Royal Advisor Iris Elliot
Clay City, Dearie
"You really think you are safe?" Wyatt spits at me, his blood mixing with the sand at our feet. He already knows how this is going to end and so do I. He kneels in the sand, back straight and hands keeping a tight grip on my arms. Even in his strength, he will not win. Not like this. Not now. Not ever.
"I was never safe." I return, more to myself than to him. I don't need to justify my actions to them. They betrayed everything we fought for. Everything I thought I fought for. I realized we were nothing more than pawns. I will never forget how my eyes opened that day. I saw everything they didn't want me to see. Every death. Every murder. Every mass murder. Every child. Every woman. Every man. All for their own selfish gain.
"None of us ever were," he glances up at me, his piercing eyes glaring into mine, "Cousin." He adds and I draw in a sharp breath. With that breath, I find the courage to pull the strength I need. He knew I was his cousin, perhaps all along. I could see it in his eyes. I find my eyes wondering up to Lucas, who stands a few paces away, a wound on his arm bleeding from where Liam had nicked him with a blade. I couldn't feel my own pain, and I knew that made me less human. I knew it made me the thing I had been built to become on the Island. I could always see what I was. Lucas needs to see it as well. Lucas needs to know who I am. Liam's death had been quick and messy. Wyatt's has not been. With my eyes staring into that of my supposed husband, I pull with all my strength, and hear the satisfying snap that let me know the deed was done. As I straighten, Wyatt falls to the sand. Lucas just stands watching me, his eyes clearly seeing what I wanted him to see.
I tear my gaze from him and look down at Wyatt. My own cousin. A true islander. I bend down to his side, passing my hand over his open eyes, closing them. I find myself saying a piece of my motto, the one I had made up after giving up the Island. "Condemnare daemonio." Condemn the devil. Wyatt was never a match going up against me. He knew it. He always knew. Receiving the order to come after me, had been his final order, one he knew he would not complete. Islander's fight to the death. Dying a warrior's death is honorable, but not completing a mission, is a failure. Liam and Wyatt have failed. "Find peace, Islander Wyatt." I whisper to him, before standing up.
My gaze then trails to Liam, lying on his back in his own pool of bloody sand. It had been no surprise that Liam had attacked first. It was his job, his skill. He was the fighter and had never lost a match, until now. He had underestimated me. He thought that since I wasn't on the Island anymore, that I was weak, but I am not. I am stronger than I ever have been. I didn't need a weapon to kill Liam, and I was more than satisfied when he made an error, and his own blade became his undoing as I slammed it into his neck. I think I even smiled in my triumph. I now say the same things that I said to Wyatt, to Liam. At one time, they were my brothers. More family to me than my own blood. In Wyatt's case, he was my blood. However, none of us chose the life we were given. None of us wanted to be cold-hearted assassins in the beginning. Over time, we accepted that it was the only way, until I was shown that it wasn't. I was given a choice, and when I gave them that choice, they refused.
Slowly, my eyes trail from the dead bodies of my former brothers, and up to Lucas, who stands straighter, more in control of his shock and horror at what he has just witnessed. "Do you understand now?" I call to him, and begin walking in his direction. He places his free hand over his wound on his arm, as if to keep me from seeing it, but I already have. Blood was dripping down in the sand, leaving a trail where ever he steps. He is holding my satchel in the hand with his bleeding arm, the red drops hitting the side and trickling down to the sand.
When I reach him, my anger is already present. It has never left. I snatch the bag away from him easily, quickly opening it and rummaging through it. I find what I am looking for. I pull out a strip of cloth, nearly the length of my entire arm, and then drop the bag to the sand with force. I want him to know how angry I am, but it is more than that. I want him to feel that anger. I want him to know that this anger is because of him. I grab his arm, and he lets out a yell of pain, my fingers digging into his arm. I check the wound for any metal fragments or sand, but don't find any. He watches me as I tie the cloth around his arm, and secure it with a tight knot. He tries not to wince, but he does. "My days are numbered." I grumble, stepping away from him and picking up my bag, slinging it over my shoulder. "Now yours are too." I hiss, turning and starting to walk away from him.
"You knew they would come after you?" He calls, and I can hear him try to catch up to me. There is anger in his tone, but he has no right to be angry. Only I have that right in this situation.
"Of course I knew." I let out a vile laugh, refusing to look back at him. "No one leaves that place and lives. It was only a matter of time." I continue walking, mumbling to myself in my anger, my feet digging into the sand. The adrenaline is starting to wear off, and in the hot sun, I can start to feel my injuries. They can wait. If it can't wait, then I guess I will just die, and it will be a relief.
