Page 52 of Starchaser
Matted clumps of hair cover her face, her head bowed as she whispers something under her breath. At first, I think it might be a prayer, but then I catch the words, “… lurks in shadows, devouring the light,” and my blood runs cold.
I worried I might no longer possess the ability to see Sylks when I spoke to Leo at dinner, but I know now that I was wrong. I can clearly see the faint corona of smoke around Winona’s head, the shadows seeping from her flesh.
Winona is possessed. And right now, I’m the only one who can see it.
In the instant I hesitate, her neck snaps, craning at an unnatural angle as she looks up at me, her eyes like wells of ink.“We know why you’re here.”
A spider crawls out of her open mouth as her jaw unhinges in an animalistic smile, and only then do the Bloodknights surround the king and queen, blades drawn. The crowd begins to scream.
“She’s possessed!” a woman cries.
“An Underling—in the palace!” a man shouts.
King Calix orders his Bloodknights to let him through, unsheathing his own blade as if he were prepared to cut Winonadown himself. But the queen cries, begging her husband to come back, and the Bloodknights encircle the king once more.
Winona’s shriek of laughter causes a nobleman near the dais to faint. She licks her lips, her voice low and gravelly as she hisses, “Aster Oberon, the cursed daughter, the queen’s bane, the destroyer of kingdoms—”
There’s a dull thud when the woman’s head lands at the king’s feet, followed by the keening wail of the Sylk as it’s expelled from its host, fading like vapor.
Inky black blood drips from my blade onto the dais, and a heavy silence blankets the throne room.
I pant from the effort it took to slice through bone, but I stand up straight, my gaze level as I meet Calix’s inquisitive stare. He pushes past his Bloodknights, his expression hard as he sheathes his sword. He meant to rattle me by making me perform this execution, but by the flicker of surprise in his stare as he glances at the blood pooling around his feet, I feel as if I’ve done more than just unsettle him.
“A gift foryou,” I say, pointing the blade at Winona’s severed head, “my king.”
The king dismisses the assemblywith a lighthearted air, but murmurs slither throughout the throne room like an overturned basket of venomous snakes. And when Calix fixes his attention on me once more, I no longer feel as if I’ve won.
I hold the sword level, ready to defend myself, but with preternatural speed, Titus rips the hilt of the blade from my grasp. He pushes me backward a step as he angles his body in front of mine, forming a barrier between the king and me.
“Escort Dame Oberon to her chambers at once,” he hisses, his shoulders rigid.
A few Bloodknights shift, closing ranks around the king and queen, but Flynn and Gabriel don’t hesitate to flank me. I’m ushered back down the aisle as the feverish nobility press in on allsides. I try to find Will in the crowd, but every time I turn to look for him, Gabriel urges me forward.
“Keep walking,” he says, his voice a deep rasp in my ear. “Don’t look back.”
My blood beats like a drum in my ears, my mind racing. Surely, no one thinks it’s my fault an Underling was brought into the castle? The king chose the prisoner—not me. I couldn’t have known she was possessed. I couldn’t have planned for Winona to be chosen. And I was the one to kill her.
A gift for you.Will the king use my own words against me, to make it seem as if I’m responsible? All he has to do is say the word, and it will be my neck beneath the blade.
Will he make Titus carry out my execution?
My stomach clenches when I think of my family, but the instant I pivot, as if to break free from the throng of people that flood the palace halls, Flynn seizes my arm.
“I wouldn’t do that,” he says, his tone sharp, grip tightening.
Horror numbs my hands and face as Gabriel gathers the train of my dress and Flynn practically drags me up flights of steps. “What’s going on—” I start, but as we round the corner and the door to my suite comes into view, relief overwhelms me, and it’s only Flynn’s hold on my arm that keeps me upright.
Margaret, stationed between Charlie and Lewis, starts toward me, but Lewis grabs her wrist, pulling her back a step.
“Inside,” Flynn says, gesturing for my brothers and Margaret to follow me into my chambers. Without another word, he shuts the door to my suite.
I can barely bring myself to look at the faces of my siblings andtell them I’ve doomed us all, but when Margaret takes my hands, prompting me to meet her gaze, her eyes are bright, a smile tugging at the corners of her lips.
“You have to find Mother,” I say quickly, certain that panic must be distorting my vision, because how could Margaret look so happy? “Find a way out of here while you still can—”
“What are you talking about?” Charlie asks, laughter crinkling his eyes.
“She doesn’t know,” Lewis says, elbowing him. “How could she know? We’ve only just heard.”
