Page 63 of A Touch of Iron
“Where’s Alec?” My voice was hoarse and crackled painfully.
“He’s dealing with the Council,” Creed replied.
I frowned. “The Council? What council?”
He sighed dramatically if he was annoyed having to tell me. “The newly formed Council that was formed after the Unseelie King’s untimely death and the Seelie Queen’s surrender.”
My heart stuttered as I realized my nightmare was actually a memory. I killed the King.
I reached for my neck to feel for the necklace and found it bare.
“Relax. I took it off once you passed out. I’m not a monster, regardless of what you might think,” he grunted.
“You could’ve killed the King yourself instead of dragging me into it!” I choked out as I continued to rub my neck. “You didn’t need me. You killed Calypso perfectly fine on your own.”
Creed laughed dryly. “Calypso was an unfortunate event. If she hadn’t meddled, she would be with us here today. Unfortunately, she was obsessed with keeping you safe during your trial, to the point where it was getting boring.”
“Didn’t give you the right to kill her,” I gritted between my teeth.
“Well, little sister, what’s done is done,” he sighed. “I got what I wanted. And I’m guessing so did you.”
“Little sister?” I repeated under my breath, slowly realizing the implications. “You’re my brother.” I looked down at my hands.
“Half-brother,” he clarified. “Daddy dearest is around here somewhere.”
“Why?” I said, my voice cracking. “Why did you wantmeto kill the Unseelie King? I don’t understand.”
“I thought you were smarter than that, little sister. Especially since you saw me hiding in Air Village with my mother.”
“Kazimir said he killed you,” I murmured.
Creed tilted his head. “Did he, though?”
I thought back to my previous discussions with Kazimir and realized he never told me he killed his family, just that he’d been ordered to do so. I just assumed he’d carried it out.
“Our father set our house on fire with the corpses of a woman and a little boy inside. The King falsely assumed they were the bodies of his family.”
“But you’re a fire elemental. Fire can’t hurt you,” I said quickly.
“My elemental powers hadn’t appeared yet. I was too young. We didn’t know I was a fire elemental, which was how our father fooled the Unseelie King.”
My head spun and I realized that throughout my stay in the Fae realm, Kazimir had gotten me to help him in his own way. In the end, it helped me, too.
Killing the King was our only chance at freedom. Freedom for all of us.
The door to my room opened and Alec walked in. His eyes widened when he saw I was awake.
“What the hell? You were supposed to tell me when she woke up!” Alec yelled as he rushed to my side. “Vi, are you okay?”
“Yeah, I’m fine. Just having a friendly little chat with my brother.”
“Half-brother,” Creed corrected again. “And I was just about to inform you. Relax.”
“Where is the necklace?” I whispered to Alec as he took my hand.
“It’s gone. You don’t have to worry about it ever again.”
“Gone?” I repeated.
