My heart raced. “You know?”
“Yes.” He leered at me. “After the death of Mr. Green, I took over leadership of the goblin rebellion—the Caxon. It is my duty to know everything about the Gravidorum so that one day, I may destroy them.
“I have learned much since taking the mantle of the Caxon’s leader. The Gravidorum’s secret enclave meets in the tunnels beneath the elven capitol. My men have infiltrated this gathering and have gained vital information. The Gravidorum are becoming alarmed. As the Caxon grow stronger, we spread the message of our true history, and many support us. The Gravidorum seek to hide this knowledge by whatever means necessary. Even now, the Gravidorum plots the ruin and extinction of my people. I cannot let this happen!
“Goblins are not monsters. Although our bodies have been tortured and forced into hideous forms, my people are strong. For centuries, we have resisted the torture. It is time to prove our worth. This is the reason you are alive now. Although my people have discovered much about the Gravidorum, there is one thing the secret sect keeps carefully guarded—one piece of vital information that would spell their destruction forever. We must find out this information. We must know who their leader is!” He stopped his pacing to glare at me. “You, Olive, are the daughter of Magistrate Pozin—a person who is also a key member of the Gravidorum. Tell me, is he their leader?”
“What makes you think I would know?”
“Do not toy with me. Tell me!”
“I can’t tell you what I don’t know.”
“Then you refuse to speak?”
I’d dealt with Geth before and knew all too well what he was capable of. He’d almost killed Kull and me when he’d mistaken me for the Dreamthief. How could I make him understand that I knew nothing?
“Geth, please believe me. I’ve never been close to my father. In truth, he was never a parent to me. I looked up to the sky king more than my own dad.”
Geth grew still. “If you will not tell me the truth, then I have no other choice but to persuade you. I am glad you mentioned your dragon father, for your memories of him will make what I am about to do so much more rewarding.”
He threw off his cloak, revealing his once-amputated arm. Now, his arm was covered in gray scales that stretched into a claw. A gray, inky mist swirled around Geth as he knelt at my side and gripped my neck with his scale-covered hand, his sharp nails digging into my skin.
Icy daggers bit through my flesh. I tried to scream, but his iron grip crushed my windpipe. Stars danced in my vision as I gasped for air. The snaking mist gathered around me, casting its spell. I could do nothing as I felt my mind being transported to my stepfather’s chambers.
The sky king lay on his dais. His scales were gray with no hint of gold remaining. His dry, leathery hide hung off his bones, and the rise and fall of his flanks were the only indication that he lived.
Geth entered the room, carrying a goblin knife. Black, with a mirror-like blade.
I’d seen that blade before. Heidel had carried it.
In horror, I watched as he approached the sky king and struck at Fan’twar’s arm.
Bile churned through my stomach as I watched him tear and gouge the flesh, pink under the gray. Dark blood seeped from the open wound as Geth moved from severing through the scales into the forearm’s muscle tissue and then through the bone.
I was reminded of Kull severing Geth’s arm.
Fan’twar’s eyes grew wide with pain, though he could do nothing to stop Geth. His breathing became more rapid, and a low moan rumbled deep in his chest. I fought the tears that threatened to break free.
Geth left the room with my stepfather’s arm slung over his shoulder. Behind him, Fan’twar continued struggling on his dais. Bits of the crystal chandelier, now a dull orange, broke free and smashed to the ground.
The scene faded, and once again I sat in the dungeon with Geth and his men. He stood back and flexed his scaled fist. My head pounded where the cold had been, a hammering that made lights dance in my vision, a pain so raw it consumed me. I clutched my head and screamed as tears leaked from my eyes. Finally, after what felt like ages, the pain dulled a tiny bit, allowing me to speak.
“Why?” I asked.
“Because it is necessary for every race who has allied themselves with the elves to suffer. I have taken from the pixies their most precious possession—the Everblossom. I have desecrated the king of dragons. Next, I will take from the Wults what they hold most sacred, and last, I will have my revenge on the elves.”
The pain receded a tiny bit, though I still clutched my head. “You’re… a monster,” I choked out.
“Monster? No. I am a person—like you, and like the elves. We are no different, and soon, I will prove it. That is, whenever I recover the blossom and discover the true identity of the Gravidorum’s leader. Have you reconsidered the answer to my question? Is Magistrate Pozin the leader of the Gravidorum?
“Geth,” I said between gasps, hearing the desperation in my own voice. “Believe me when I say that I do not know my father. He did not raise me. When he visited, it was only for a short while, and when he spoke to me, it was only to criticize me. I was never a daughter to him; I was his obligation. He has never shown love or kindness to me, and I grew to hate him.
“I do not know why you believe he would have shared his deepest of secrets with me—his half-breed child from an inferior human woman—when he would not even bother to raise me. You are mistaken in thinking that he has ever cared for me.
