Page 120 of Salem’s Rise

“But while The Rites may have two winners, the Veil can have only one leader.” Lucien lets the silence settle over the room before speaking again. “And The Rites have chosen Silas Blackhollow.”

The reaction is immediate. Voices rise through the galleries, several members standing and cheering while others applaud. The Veil celebrates the rise of a new Blackhollow leader, and I see no dissenters—at least not outwardly.

Silas, for his part, looks genuinely surprised. His hand trembles slightly in mine, though he does not let go.

Lucien makes a silencing gesture, and the chamber falls quiet again. “Mr. Blackhollow has spent his life preparing for power,” Lucien says. “Yet power and preparation alone do not make a leader. Nor does blood, ambition, or obedience.” His gaze settles on Silas, a flicker of pride in his cold eyes. “Throughout the games, Mr. Blackhollow has protected members of the Veil at great personal cost. He has sacrificed advantage for cooperation when advantage would have been far easier to keep. He understands our traditions, but he has also shown himself willing to oppose them when they no longer serve the people they were meant to protect.”

A faint unease passes through the galleries at that last part.

“He surrendered victory rather than allow another member to die, and he did not seek leadership in that moment,” Lucien continues. “Ironically, that is the moment he proved himself worthy of it.” He inclines his head toward Silas. “Silas Blackhollow, the Veil is now yours to lead.”

I turn toward Silas.

He looks exhausted, burned, and faintly horrified by the prospect of every person in this chamber answering to him. But he also looks immeasurably happy. This is the destiny he’s been carrying his whole life. He was raised for it, shaped by it, taught from childhood that leadership was both his inheritance and his obligation.

The ceremony dissolves then. Members of the Veil begin to exit the chamber, their ceremonial robes brushing the stone floor as conversations rise beneath the high ceiling. Masks are removed. Alliances reform almost instantly. Parents move toward their children, officials toward Lucien, and half the room is eager to congratulate Silas while the other half appears to be calculating how his leadership will affect them personally.

Eventually, the stream of well-wishers around Silas begins to thin, leaving the two of us alone near the edge of the chamber. His hand is still wrapped around mine, neither of us speaking at first.

“I’m so sorry,” he finally whispers, his voice unusually gentle. “I know how much you wanted this—for Josh.”

Josh.

The name sends a ripple of anguish through me. I knew what I was doing when I saved Silas. I knew what it might cost me, and I made the choice anyway. But knowing the price and hearing it announced to an entire room are two very different things.

Silas is Veil Leader.

Which means I’m not. There will be no boon for me. No impossible wish. No miracle waiting at the end of all this.

Josh is still dead.

I came to Salem’s Fall to bring my brother home, and I failed.

The pain is so sharp, I have to look away, but then Silas’s fingers tighten around mine. He is warm. Alive. And even with the grief tearing through me, I know with absolute certainty that I would make the same choice again. Even knowing what it cost me, even knowing Josh would remain gone forever, I could never have stood there and watched Silas burn.

I force myself to swallow down the ache rising in my throat. “The Veil made the right choice,” I manage. “You earned this.”

I find I mean every word.

Silas deserves this. Not because he’s flawless, because God knows he is not, but because he understands the danger of power better than anyone in this room. He knows what it can do when held by people who believe love is weakness and violence is order. And, despite everything, he protects the people he cares about.

Usually without permission. Often with arrogance. Generally while lying about it. But he does it when it’s most important.

I can’t feel bitterness that The Rites chose him. I never wanted to lead the Veil. Maybe this is the way it was always supposed to go. Josh made his own choices, and as much as I wish I could change them, they were never mine to undo. I can blame the Veil for a lot of things, but Josh’s decisions aren’t one of them.

The Veil is not good. I understand that now.

But it’s not inherently evil either.

The Veil simply exists. What it becomes next depends on the people willing to shape it. Magic has no morality of its own. Fire can murder a woman or reveal the truth. Water can drown someone or save them. Air can throw a body from a bridge or hold it suspended above death. Earth can bury or shelter. People alone decide what power becomes.

Van chose monstrosity.

Lucien chose control.

Silas chose sacrifice.

I chose to love.