"Don't you think I had a right to know?" He yells while grabbing my arm and pulling me back to look at him. His pale blue eyes staring down at me in his foolish anger.
"Right to know what?" I bit back, my glare remaining strong and fierce. "That you won't get your precious happily ever after with your beloved wife?" I shout, pulling my arm free from his grasp. His glare remains unchanged, and his jaw set. "Whatever made you think that I could leave that place, and be free live out my life?" I question with a hiss.
"You gave up that life, Iris." He argues, shaking his head. "They know you did. Why are they coming after you now? Why kill you now?"
I shrug. Did I really matter why now? "Because my father is not alive anymore to protect me from them." I reveal. "I guess I finally got in Theo's way."
"Who is Theo?" He asks, his eyes settling into a stare of almost jealousy.
"The mastermind. The Architect." I reach into my bag, feeling the blood now draining from the dagger that had nicked my arm in the first stages of this fight. "Theo runs the Islander's now. They follow his every order. They are loyal to him, and so was I once."
"How so?" He probes, watching as I tie a cloth around my upper shoulder. I smack away his hand when he tries to help. I don't need his help. I never needed his help. Does he not see that I don't need his help?
I pull the ends of the cloth tight, tying them in a knot and then look up at Lucas. I pull the hood of my cloak back up, shielding my head from the sun, despite the dark fabric nearly baking me on the inside. "Theo is a genius. He plans out every detail of every attack down to the length of every wound, or any bone broken in any way. He saved my life more times than I could ever dare admit."
He is silent for a moment, and I dig into my bag again, wondering how much water I have left. "You love him?" His tone is soft and deep, and for a moment, I stand completely still, blood boiling within my veins. He really is as foolish as I always believed. I almost want to laugh at how much of a joke this is.
My eyes snap up to his with a glare, but his face remains emotionless and calm. "No." I hiss. "I never loved Theo. I never loved anyone." I close my bag, not wanting anything anymore from it. His eyes only show that he doesn't believe me. "Love is weakness." I turn and start walking away again, wanting to be rid of him.
As I walk, I hear his deep voice cut through the silence I am begging to keep. "You are wrong?"
I only made it a few steps from him. "Am I?" I question, suddenly turn around again, knowing he would make some dumb statement just to contradict me. I let out another vile laugh. "Answer me this, Lucas. Why did you come after me?" I stalk up to him, pushing him back a step, easily. "Why now? Why after all these years? After all I did?" I push him again, wanting him to answer that question, but he wouldn't. I could see it in his eyes. "It isn't because we are still married, Lucas. It is because after everything I did, you still believed that somewhere, deep down, I had actually meant at least something I said when we were together. When I was pretending to love you and be your wife. Deep down, you are trying to discover if that old me is still there." I glare up at him, knowing I am reading him like the open book that he is. "Because you love me." I say, revealing that last detail. No other excuse makes since, than that. "You have tracked me down, of your own free will, in your own selfishness after all these years, after everything I did to hurt you, because you love me. In doing so, you have signed your own death warrant. If that isn't weakness, then I don't know what is." With one last glare, I turn and walk away, ignoring the small flicker of emotion that flashes across his eyes as I do so. I know I am right. I always knew how Lucas felt. It was easy. It was too easy for him to believe me. Too easy to get him to do exactly what I wanted.
I don't check to see if he is following me. Maybe he will take the hint and leave. Lucas leaving, of course, would not stop Theo from coming after him. Theo was always jealous. If he couldn't have me, then no one could. I saw what my time with Lucas was doing to Theo, just as I saw what it was doing to Lucas. I liked having that power too. That power that every woman has, that can turn a man against his friend, or do something completely horrible, all in the name of love. On an emotion that isn't even real. On a feeling or a touch that was so perfectly orchestrated, how could it have been anything but fate? How could I not be their perfect angel? The one who would and could wash away all their fears and sins and keep them above water? They didn't see that I wasn't the angel keeping them afloat, but rather the demon pulling them under. Always was. Always will be.
