Page 130 of Soulgazer

Her voice runs feather soft as I scream one last time and then breathe lungfuls of icy water.

But the pain lasts only seconds. One moment, my vision goes black, and the next, the world blurs past as my father cradles me to his chest.

“You fecking madwoman. You’ll never touch my family again! As king of this island, I banish you to the southernmost tip—how dare you laugh?”

The sound is unhinged and vibrant, crawling across my skin. “Band of fools, all of you. Trying your damnedest to tame that which will never be yours. You’ll learn soon enough.” Gran straightens, her eyes unfettered and terrifying in the way they see everything.

Like she’s spent a lifetime looking and has forgotten how to stop.

“Get out!” Da cradles the back of my head as two guards step forward and catch either of her frail arms, but still she laughs as they drag her from the water.

“She’ll be the last of us, then. Gods know I tried. Mark my words.”

“She’s nothing like you. She won’t be—”

“Look into her eyes. You know the truth of it!” Her words turn shrill, body wrenching against the guards’ hold until they are forced to turn with her, and her smile is the most frightening thing I’ve seen in my life.

“Fate does not bend the knee to the will of kings, my son, no more than it obeyed the will of gods.”

Forty-Nine

“Right, toss out the pretty phrasing—all that shite we already know about daughter of sight and the gloomy bits. The important stuff’s in the second part. Painted lips, bronze-capped tail, past some dark stones and pale waters.”

Nessa steps over Faolan, balancing a steaming bowl as she does. “And the frost.”

Faolan claps his hands and throws an arm about her neck. “Aye, the frost! So where does tha’ leave us?”

The ring glows in my hand as though it was forged of winter ice, beautiful and threatening in turn. It’s a lifeline I cling to, while the rest of the ship devolves into shouting, theories dropping through the air like falling stars.

My own thoughts drown them out.

Heir of sight.Soulgazer.The words weigh heavier each time I remember them, but not so heavy as the knowledge that once, at least for a little while, my father loved me. IknewI hadn’t imagined it. Even though his love was not strong—even though it never lasted—Mam remembered too. Is that why she allowed him to hurt me over and over again?

Laughter cuts through the shouting as Nessa suggests we trythe Isle of Bridled Stag, where there are an abundance of painted lips and plenty of holy wells, and I can’t take it anymore.

I’ve done my part. They can damn well figure out the rest now.

My own bowl is left empty as I walk toward the bow. I’m halfway there when footsteps fall in a counter-rhythm to mine—irritating and precise. I whirl around, expecting Faolan or Brona. But it’s Kiara who stands tall behind me, the wind mussing her cropped red hair.

Gritting my teeth, I bow once and slip the ring into my pocket. “Forgive me for leaving so suddenly.”

“Gods, don’t apologize for that. It’s a welcome change from when I first met you, little Wolf Tamer.”

“Your cousin certainly seems to think so.” I regret the words as soon as they’re out of my mouth, glancing over my shoulder at Faolan as he sweeps his arms wide, then grabs Brona and shoves one of her star charts into her hand. He speaks with his entire body, and it tugs hard at the strings of my heart.

“Does he?” Kiara’s tone crawls with amusement, and heat creeps up my throat. “The lad loves to create drama, aye. I’ve no doubt he’s managed to prod your temper plenty, even with all those pretty chains you wrapped around yourself at the handfasting.”

I clutch my throat as though the torc might still be there. “I did what?”

She snorts. “ ‘I vow to follow the path you lay, honor your name, kiss your boots’—tell me, has your marriage followed through on all those promises?”

I can’t help but laugh, remembering keenly now what I said and how they’d all reacted. Stars above, I’d meant every word then. “No. Not a bit.”

Kiara tips her head back on a laugh, the family resemblance striking. “Good. Faolan has a big enough head as it is.” Her smileis an invitation, a shade sharper than Faolan’s own. I do my best to return it, knowing it falls flat.

She doesn’t falter, though, shrugging off her coat so the ever-present wind tugs at her shirt.

“What is it you want, Saoirse?”

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