Senevier's voice became even harsher.
“Why can't you understand that if Asros fails to become Emperor, you are finished too? Gareth is your enemy as well. For the last ten years, you've persistently torn open those children's wounds. Surely you didn't believe that simply leaving the Imperial Palace would free you from all that karma? After even stealing Aila's fiancé?”
“That was because Mother made me—!”
“You chose it all yourself.”
Her fierce voice cut off Talia's protest.
“Even if I demanded nothing, you would eventually have to bear a child. If you fail to produce an heir, not only Gareth, but even the nobles of the East will urge a divorce. And what do you think your husband would do then?”
A sharp sneer curved Senevier's lips.
“Answer me, Talia. Would Varkas Laedgo Siorcan protect you while turning his back on the Crown Prince, on Aila, and on his own blood and vassals?”
Frozen by the cruel question, Talia suddenly cried out in desperation.
“If Varkas wants a divorce, then let him divorce me! If Gareth wants me dead... then let him kill me! It's not as though I chose to be born in the first place...!”
Howling like a beast cornered to death, Talia suddenly swallowed her breath.
The contempt in Senevier's eyes instantly stole away her will to resist.
The woman who had once been her entire world stared at her with utter revulsion and said,
“Do you know? Many animals abandon weak offspring. That way, they increase the chances of survival for themselves and their other young.”
Talia stared blankly into those swamp-like eyes.
At last, Senevier voiced aloud the threat she had whispered with her eyes for so long.
“But humans, unlike animals, cannot abandon their children so easily. That is why I have not discarded you all this time.”
Soft fingers descended upon her deathly pale cheek, from which all vitality seemed to have drained away.
Only then did Talia realize she was crying.
Imitating the gentle touch of a loving mother comforting her daughter, Senevier whispered softly beside her ear.
“You won't believe it, Talia, but I have feelings too. I felt them the day you were born. You, who resembled me so much, were beautiful, and watching you grow brought me joy. Those feelings made it impossible for me to throw away someone who had already outlived her usefulness.”
Through the endless tears filling her eyes, her mother's figure wavered and distorted.
But the voice echoing in her ears only became clearer.
“So don't disappoint me anymore.”
Talia bit down on her lip.
The bitter salt of tears and the metallic taste of blood spread across her tongue. The sobs choking her throat made it hard to breathe.
“You understand what I mean, don't you?”
When she barely managed to nod, lips as cold as ice touched the corner of her eye.
Was this what it felt like to receive a kiss from a corpse?
Staring vacantly at Senevier's face, smiling in satisfaction, Talia lowered her eyes to the garden where darkness had begun to settle.
Within the twilight, their shadows intertwined and stretched long across the ground, like some grotesque, misshapen monster.