Reborn Yesterday - Tessa Bailey Page 0,94

actually considered erasing himself from her memories? The pain of occupying no place in her mind—and therefore her heart—was unfathomable. His bones were turning to dust where he stood.

“I am entertained,” cooed the king, steepling his fingers beneath his chin. “Anyone else?”

The High Order murmured their agreement.

Clarence got more comfortable in his throne. “You want to know why I put Miss Lynn in such perilous situations?” He waved at someone or something, Jonas couldn’t be sure, couldn’t feel or deduce anything. “Larissa, please come closer.”

Jonas watched Ginny’s eyes widen, just a fraction, her attention training on Larissa. Her skin turned the barest shade lighter, as though some blood had left her face. Recognition? Shock? It all happened in the split second before she went back to looking confused and fearful.

That was odd.

“The poor thing is so confused,” murmured the king.

“Does she not remember me?” Larissa asked, peeling the red hood back from her face. “Jesus. H-how far back did he erase her memories?”

“Far. Years,” Elias supplied quickly.

Too quickly?

What are you looking for? Hope in a void?

Stop.

Elias had betrayed him.

His only mission in this life was to get Ginny out of this place unharmed. He would be put to death and thus, she would no longer be a conduit for his hunger pains. There were no other options. None. He couldn’t sustain himself on her blood when she didn’t even fucking know him. It would be against her will and he would die first. He would die first.

“Larissa is a seer. An immortal, such as we,” said the king. “She came to me around the time I sired you, bargaining protection from us in exchange for a vision she’d had. Always scouting for her next payday, my darling seer.” He regarded Larissa fondly, but his expression quickly soured. “She told me you would challenge me one day for the throne—and win.” He unfurled his index finger and pointed it at Ginny. “But it would only happen if and when you found your mate.”

“Mate?” Ginny echoed, regarding him with renewed terror. “What are you talking about? Who are you people?”

Her words were a blow to Jonas’s chest and he closed his eyes to absorb the jolt, attempting to soak in what Clarence had revealed at the same time. “That’s why you tried to kill Ginny before I even met her. You didn’t want us to find each other.” He turned his focus on Larissa. “All this time, the threat was right down the hall.”

Larissa seemed to be having a hard time taking her eyes off Ginny. “I was hired to keep tabs on the girl. Killing her didn’t strike me as necessary until you arrived in Coney Island.” Her chin went up a notch. “After that, I didn’t have a choice but to alert the king. The prophecy was in motion.”

“But prophecies can be changed,” stressed Clarence, eyeballing the seer. “Now that I’ve sentenced Jonas to death, you foresee me as king indefinitely.”

After the barest hesitation, Larissa inclined her head and the king looked satisfied. “I’d have found the poor creature in her next life, too, thanks to Larissa, and did what needed to be done,” said the king. “Oftentimes, rules must be bent slightly to preserve the integrity of the Order.”

Ginny’s stepmother had been watching Ginny with an uncomfortable expression, but started at the mention of her name. “Yes,” she said, voice raspy. “It took quite a while, this time around. But if she came back in yet another form, the patterns left behind by her soul would be easier to follow.”

“Please, no,” Jonas rasped, bowing his head in contrition. “Please take me now and let her go live her life. If I’m gone and unable to take your throne, you’ll have no need to harm her. The prophecy will be void.”

“Unbelievable,” murmured the king. “You came here prepared to willingly sacrifice yourself to save her humanity. Is separation from her so favorable to Silencing her?”

Jonas thought he knew the answer to that. If someone had asked him yesterday, he would have given an unequivocal yes. Nothing was worth stopping her exquisite heart from beating. But now he could hear her pleading with him to Silence her. Could hear the bravery in her voice and he wasn’t so sure he’d done the right thing denying her. A future together. An endless future with his love. Had he honestly rejected one without even considering Ginny’s wishes?

The words scraped his throat raw. “I…refused to take from her what I gave up without knowing