***
Heir-Princess Jaymie Dain-Andry
Majestic City, Otega
It was early morning by the time we landed in Otega. The morning fog has not lifted, casting a hue and making it easy for us to land unseen. Though, I had not been awake upon landing. I had heard Dex's voice, pulling me from a dark hole I had fallen into. I was dazed when I came to, not understanding what could have caused that much pain. When I finally looked down, my cloak was off, and Dex had it lying beside me, already mended to hide the arrow holes. My shoulder is sore, and I had to have help changing into a new travel dress. Seeing my shoulder terrifies me. The wound is dark, cauterized shut by nothing more than my own body to do it. What had happened? "Are you alright?" I look to Dex, hearing the uncertainty and fear in his voice. His fingers glide easily across the laces of the back of my dress, tightening it, though I hardly felt it. I was too concentrated on what happened to my shoulder. I had never been shot by anything before. In all my reading and learning, I had never heard of something like this happening, with or without a dragon.
I look down, seeing Pyro has curled up in my lap, as I sit on a fallen tree. He is no bigger than a loaf of bread, and his body warmth is like a portable torch bringing heat in the morning breeze. Though we were hidden in the forest, we still fear prying eyes. Dex had carried me a ways from where we landed, just to make sure no one had seen. "Yes." I say back to him, not entirely sure I was being truthful, but in a way, I am alright. I didn't die, no matter how much the pain begged me to.
"Did you know it would do that?" He questions, giving an extra tug to the last lace and tying it with ease.
"No." I say, my voice trembling slightly, and I find comfort in looking down at my little dragon.
"You are not safe, Jaymie." Dex says, sitting down on the log beside me. "We have to get you into the Majestic City. We don't have a choice now. King Bernard is an ally, and right now, we need one." I know what he means. With the rebels now after me, knowing I am not in the safety of Sarkin, I have to settle for the next best place.
"I know." I nod, standing up and stretching my shoulder, wincing slightly. He stands up as well, handing me my cloak. Pyro, upon me standing, has climbed onto the ground, finding interest in a fallen leaf. I take my cloak, and put it on, missing the Sarkin heat that threaded through the earth as it did the air.
By the time we neared the city, the sun was high in the sky and the fog had lifted. The city is alive with noise and echoed off the mountain it was nestled behind. The trees had given way to a valley, and a giant castle rose in the middle. I marvel at the sight of it. The castle is nearly golden in color, and was much wider than the Sarkin castle I had been raised in. Tall pointed towers and columns surrounded the castle, giving it a feel of being majestic in its own right. When we step foot in the city, the people are friendly. People of all different ethnicity, race, religion, and skin color, all together in one place. Shopkeepers urging sales with prices lower than anywhere else I knew of. No one was begging on the streets for money or food. Everyone had a place, something to do, or somewhere to be, but there were extraordinarily kind in doing so. I want to keep my head down, to not be noticed, but I was having a hard time at doing so. This place is alive with a sense of freedom and peace.
When we reach the gate to the castle, the large iron gate is open, with only a few guards at its post. High on the wall, others look down while pointing and laughing at things they see in the city. People flood in and out of the gate, into the courtyard and back out. I had never seen a castle so open. Father would have been angry if the guards had let the castle be so exposed, in a time like this. Being here makes it difficult to understand the impending war. How could such terrible things happen, when such goodness is in a place like this? As we near the front door to the castle, wide wooden doors, a guard stands in the middle, talking with merchants or peasants who need access. We wait patiently in line for our turn to talk to the guard, my fingers trembling with nerves. What if Ezra's brother turned us away? What if he didn't believe who I am?
"What is your business here today, my friends?" The guard questions, friendliness in his manners as a smile is ever present on his exposed face. The guards here are different, dressed different and more exposed. They wore the Otega colors on their tunics, and a thin layer of chain meal underneath, sword at the side but hardly used.
"We would like an audience with his majesty, King Bernard." Dex reveals, standing straighter, taking notice of how differently the guards were as I had. Our guards were always ready for battle at any time, and the personally guards were the only ones who were less exposed, and that was because they were more gifted in fighting and could stand on their own without needing protection.
"I am sorry, but the King is not having visitors today." The guard shakes his head, still trying to be nice, but being firm. "Perhaps you can try tomorrow."
"We really need to today, sir." I find myself speaking up, and the guards eyes turn to me, as though he just noticed I was there. I definitely look out of place amongst this crowd, and when he glances at me again, I can see he knows I am hiding something.
"Why do you hide your face, miss?" He asks. If only he knew. He reaches for the top of my hood, but I flinch back. Dex takes a protective step in front of me, shaking his head at the guard, but it was as if the guard already knew. He may not know who I am, but Dex's protection over me had given him a clue to my status. "I can see if the King will see you, but who may I say is calling?"
