distance between them as he looms over her. “No tricks?” the beast asks. If I’m not mistaken, he sounds desperate, as if he already knows that Maeva’s ability is the answer to all that ails him.

Perhaps she is, but he could easily harm her if his only desire is to prove who she is.

I’d rather die than allow that to happen.

Maeva’s throat bobs as she offers a reassuring nod. “You have my word,” she says.

The Minotaur crosses its arms over its chest, creating distance between himself and Maeva. “Show me,” he says softly.

Maeva agrees, closing her eyes and opening her hands. There’s a tremor in her body as small rivulets of starlight leak from her palms, dancing in the space between them. Her hair floats on the phantom breeze, as if she were weightless. When her eyes open, they’re no longer the blue of the ocean, but the color of frozen ice over the rivers in Zulgalros.

“Incredible,” the Minotaur marvels. Slowly, he reaches for Maeva’s open palms. He hesitates as his hands hover above hers.

“You have nothing to fear,” she promises.

He nods, clasping his hands with hers. Then, her ability winds up his arms. Maeva shivers as the Minotaur’s features shift between confusion and clarity. Instead of turning to ash, the opaqueness of his eyes fades. The starlight intensifies, making the pair look ethereal in its haze.

Bloody Celestae…

My Rosey finally did it.

Pride swells in my heart as the peace that radiates from her settles into my very bones. She’s light and darkness encompassed into one.

“She’s incredible,” Riordan whispers.

“She truly is,” Virgil admires.

She focuses completely on the creature before her, and it is as if her ability has taken over as she continues to push more into the creature. When the Minotaur tries to pull away, Maeva doesn’t release him. The wonder that was in the creature’s eyes moments before morphs into fear as he can’t escape her ability.

Virgil steps up beside the pair. “Maeva,” he says calmly. She tilts her head in his direction, but her ice-blue eyes don’t reflect the Rosey I know. The terrified woman from before has been replaced with a version that’s impassive. Virgil inches closer. “That’s enough,” he whispers. Maeva cocks her head to the side, but doesn’t release the creature. “You’ve done well, Little Star. Now, release him.”

As if coming back to herself, she blinks, freeing the Minotaur from her grip. Immediately, Maeva’s starlight flows back into her body.

“The sweetness of Malvorian blood,” the Minotaur murmurs, speaking more to himself, “and the bitterness of...” There’s the briefest of pauses, then the enormous beast laughs heartily. Maeva stumbles backward, right into Virgil, who steadies her. “I never thought I’d see the day,” he bellows.

“My blood has the bitterness of what?” Maeva asks.

Her question only causes the Minotaur’s laugh to turn into a roar as he carries on.

“Does her scent or starlight possibly encourage mania?” Riordan whispers.

I shrug in response.

After a moment, the creature wipes its eyes. “So, the prophecies are all true, then?” the Minotaur asks. “You’ve come to set us all free from our shackles.”

Maeva tilts her head quizzically. “I’m merely the one destined to awaken the Na Fíréin, Creature,” she replies.

“Creature?!” the Minotaur laughs.

So, it’s only acceptable when she calls him a creature then,I think.

“I’m called Darach, milady,” he continues. “I’m the leader of the Minotaurs who wander freely within these woods by the birthright passed down to me after your protectors killed Oberon.”

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