Chapter 22 · Down Where the Rift Sleeps

"Don't move. Not one inch, or I'll carve that lie right out of your throat."

I wasn't just threatening him. I was pressing. The steel bit into Kael's skin, drawing a thin, crimson line that mirrored the jagged scar on my own heart. He didn't flinch. Didn't even blink. He just stayed pinned against the damp concrete of the vault, smelling of ozone and old blood.

"You killed her," I spat. My voice sounded like it had been dragged through gravel. "The Ledger doesn't lie, Kael. You were the executioner."

Kael's eyes stayed flat. Cold, grey depths. "The Ledger records the order, Mara. Not the intent."

"Intent?" I let out a sharp, broken laugh. I shoved the blade deeper. I could feel his pulse thrumming against the steel. "My mother didn't die from 'intent.' She died because someone decided she was a liability. That someone was you."

"I was a tool," he said, voice low. Dangerous. "A weapon with a leash. You think I liked being the Council's dog?"

"You wore the collar well," I hissed.

I shifted my weight to drive the knife home. The second I tightened my grip, a violent surge of agony ripped through my chest.