I glance to Dex, to see him giving me a warning of a look. We had hoped to gain entry and then reveal my identity, but we couldn't wait another day, and if it got me inside and out of harm's way, then it would need to be said. I look back to the guard, pulling my hood ever so slightly back so he could see a red tint to my hair that others cannot see from this angle. "Tell His Majesty that his future sister-in-law is waiting." I stare into the guard's eyes so that he knows I am not lying and I see a flash of something across his face. He knows. There isn't even a doubt in his mind.
He tears his gaze from mine and motions to a young lad, who comes running up to him. "Tell King Bernard he has an important visitor, one with red hair." It seems to be the code, because the boy glances quickly at me and then runs off with a shocked expression, disappearing behind the double doors.
"Did you know I we were coming?" Dex questions the guard, who looks away from me and to my bodyguard. Dex had sensed it as well and I now he is alarmed.
The guard nods. "His Majesty received a letter from his brother only yesterday, saying that a visit from you was very likely." Ezra sent a letter to his brother, knowing I would come? Or was he hoping I would? Hoping that I would see his brother as an ally if I needed help. The doors opened and the boy appeared again, and motioned to us eagerly for us to follow. I pull the hood back up, shielding my face from prying eyes, and I knew people would be questioning why we had been given access, when they had not been.
Once inside the doors, a handful of servants were ready and waiting. Pouch, Pyro. I call in my head. Get in the pouch. I knew the servants would take my cloak and Pyro with it if I didn't order him out. I can feel him slither out of the pocket in my cloak, his little talons clinging to fabric as he shrinks even smaller to fit into a hidden pouch in my dress. The entryway of the castle is very grand, with a wide stairway opposite the doors, leading to many different levels. A balcony over-head runs both ways, for much farther than I can see. "I hear my future sister has come to visit me at last!" A voice full of joy resounds off the entry way, and a figure suddenly appears at the stairs, making his way down. "Could it really be true?" He laughs, reaching the bottom in no time at all and making his way over to us.
A servant reaches for my cloak and I let her take it, allowing my hood to fall back, revealing my bright red hair. It doesn't take a genius to know that this man is the King of Otega, and Ezra's brother. The two look remarkably alike in every feature, and for a moment, I almost question if it really was Ezra, but I know it isn't, because this man is slightly older, and carries himself differently. Upon seeing my hair, his smile widens to one guilty of swoon worthy. Even his eyes are the same piercing blue as his brother's. "Jaymie Dain-Andry." He reaches out, taking my hands in his as he comes to me. He kisses my cheek and I can feel Dex tense at the formality.
"King Bernard." I say, giving a low curtsy as a sign of respect. I return to a more royal posture, with a smile that is not forced.
"Oh, please. Bernard is just fine. No need for titles." He laughs, taking a step back as I nod. His eyes rake over me, memorizing me as though he is committing me to memory. "You are a true beauty, aren't you?" He says, to himself, but out-loud none the less. My cheeks flame and he gives a charming smile.
"Are you not going to introduce us?" I hear a small voice behind him and I look to see two women standing there. I had not noticed them arrive.
Bernard wheels around, a sense of joy and excitement, eager to show me off like a new toy. This was certainly not the welcome I was expecting, though I wasn't expecting a welcome at all. "Ah, yes." He says, taking my hand and pulling me to them, still in a state of excitement. The first woman he pulls me to is a beauty, with flowing blond loose curls, and wide blue eyes set into her sharp features. "This is the Heir Princess Jaymie Dain-Andry of Sarkin." He motions to me for the woman, and I can't help but pick up on the small hint of jealously in her gaze. "Jaymie, this is Lady Gerda Gray of Everbay, Otega." She gives a low curtsy to me and hesitates as though she is out of place. I want to question her on it, but I decide not to. Was she worried I was going to steal the brother instead of my intended? She glances at Bernard, as if he was to add another title for her, but is slightly disappointed when he moves on. Were they intended as well? "Jaymie." He calls my attention to the other woman, younger than the first with long dark hair and dark eyes. She is younger than me by a few years, and has more of an innocent look about her, despite her glowing excited smile. "This is my sister, Odella." Of course. I should have guessed. Ezra wasn't one to talk much about his family or past, but the one thing he did talk of, was his sister, a natural beauty, a diamond hidden in the ashes.
I can see she wants to hug me, but is trying to be formal and gives a low curtsy, but shorter in time than the first woman. "Of course you are." I give a soft laugh as she stands up again, meeting my gaze. "Ezra talks endlessly of you." Odella seems to soften slightly and I know she misses her brother just as he misses her.
"In his letters, Ezra talks endlessly of you." Odella blurts and gives an embarrassed smile, but I just shrug it off. Of course Ezra has to talk about me, I am his future wife.
