Of Soot And Cinders

XXVII

I could see the nurse swallow. "It was in the way. Your Majesty. Some of it was caked into his wounds and would have caused infection. Some of it was cut by the force of the whip."

I was breaking all the rules a king should follow as more tears rose to my eyes. I appreciated the clinical way the nurse was able to speak about the horrors my mate went through. It continued to solidify my resolve to ensure that no one would go through what he endured.

Though it hurt immensely, I leaned down, kissing my angel on his temple.

"I'm so sorry, my love. I'm here now. I will keep you safe." I whispered it so quietly that I wasn't sure it had left my mouth at all but I was certain that he heard it. Being so close I could feel something growing between us, something not of our world.

"You love him." The statement startled me. I looked up, slowly laying back on my pillows and found Lady Whitehead standing off to the side, out of the way and clearly nervous. A strand of her pearly hair fell into her eyes and finally it clicked.

"He's your son."

Lady Whitehead froze as if my realization made her dream come alive. Then she began so shake with silent tears. "I never imagined I'd see him again."

Wolf looked more shocked than I'd ever seen him. His eyes were wide in understanding and confusion. "He's a Whitehead."

"My Sindri." Lady Whitehead whispered.

Sindri

"It was his fathers name. He was born with the white hair, had a full head of it from the very start, his father insisted that since he looked like me he should be named after him."

I looked down to my mate. Sindri. It fit better than that stupid name I had made up for him. I continued to run my hand through his hair.

Lady Whitehead began talking and it was a story I was eager to hear. "He fought me when I left, begging to join me on my journey. He was five then, young and as high spirited as the Whitehead family is known for. He told me he was ready to take over my the family trade, he said he was ready to sail the seas and meet mermaids."
She paused when my nurse led her to the empty chair to Sindri's left. Lady Whitehead settled, looking better now that she was off her feet and began again.
"I had to leave him behind of course. Leading a fleet of merchant ships was enough to keep me occupied... or so I told myself. I could have made it work if I had tried. I should have taken him with me." She was shaking. Her breaths coming out at an erratic pace.

"It wasn't your fault."

"It was. I married Lord Tremaine for economic gain alone. I was shaken after my mates death and all I had to cling onto was the trade we had built together. I used Tremaine to solidify partnerships in other kingdoms and on other continents. And even though we didn't love each other, I know he married me for the same reasons I married him, I still trusted him—trusted him with my Sindri.

I think he had sent Sindri off nearly a year before he sent word to me that he had supposedly drowned. I turned my fleet around and returned as fast as the wind would carry us. Some part of me was convinced hat if I returned quick enough I would be able to save him. But he was gone when I got back, six months after I received the letter from my husband.

I had nightmares for years. Images of him struggling under the currents, his little hands grasping at mud and sticks, looking for purchase. In my dreams his hair matched the white caps of the running water, and no matter how far I ran along the bank I couldn't ever see him."

Lady Whitehead had to stop. Her sobbing strangled every word and her hands muffled what sound she could get out. My nurse crouched beside the Lady, a soothing hand on her back and a cup of water in the other. I'd have to make a note of a financial advisor to pay the nurse extra for all his troubles.