Chapter 2

Cecilia's POV

The mood in the plaza dropped to freezing.

Lacey's face had gone pale. She sagged against Grant, her eyes welling up, tears spilling down her cheeks.

The Silver Moon wolves around them looked like their hearts were breaking.

"This is too much! How can the Royal Guard humiliate a sweet girl like this?"

"Lacey wouldn't hurt a fly. That commander must be jealous of her God Bone!"

Brandon's eyes went bloodshot. He jabbed a finger at the platform and started shouting. "What kind of commander is this? Won't even show his face, just wants to torture people from the shadows. Get up, Lacey. Screw the Royal Guard, we don't need this."

Martha wiped at her tears, reaching to pull Lacey up. "Sweetheart, the ground's freezing. Your body can't take this."

Lacey pushed her mother's hand away, stubborn, biting down on her pale lip, staring up at the platform through her tears. "No, Mom. For the family's honor, if this is what it takes to get the commander to back off, I can handle it."

Real touching, that family loyalty.

Grant pulled her tight against him and roared up at the platform. "Whoever's hiding up there, you're a coward! Show yourself and say this to my face!"

"As you wish."

I let out a cold laugh and stepped out from the shadows on the platform.

My black cloak snapped in the wind. The silver of my commander's armor caught the light, sharp and cold.

I looked over the crowd of clowns until my eyes landed on Grant and Lacey.

The second they saw my face, the anger drained right out of them, replaced by something closer to seeing a ghost.

"Ce... Cecilia?" Grant's eyes went wide, his voice shaking. "You're... weren't you supposed to be dead? In the vault?"

Bourne and Martha stumbled back a step, like all the strength had gone out of their legs. Brandon looked like someone had grabbed him by the throat. He couldn't get a word out.

Fear flickered across Lacey's face, gone almost as fast as it came.

She pulled herself off Grant and stood up, forcing a smile that looked more painful than crying. "Cecilia... it's really you? You're alive! Thank god, we've been looking everywhere for you..."

"Looking for me?" I let out a short laugh, walking down the steps. "Or looking for my body? Or what was left of my heart's blood?"

Lacey's face froze, then the tears started falling again, thick and fast. "Cecilia, are you still holding this against us? There was nothing else we could do back then. My body couldn't survive without it. If you can't let this go, that just means you're the one being petty. I've felt guilty about this the whole time, I swear!"

Grant stepped in front of her immediately, shielding her like I was some kind of monster.

He frowned at me, his voice dripping with disappointment. "Cecilia, you're alive, you're a commander now, why are you still doing this to your own sister? What happened back then was for the family. You've got power now, status, why are you still this vindictive, still holding onto every little thing?"

I looked at Grant's self-righteous face and felt my stomach turn.

"For the family?" I stopped walking and looked at him, cold. "Your version of 'for the family' meant sacrificing my life for hers?"

"I never wanted that!" Lacey cut in, sobbing. "Cecilia, I never wanted to hurt you! I've always been grateful you gave me the God Bone..."

"Grateful?"

I wasn't in the mood to listen to more of this. I raised my hand, and a blue memory crystal appeared between my fingers.

"Since you're so grateful, let's give everyone a good look at just how grateful you are."

I snapped my fingers. The crystal rose into the air and burst open into a massive projection.

The image showed the frozen vault from a hundred years ago, dim and cold.

Lacey stood there in a thick fur coat, watching me while I lay dying on the ground. There wasn't a trace of weakness or guilt on her face. Just pure, ugly satisfaction.

She tossed a bag of coins to a guard nearby, her voice sharp. "Open the vents. Push the freezing spell to max. I want her dead by tonight. Only when she's dead does that bone stay mine forever."

In the projection, I was on the ground, covered in blood, barely moving. Lacey stepped on my frostbitten hand, laughing like this was the best day of her life. "Cecilia, sweetheart, just rot here nice and slow. Your God Bone, your talent, even your man. It's all mine now."

The projection ended. Dead silence fell over the plaza.

The same Silver Moon wolves who'd been defending Lacey a minute ago went white as sheets, staring at the girl they'd called pure and gentle, the one who supposedly wouldn't hurt a fly.

Grant flinched hard. He turned to look at Lacey, his lips trembling. "Lacey... is that... is that real?"

"No! That's fake! She faked that with magic!" Lacey completely lost it, shrieking.

"Faked?" I looked at her, ice in my voice. "Is the God Bone in your body fake too?"