The forest felt wrong without Maelis.
Too quiet. Too empty. Like sothing vital had been ripped out and the land itself hadn’t learned how to breathe again.
I stood frozen where she had fallen, my fingers locked around the small chest, my body shaking so violently I thought my bones might crack apart. The warmth that had been at my side monts ago was gone. Replaced by cold and blood and the echo of her scream still ringing in my ears.
Then there was only him.
My father.
He took a step toward .
I recoiled before I could stop myself.
"Don’t," I said, my voice breaking. "Don’t co closer."
He halted, his expression tightening not with guilt but with sothing like irritation. As if my fear were an inconvenience rather than the result of what he had just done.
"You shouldn’t have seen that," he said calmly. "She forced my hand."
My chest heaved as tears spilled freely now. I didn’t bother wiping them away.
"Why," I whispered. "Why are you like this."
He frowned slightly. "Like what."
"Evil," I said, the word tasting bitter and final. "Why are you evil."
For a mont he simply stared at .
Then he sighed.
Not in anger. Not in sha.
In disappointnt.
"I’m not evil," he said. "I’ve just learned what others refuse to accept. That sacrifices must be made."
My stomach churned violently.
"You murdered them," I cried. "You slaughtered them. They trusted her. They trusted ."
"They resisted order," he replied evenly. "They chose chaos. That always ends the sa way."
I shook my head hard, as if that might dislodge the sound of his voice from my skull.
"You killed her," I sobbed. "You killed Maelis."
"She chose to stand against ," he said. "You don’t get to choose both sides and survive."
Sothing inside snapped then.
Not loudly.
Quietly.
Like a string pulled too tight for too long finally giving way.
"And what about ," I asked. "What am I to you."
He stepped closer again, carefully this ti, like one might approach a frightened animal.
"You are my daughter," he said. "You are my greatest legacy. Together we can change this world. Shape it into sothing better. Sothing strong. Sothing that cannot be threatened again."
My hands clenched around the chest.
"To our image," he continued. "With your power and mine there would be no more rebellion. No more division. Only unity."
The word tasted wrong.
Unity built on bones.
I looked at him then. Really looked.
At the man who had held while I cried. Who had kissed my forehead. Who had promised safety while sharpening the knife behind his back.
And suddenly it all fell into place.
"Oh," I breathed.
He tilted his head. "What."
My laugh ca out broken and hollow.
"It was her," I said. "Wasn’t it."
His eyes sharpened.
"My mother," I continued. "She was the royal who locked my wolf."
Silence stretched between us.
"She did it," I whispered, tears streaming down my face. "She locked my wolf to protect . To protect from you."
He didn’t deny it.
He just stared at .
Heartbreak tore through my chest so violently I doubled forward, clutching my stomach as another sharp pain rippled through .
"She wasn’t a wraith," I said hoarsely. "I knew it the mont I stopped taking those tonics. I saw her clearly. She warned about you."
His jaw tightened.
"Enough," he said. "Hand the ruby."
I tightened my grip on the chest instinctively, backing away.
"No."
"Jasmine," he said sharply. "You don’t understand what you’re doing."
"I understand everything," I cried. "I understand why she ran. Why she hid . Why she sealed my wolf."
Another contraction ripped through , stronger this ti, stealing the breath from my lungs. I cried out, dropping to one knee, the pain rolling through in a brutal wave.
My father’s eyes flicked to my stomach.
"Your baby," he said coolly. "If you want him to live, give the stone."
Sothing wet and warm spread between my thighs.
My heart lurched.
No.
No no no.
I pressed my legs together instinctively, terror flooding as the reality slamd into all at once.
"My water," I whispered. "It broke."
The pain surged again, unforgiving and relentless.
"You don’t have much ti," he said. "Without your wolf you won’t survive this. Give the ruby and I can fix it."
Fix it.
By owning .
By owning my son.
I squeezed my eyes shut, my entire body trembling.
Maelis’s voice echoed in my mind.
Do not let it deceive you.
I shifted my grip on the chest, feeling the pulse of the ruby through the tal.
I stopped resisting it.
I let myself tune to it.
Not with hunger.
Not with fear.
But with choice.
Light exploded outward.
Blinding. Overwhelming. Green and red colliding in a violent surge that lifted my hair, my clothes, the very air around . The erald at my throat burned hot as the ruby scread in protest, the two forces clashing in a blinding storm.
I felt myself being pulled.
Away.
The forest blurred. The ground vanished beneath . The pain in my body dulled into sothing distant as the light wrapped around completely.
"Jasmine," my father shouted, lunging forward.
I opened my eyes one last ti.
He was running toward , hand outstretched, his face twisted in fury and desperation.
"You will never leave," he roared.
I t his gaze through the light.
"You will never make it out of this place," I said softly. "Not without ."
And then I smashed the chest against the ground.
The ruby shattered.
A soundless explosion tore through the world, fragnts of crimson light bursting outward like dying stars. The scream that tore from his throat was not human.
"No," he howled.
He leapt toward .
Too late.
The light swallowed whole.
The last thing I saw was his hand grasping at empty air.
Then I was gone.
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