"It isn't hard to see why." Bernard chimes in and I look at him to see he is giving me another charming smile. "I didn't understand in the beginning when he told us he had agreed to marry you, but now seeing you, I now understand." I feel my cheeks flame again, and for some reason, my eyes float over to Lady Gerda, who stands, slightly open-mouthed in shock at how Bernard was treating me. Jealousy. I want to tell her that I have no intention of stealing Bernard, but would she believe me? "We thought he might grace us with a visit, but he was so determined to remain by your side." Bernard continues and I look back to him.
"I am glad to have his support, and his kindness." I say eventually, and it seems to please them. However, it was more than that. Ezra is kind when he doesn't have to be. He is honest and open, and wasn't afraid to call me out for being foolish. "I do apologize for the sudden visit."
"No apology necessary." Bernard says, taking my hands in his again. "We are soon to be family. Our home is yours as well." He is too kind. Just like Ezra. "Shall I send a letter to my brother, telling him of your visit?" He offers, his tone more hushed, as though he can sense something is off by my surprise visit. He obviously knows Ezra is still in Sarkin, and not with me.
Without looking to Dex, I knew sending a letter for Ezra would be wise. "Yes, please. Tell him to come and that I insist." Bernard gives me a look as though he can see something I can't. That he knows something I don't.
"Of course." He smiles, and I realize just how much I miss having Ezra around, following me like a puppy every day, always eager to jump in to defend me, or to give advice where needed. "You both must be famished after your journey." At the thought of food, my body suddenly felt weak with starvation and I know he can see it. "I had the servants prepare a luncheon the moment I heard of your arrival." Ezra must have told him at least something, so that we would be well treated upon arrival. That thought made me admire Ezra more. Again, he went out of his way to make sure I was safe and cared for. I will thank him when he arrives, even though he deserves so much more.
***
Lady Alexa Rossi
Infernal City, Hosephia
I can hear him and I have never been more terrified in all my life. His shouts of anger and bursts of rage of throwing object that break on impact, mark his path up to me. I could have run. I could have hidden. It would have only made it worse. He would have found me anyway. He would have never stopped. I couldn't have left. No matter how much, in this moment, I wanted to. I want to be free. I want to live a new life. I want to live for my children. Yet, I know that this is not my destiny. I could nearly count down the time I had left from the sickening time I spent with him last night. I knew it wouldn't have been long into the morning before he would discover that everyone he had leverage over would be gone. It would be even less time after that when he would discover that the only one who hadn't left had been the one to orchestrate it all. The same one who has betrayed him most of all.
My entire body trembles, and my eyes remain closed. I refuse to cry. I refuse to let him see it. "Alexa!" He screams, and I hear something break at the end of the hall. My name is only one of the vile things he yells. I deserve this, for everything I have done. I deserve to die at his hand, because I am the one who put everyone else at risk for so long. "After everything I have done for you, you betray me!" Halfway down the hall, something wooden crashes against a wall. A chair perhaps. He is getting closer. I open my eyes, hearing his angry feet clamp the ground like agitated horse. I draw in a breath as the steps reach the door, and I let it out as the door suddenly opens. He stands in the doorway, already knowing it was I who had done it all. He doesn't need any confirmation. I would have been blamed even if I was completely innocent.
Surprisingly his face is as it always is when he is in that kind of mood. Some people when they get angry, it is clearly visible by the blood pooling in the face, but not Brighane. His anger is in his eyes. He takes a step forward, and then kicks the door shut, which bangs once off the latch, before settling back where it should. The familiar click reminding me that I can't escape now. "After all I did." His tone is low, and coming from a part of him that I had never seen before. A new level of anger. A new hatred burning at the heart of him. "This is how you repay me." He almost smiles with pride at knowing I would eventually, one day, betray him. He always knew I would. "Are you not going to defend your actions?" He grumbles, eyes glaring into mine.
"No." I say flatly, and the level of calm in my tone, despite how terrified I am, only angers him more. "I did it." I reveal. "I did it all." As I already knew, he didn't need the confirmation, but hearing it awoke a demon from hell inside him.
"Bring them back." He shouts, knocking over a small table in my room.
