Page 209 of The Witch Queen

“I nearlydied!”

“But you didn’t,” she counters. “And you wouldn’t have. I wouldn’t have let you. I came back here foryou.Mastered an entirely new breed of magic foryou.Delivered the princess into your hands to fulfill the prophecy so thatyoucan be queen. Forever. And still, nothing I do is enough.”

“I never wanted it!” I shout. “Not any of it! All I wanted was for you to be my mother. To love me. For us to be happy.”

“You never could have beenhappywith a small life at Stonehaven,” she says. “You were nothing there.Wewere nothing.”

The words land like a slap. Is that how she felt?

“We were a family,” I say, pressing my thumb into Rhea’s mark. “That would have been enough for me. It was enough for Rhea.”

A pained look crosses Mother’s face. “Your sister…”

“Loved you. Us.” I hold out my hand, showing her the mark on my palm. “She gave this to me. She told me it meant we would always be together, no matter what happened.”

“It’s just a mark, Ayleth,” she says, but her voice is rough.

“It’s more than that. We should be honoring Rhea’s memory. You told me yourself that she thought things should be different. Do you really thinkthisis what she meant?”

I indicate the wreckage of the courtyard.

For an instant, some of Mother’s armor falls away and I glimpse the witch I used to know. One whose laughter filled the halls of the Sanctum. Who would sneak me extra slices of pie after dinner or sit with me after a nightmare.

“Your sister died because of that girl”—she nods at Blodwyn—“and her family.”

Nox chuffs. I motion for him to stay back.

“Rhea died because of the king’s edict. Not Blodwyn,” I say. “And dozens of other witches have died because of me. You, as well. But it doesn’t have to be this way. We can stop all this. Forge a new path.”

“By surrendering my power?” she asks.

“What good is your power if you’re the only one who has it?” I press. “It makes you feel strong for a time, but then there’s only emptiness.”

An emptiness that plagued me for years. Nearly ruined me. Nothing was enough to fill it.

“I won’t give it up,” Mother says. “Not again.”

“You don’t have to,” I tell her. Risk a step closer. “You’re not the only one who’s learned about power. Magic and Malum are two halves of a whole. We need to bring them back together. No more covens or Waywards or any distinctions at all. The way the world was meant to be. The way Rhea would have wanted it.”

As if in confirmation, that place on my palm tingles. I can almostimagine that Rhea is here, standing between us. Mother might, too. The hard set of her jaw softens. And she looks so tired. Solonely.

But then—

She lies.

A rasping voice slices between us and the next thing I know, Shade emerges from the darkness. He sends his shadows around Blodwyn, binding her tight enough that she cries out, struggling in their grasp.

“Stop!” I shout. “Let her go!”

Nox snarls, muscles coiled as he prepares to pounce. Jacquetta’s lips fly in the words of a spell. Gavin and his men race out from their hiding place. But Shade is faster. His shadows spring up, keeping them all back.

“Please, Shade,” I beg. “Killing Blodwyn won’t change anything.”

His crimson eyes hold mine, anger and resentment pulsing from his shadows. But beneath that is something deeper. Grief. Pain.Fear.

This realm belongs to Malum,he hisses.The true queen must rise.

“That isn’t real,” I insist, then turn my attention to Mother. “We are more than our power. All of us. Don’t let it consume you. It’s not too late.”