Fated Dawn

Chapter One

Damien

There are no gods left to pray to.

—­Alexandra Collette, Andalay historian, location unknown


Wren Hayes—­

Both my salvation and my damnation.

Head upturned, gazing at the endless canvas of stars, Andalay’s princess of Ward One was an ethereal vision. A vision that a thief like me from the Void never thought he’d behold, let alone kiss on those rosy lips, which were currently pursed into a frown.

Fates, I miss those lips—­

I needed a swift kick in the arse.

Focus. Tonight wasn’t about ogling Wren, and indulging in ruinous fantasies could wait.

Wren cradled her head in her palms, elbows digging into the marble balustrade, cheeks darkened to a rosy red. I wondered what thought had flushed her skin. It certainly wasn’t memories of me.

I, on the other hand, relished those red cheeks. Forced as I was to live in a new world of blacks and grays, that hint of color stole my breath. It also served as a reminder of the tragedy of our situation. Well, my situation.

I supposed I was a glutton for punishment.

I’d once had Wren’s trust. I’d had a chance.

My teeth ground together when I caught sight of the single band of diamonds glittering around her neck; the luxurious gems courtesy of her new beloved—­and my cursed half brother—­Everett Sinclair. But the necklace wasn’t the only piece of jewelry that had my eye twitching with rage—­

Her wedding ring.

The wedding ring she had never accepted. Not really.

Everett had given her that gaudy trinket when she woke from being spellbound and disoriented at his estate after the events at the Black Dahlia. The bastard actually told her they were married, providing the forged paperwork that scandalized Andalay’s delicate nobility. It was a good thing—­for me, at least—­that their elopement ended up being nonbinding. Wren couldn’t recall a thing about the event that had never occurred, and because of her adamant protests, Everett had suggested they properly wed, with Cameron Hayes offering to throw them a lavish wedding in order to save face.

So now they existed somewhere between marriage and engagement, and everyone turned a blind eye to their living together while the wedding was being planned. Still, that blasted pink diamond remained on her finger.

If anything should be stolen and discarded, it was that wretched thing.

I was sorely tempted.

Magic buzzed around me as I inched closer, my pocket mirror cloaking me with invisibility. Even if the Fates were deceitful murderers, I’d use their corrupt gift—­if only until I saw them all destroyed.

Since Wren had been taken to Everett’s estate by Callie, her own sister, I’d spent my days learning the layout of the property while scouring the north for a gift potent enough to return Wren’s memories, which Callie had stolen when she opened Wren’s locket—­a locket I’d initially taken for myself. And to be fair, I deeply regretted the act. But locating a gift to reverse the theft of Wren’s memories had proven fruitless. So here I stood, resorting to another plan.

A much less reliable one.

Maybe I should’ve left Wren alone and continued working with Grayson and Ruby, who’d amassed a rebel group of both nobles and southerners from the Void. My playing the role of the lovesick puppy helped no one but me. But I’d never claimed to be selfless.

I took a step. Just one. They said ignorance was bliss, but Wren clearly wasn’t the kind of person who would’ve chosen this oblivion. She’d hate me even more than she already did if I left her to rot. I’d hate me too.

An indignant huff encouraged my eyes back to her. Wren slumped deeper into her palms, her eyes creasing like she was trying and failing to solve a puzzle with missing pieces. With my vision in shades of black and gray, I longed to see her in full raging color—­luminous and vibrant. Not half alive.

I blamed my half brother. Everett was a self-­righteous prick who worked with Callie, using the Fates’ dark magic and blackmail to manipulate the lords of the realm of Aurilia and bring Callie to power for his own selfish purpose—­Wren. The prick sat idly by as the Fates and Callie killed innocent people so he could marry Wren with Callie’s assistance and blessing.

I bit my lip, pacing. The day she’d lost her memories was also the day I began to change. The day I discovered my mother was a Fate. These days, I was haunted by visions of death I didn’t fully understand. This abrupt evolution twisted everything I knew about myself, and there were so many questions I’d yet to answer. I should’ve been focused on that, but instead, I stood here, watching Wren in her gilded cage.

A cage I planned to break her out of. Tonight.