"No." I shake my head, standing strong, and knowing this is the end. "They are free from you, and you will never find them." He lets out an angry yell, and makes his break for me, unleashing the demon I always knew was within. I found myself letting out a scream that came from somewhere inside me. Somewhere that didn't want to die. Somewhere that held out hope that I could still live from this. Somewhere that would be the first to die. His fingers latch onto my throat, feeling the tightness of his fingers clamping down and keeping away the air my lungs need. Part of me wants to fight back, but part of me knows that no matter what I do, it will only end the same way. I was only delaying the inevitable. I can die quicker if I don't fight back, and that is what I do. I refuse to fight, and it only makes it worse. The darkness starts to descend, and my last thoughts go out to those I have saved. Those who have a chance to live now because I have given my life for theirs. The darkness is my ticket to freedom and as I fall, I feel the weightless ness of that freedom. For the first time in my life, I am free.
***
King Rory Fairmore
Imperial City, Vrinian
"You sent for me?" Hearing my mother's voice, I turn to face her. After overhearing some of her conversation with Jaymie, I had started to see my mother in a new light. There were still things I wanted her to know. Things she would find hard to understand, but I do feel some hope, however buried down deep it is. Her face hold sorrow, so much more than I think I could have realized. I was blinded by what I thought she didn't see in me, that I didn't care to see what she did, or how much she believed in me. Believed that I would become the King she knew I could be. The only mistake she made was thinking that I wouldn't be that person if she was around. She tries to smile, but it falters.
"I did." I nod, and for once, without forcing it or knowing I had to, I smile at her, catching her slightly off guard. "There is something I need to tell you, Mother." I say to her, and her face twitches slightly, from concern to curious to worry. Of course, there is much I want to tell her, and much I want her to tell me, but right now, there is only one thing, one topic, big enough to come first.
"What is it?" She asks, folding her hands in front of her, anticipating the worst, I assume.
"I respect your decisions." I start out small, knowing I will work my way up to what I have to say, and I know she won't like it. My small revelation catches her slightly, and I know it wasn't what she thought I would say. "I need to know that you respect mine."
Her face scrunches slightly, almost in a wince. "I do, Rory." Her tone is soft and calm and I know she is being honest. This is a rare side to my mother. Perhaps her talk with Jaymie has awoken something in her. Perhaps there is hope for us yet.
"Good." I nod again, and then take a deep breath. "I have made a decision, and I hope you can accept it." Now her face starts to harden, as though she knows already what I am about to say. As though she knows what I am going to tell her. "I have chosen my bride to be."
She opens her mouth in surprise for a second, but as quickly as an almost smile appears, it vanishes. "It is the servant girl, isn't it?" Her tone flattens to disappointment.
"Lyana." I confirm, wishing she will let me explain before she rants off. "I want to explain to you why I chose her."
She draws in a slow breath, and then exhales with a nod. "Alright, Rory." She says. "Explain to me why your servant girl would make a perfect Queen."
"I love her." I shrug, simple and small, but meaning it more than many could ever understand.
"That's it?" She asks when I don't continue on. "That's it?" She asks again, and I know she wants to yell, but she isn't.
"Why did you marry my father?" I question, and I can see the sadness and shock of the question come to her face. She glances away, for a moment lost in the past and the pain.
"Rory..." She tails off, shaking her head with a deep sigh. "That isn't the same thing."
"But to me, in a way, it is." I argue, keeping my tone calm and collected. I take a few steps towards her, and I can see that by my getting closer to her, she is becoming more and more aware of my presence around her. She knows I am not angry at her. She knows I am not going to yell at her. She knows that I know she isn't going to yell at me. She knows that this is a start. She knows that I am trying. And she knows that I know that she is trying as well. "You married my father because you loved him, even when people told you not to." She swallows, and lets out a shaky breath as I know it is hurting her to talk about him. "You knew my father was going to die, and you married him anyway."
"I wanted to believe that he would live." She whimpers, and I can see her fingers trembling.
"I know." I nod. "I know you did everything you could to save him." I do know. I heard stories of what she did after he died. I heard how broken she was and I know how broken she still is. "You wanted as much time with him as you could have. To just be together and be happy. However long it lasted."
A few seconds tick by and then she nod slowly. "I did, yes. We both did."
"That is what I want." I give a small shrug of my shoulders, folding my hands behind my back. "I love Lyana." I smile to myself. "Despite what you say or any of the advisors, or anyone else." I shake my head. "I love her, and because I love her, she is going to be a great queen. My queen. A queen the kingdom and even the realm can be proud of." She gives another deep sigh, starting to shake her head. "I want you to like her, and to give her a chance. I have made my decision, and if you want any chance to be a part of my life, I need to know that you are going to try."
