Page 109 of Echoes of the Raven
Once more, he turns his attention to me. “I was going to tell you.”
Head still bowed, Calierin takes several steps in retreat, then disappears silently through the trees, leaving us alone. I barely notice her.
“But you didn’t,” I say.
I look down at The Eldrystone, the chain hanging from his clenched fist. Just moments ago, it had felt so rightfully mine. I’d thought that once I reached the other side, I would find its rightful owner to hand it back, but he was here all along, playing me for a fool. I want to snatch it from his fingers, and it takes every ounce of my will not to do it.
He must see something in my expression because he takes two steps forward and presses the amulet into my hand.
“Will you still help me?”
I want to deny the relief that washes over me, but it’s impossible to ignore. I’ve become used to its weight around my neck. I want to place it there, but it’s broken, so I only grip it and tighten my hold around it.
The words that come out of my mouth don’t match the way I feel. “But it truly belongs to you,King Korben.”
He flinches as I say his name, at the reminder of all his lies.
How many times did he laugh at my naïve pursuits? Korben Theric is two hundred and twenty-one years old—I learned that much before I left Nido—he must think me nothing but a naïve child.
“Valeria, everything I did was for mypeople.”
I shake my head and hold a finger up. “Before you say more, there isonething I want to know.”
His nostrils flare and an invisible shield seems to appear in front of him.
“You know what it is,” I say.
The shield only seems to thicken.
“Fine, I’ll ask.” I pause and feel the chasm that stands between us open wider. Still, I need to know. “Why did my mother curse you? What did you do that drove her to such an extreme?”
He takes a deep breath as if in need of strength.
“And no more lies, please. I just… I just can’t take anymore, Rífíor… Bastien… Korben… whoever you are!”
Anger flashes in his eyes. “Yes, I lied,” he says so quietly that I barely hear him. “What else did you expect from me?”
“Nothing more and nothing less than I expect from others,” I reply with just as much anger, then throw the next word in his face like a slap. “Honesty!”
“Why? Because it’s what others have givenusin abundance? People like your mother? She deceived you, too. Don’t be naive, Valeria. Of course, I had to hide my identity. Loreleia was willing to let your father kill me, even knowing who I was.”
I shake my head, ears ringing, heart hammering. He’s right. Mother lied to me. Father, too. The knowledge tears me apart.
“Simón Plumanegra may not have known my identity at that precise moment, but I’m sure she told him who I was eventually. And did he come looking for me then? Did they try to fix the mess they made? No, they did not. Instead, they holed up in their fortress and let my people suffer.”
“You keep pointing fingers,” I say, “but you’re still not answering my question.”
“Yes, I lied,” he repeats forcefully. “Ilied because I’m—”
The earth beneath us quakes, a monstrous wave rippling through the woods. I fall, hands and knees scraping the rough ground. Rífíor, reflexes sharper, manages to fling his arms wide and stay upright. A second wave hits. He lurches sideways, grimacing as he collapses to one knee.
“What in all the hells?!” he spits.
I realize the ringing in my ears and the accelerated beat of my heart has nothing to do with our argument.
“Danger,” I whisper.
Calierin appears to the right, staggering and cursing under her breath. “The guards and that fucking for-hire sorcerer are here. We have to run.”