Callie’s power would only grow stronger. She’d already consumed so many stolen souls, and the time quickly approached when she’d be capable enough to completely overthrow the current Fates and become one herself. With Dusk missing for months, a trail of blood left in her wake, Callie would be eager to fill the seat. Or . . . she had her eyes on a bigger prize. Who the hell knew what went on in that woman’s head. Either way, if she accomplished her mission, she’d move Wren inside the impenetrable walls of the palace with the city of Andalay at her feet.

It was now or never.

Forcing myself to move, I ignored the searing image of Wren’s fearful face the last time she saw me. Because of Callie, she believed I’d been the reason for a fabricated head injury that wiped her memories. Like I would ever hurt her.

Wren stared at the sky, too busy watching the stars to sense the hidden figure creeping forward. She used to sense me, even while using my mirror, but that was before.

I’d waited for this moment for two weeks, carefully timing the guards’ schedules. Meanwhile, she’d been floundering, desperately trying to understand why she couldn’t recall the past few months, and why she couldn’t remember agreeing to marry Everett. The questions shone in her eyes every night when she snuck away to the veranda, the only place he let her be alone. Well, not entirely alone, given his hired guards.

My nerves built when I paused just before the stairs and cocked my head, analyzing every twitch of her lips. The creases at the corners of her eyes. How I could almost taste her annoyance from ten feet away. I’d give my last copper for her to berate me. To yell at me. To see me.

I was a thief who had fallen for his mark.

Hard.

Placing my boot on the first step, eyes trained on Wren, I nearly smiled when she picked up her left hand and let it drop dramatically, as if she despised the weight of the diamond.

Good girl.

Wren loved fashion. But that ring was obscene. If I were to buy—­

She’d never forgive me for betraying her. She’d made that abundantly clear during her final seconds of clarity. But I was a greedy bastard, and giving up wasn’t something I knew how to do. Not after that night. Not after the promises we’d made to each other. For once, I’d given in to the idea of happiness, and I’d be damned if I’d let it slip through my fingers.

The humming of magic filtered through my blood as I drew closer, my invisibility shielding me from the guard just around the corner, his back pressed against the wall. Everett had one of his lackeys perpetually nipping at her heels.

He treated her like a piece of porcelain, and in the weeks Ruby and I had watched from a distance, he hadn’t allowed her to leave the estate once. “Safety,” I’d overheard him say. When she protested, he’d slipped his hand into his pocket, where I assumed he kept Callie’s loaned gift; a gift of influence in the form of a simple silver earring. With that, Everett stole Wren’s choices, lulling her into a false sense of tranquility. Luckily for me, dear Everett had business in the city tonight.

She’ll remember you. She has to. Like an old dream that haunted you for years. I’d make it work, be patient, understanding. Wren was my sunshine.

Besides, once she got over the whole stranger-­kidnapping-­her debacle and learned the truth, she’d come around. At least, she would for everyone else who’d once held her trust. Me? That would take a little more time.

I scanned the grounds before I walked up the remaining stone steps leading to the veranda, mindful of the painfully quiet evening. My heart pounded madly in my chest, the beat irregular and forceful. I stood only five feet away now . . .

“Shit.”

I froze, taken aback by Wren’s uncharacteristic curse. She grimaced before scrunching her eyes tight, one hand going to her temples.

“You all right, my lady?” The burly guard hidden in the shadows stepped forward. His leathers and the knives crudely strapped to every inch of him betrayed him as a mercenary.

“Fine,” she said, waving him off. Her throat worked hard, her jaw clenching. She was far from fine. Everett had left her for a decent amount of time, and his magic had waned.

The guard hesitated before retreating, but not before I caught sight of his ridiculously massive muscles. I could hold my own in a fight, but the guard might as well be a giant.

It doesn’t matter. Get her and get out.

If I touched her while using my mirror’s magic, it would conceal us both. The problem with that would be getting her to co­operate, and since I lacked the time to explain that I wasn’t her enemy, my faith remained a little precarious.

Two feet away now.

A great quiver worked down her back, her eyes briefly closing. My own body warmed, my hand reaching for her, an inch away. An inch from cradling her cheek in my palm. The heat from her flesh tickled my senses, and the hair on my arms rose. I indulged for a moment, inhaling her citrusy scent, which reminded me of summer days and an impossible dream.