This renders her speechless as her piercing eyes stare into mine. "I want her to prove me wrong, Rory." She says after a few agonizing seconds. What? "I want you to be happy, don't you see that?" Before I can say anything, she continues, reading the confusion on my face. "I know you love her. I have always known, but I feared she wasn't good enough. How could anyone be good enough for you? You are my son." She lets out a whimper of a laugh. "I want you to find that person that makes you want to wake up in the morning with a smile on your face and dance when the rain is pouring down without a care in the world. It is what I have wanted for so long. Ever since I first held you in my arms." She walks up to me, cautiously, as though I would pull away from her. Her trembling fingers land on my cheeks, pulling my face up to look at her. "If you think this Lyana is that girl, then I can try to see it to, but it won't be easy for me."
As I stare up at her, and I see how afraid she is. "You are not going to lose me, Mother." I say and this causes a small cry to escape her as a tear falls down her face. "You never lost me, Mother, but I lost you."
"I know." She nods. "I was so afraid, Rory." She closes her eyes, shaking her head a few times, before her eyes open, looking at me again. "I don't want to be afraid anymore."
I reach up, placing my hands over hers, and I can see what that small touch does to her. "I don't want you to be afraid anymore either, Mother." I reveal, with a smile. "I want you to be happy again. I am not going to let anyone hurt you. I promise. You will never know that pain again. Do you believe me?" I ask, wanting so much for her to say that she does. But would she? Would she trust that I won't let her get hurt? Would she let me try to save her? After all this time? "Do you?"
For a moment, she is lost, staring down at me as though she is lost in the past. "I believe you, Rory." She whimpers. "You are so much like your father, it is scary sometimes." Her mouth twitches up into a smile. "You sound so much like him. You are so much like him."
"I am like you too." I counter and she gives another whimper. "I have always been as stubborn as you." She laughs, a true genuine laugh, and then nods her head in approval. I can see that my mother's guard is dropping, and that her walls are finally crashing to the ground. I wrap my arms around my mother, and for the first time in many, many years, I hug my mother. She starts to cry, and returns the hug, holding me to her like she did when I was very little.
I made a promise to her, and I intend to keep it. This is a new beginning for my mother and I. A fresh start. A chance to fight the battles ahead side-by-side instead of on opposite sides. I am stubborn like her, but I am also independent like her. I can stand strong on my own, like her. I can fight my own battles. Win my own wars. Like her. But I don't want to. I never wanted to. I want to have her with me. I always wanted her with me. Somewhere along the way, we got lost in our pain and forgot that we were always stronger together. Strong enough to find the brightest light in the darkest of nights. I am strong, because of her and with her the darkest of storms will not stand a chance.
***
Miss Makena Rikon
Rivergarde, Morith
There is a certain impatience that ticks through me, and has been since our mysterious pirate crash landed on the beach near the castle. It is no coincidence, and I am sure. Whatever happened to Leo Cavalier was obviously a horrible misdeed. Mother and Father have both sat with him on turns, but both have been called away, with promises of returning as soon as they are free, leaving me as the watchful eye. I sit in a chair across the room, with my bare feet, tucked into the cushions, and my long dress wrapped like a blanket around me. A book lies open in my lap, but I haven't read a single sentence since I sat down.
I study him, intrigued by an actual pirate. Not just any pirate either. What was the chances of the castaway being the most feared and ruthless pirates in the realm? There are so many questions I want to ask him. So many answers that I want. However, he sleeps. Quietly now, since his fever broke last night. Outside the room, the sea is alive and making much more noise than anyone in this castle, drowning out sounds one could often hear in these echoing halls. I find myself watching his chest rise and fall, feeling a bit of relief knowing he is at least breathing, even if he wasn't away. How afraid everyone had been upon seeing him. How close he was to his deathbed as well. Mother and Father said once that something had happened to their friend, something to make him change in a way that messed with his mind. Some deed that he had done, that shined light into everything bad he ever did in his entire life, and completely whipped out all the good he did as well. One good deed cannot fix all the bad deeds, but one bad deed can destroy all the good.
I am suddenly startled by the yell that escapes the pirate's mouth as he sits up, trembling as though he had the most terrifying nightmare. I am so scared by his sudden movement, I fell from the chair I occupied, book now completely forgotten as it skids across the floor. His breathing is harsh and loud, as though he is drowning in a sea of his own emotions and all I can do for a few long terrifying seconds is watch.
His eyes scan the room, terrified and pale in color, before landing on mine and sending a chill through my entire body. I can see a flash of recognition move across his gaze, but yet I can see that he still has no idea who I am. I stand up slowly, as he tries to get up. "No don't." I hold up my hands and was about to go to him when he heard me speak. Did he recognize my voice from the beach? "You mustn't get up." I continue, watching his eyes stare at me with a nerve of uneasiness. Was I friend or foe to him?
