Queens of Mist and Madness (Fae Isles, #4)

by Lisette Marshall

‘Here’s the thing, Emelin,’ she continued, lowering her voice to a conspiratorial whisper – seeing the frozen bewilderment on my face and interpreting it as everything it wasn’t: hope, temptation. ‘This world was never built for people like you, people like us. To many others out there, you will never be more than an idol. An ideal.’ That hit home. Her curving lips told me her borrowed eyes were all too well-aware of it. ‘So we must support each other when we find each other, little dove.’ Spoken with such sweet sincerity – such tempting lies. ‘We must carve out a place for ourselves. Look at what we did, our court, our safety … Don’t you want to follow our example? Learn from the two of us?’ The two of us. I gaped at her, frozen, as out of nowhere my thoughts collided. A place for ourselves. There was nothing new about the sight before me – nothing new about the memories sparking violently in my mind. That monstrous pile of bones. Two-coloured eyes, sapphire and obsidian – Achlys and Melinoë. The beat of that thumping heart, one heart … Nothing new – but at once, I understood. I understood everything. ‘I want Creon included in the bargain.’ My voice carried bright and clear, plans rolling out with it. I knew what to do, suddenly – knew it with such baffling clarity, as if my mind had condensed days of thinking into a single, blinding flash of insight. ‘You will not hurt either me or him, nor try to contain or capture us. If I live the rest of my life in peace, I will not ...