"Where am I?" The words escape his mouth in airy yells, almost like cries for help.
"Rivergarde." I squeak, my body betraying me to how afraid he had made me.
Upon hearing the name of the town, he settles slightly, his eyes becoming dark as he looks around the room again. "Why?" One word. What does he mean why? The look in his eyes as he looks down at the bed is almost a look of anger. Was he angry that I brought him to the castle?
I shake my head, not understanding. "I found you on the beach."
"You?" His eyes flick back to mine, almost in rage.
I take a deep breath, hoping he would as well. "Me." I confirm, nodding once and not breaking eye contract. "Makena Rikon." I say my name, hoping my last name would give him comfort, but it makes him flinch.
"I called you Serena, didn't I?" He questions, eyes scanning me as though I was lying.
"Yes." I nod again. "You did." He watches me, but then his eyebrows start to furrow together. "Serena is my mother." I reveal; the last attempts at making him see that I am a friend.
He almost grimaces, and then looks away from me. "I don't know of you." His voice sounds tortured.
"I was adopted a few years back." I say quietly, folding my hands together in front of me and standing still. "They found me in an orphanage after living on the streets." Somehow my confession causes him to relax slightly. Can he tell that I am not lying now? Or was it something else that he was hearing? Something similar to his own life. Mother and Father once said that Leo was an orphan. Just as I was. "What happened to you?" I ask without really meaning to.
He shrugs, not looking at me. "The devil has decided it is my time to pay for what I have done."
"What have you done?" I scold myself for how curious I am. The endless stories of heroic tales flood my mind, and I want to understand this story as well.
His eyes slide back to mine, cold and distant. "Something beyond your imagination, little girl."
"I will have you know, I am eighteen years old, and I am not a little girl." I bit back, offended my how he was treating me. I thought I saved him. He should be thanking me. "Did you kill someone?" I probe, my curiosity and impatience nearly killing me on the inside.
"Can you image me killing someone?" His eyes stay glued to mine, and he holds no apology for his rudeness.
"Yes." I say honestly, even if it was impolite to respond so.
He lets out a low hiss. "Then that would hardly be the deed that would go beyond your imagination, would it not?"
My face falls into a scowl. "Would it have been better if I left you down on that beach to die?" I question, my anger spiking.
"Yes." He nods once, and I can see that he means it. "Better there, than to drag me up here, and back into their lives."
"Their lives?" I question, reading between the lines. "My parents? Serena and Derrick."
"I have caused them much pain in our life time." He grumbles, looking away from me and I can see that he hates how nosy I am. If being nosy gets me answers, then nosy I will be. "I promised them I would not return."
"But they are your friends." I say quietly, shocked by how he speaks of them.
"What kind of friend disrupts your life with death and destruction left in the wake?" His eyes fall back on mine again, and for once I can see pain.
"The kind of friend who needs help." I find myself saying and knowing I am right. His mouth falls open slightly, as he just stares at me, his eyes holding a dark stare and yet I am not afraid of this pirate. "The kind of friend who didn't have a choice."
He lets out a loud laugh. "If there is one thing you learn in life, girl," he settles back against a pillow, folding his arms and staring at me, "you always have a choice."
"Leo!" I jump, slightly startled by my mother's voice as she suddenly enters the room. Would someone please just announce their entrance, or if they plan to make some loud noise? I bite my lip, seeing the pirate shrink back into the bed a little bit more. "We were so worried about you." Mother rushes to his side, like he is a sick child. She moves to touch him, and he flinches away from her. She pulls her hands back, reading his mood far better than I can. My mother turns around and looks at me, eyes hard, but in a motherly way. "Makena, please go get your father. Tell him our guest is awake."
"But, Mother he..." I start, but she shakes her head, raising a hand too softly to silence me even from across the room. Her eyes plead with me and I know I have to do as she said. "Yes, Mother." I look down at my hands, and nod once. I then leave the room, but find myself hesitating after exiting the door. She didn't want me to go get father, she wanted to talk to him alone. Without me there. Without me to hear what she has to say. I side step out of view, but stick close to the door. Close enough to listen.
"You shouldn't have brought me here, Serena." I hear the pirate say, his tone one of anger.
"Yes, we should have, and we did." Mother bites back with the same tone, matching his. "You can thank my daughter for that. She found you. She saved you."
There is a silence for a few moments and I wonder if they had heard me makes some sound. "I didn't need saving." He says finally. "I was the one saving you. The both of you."
"We know that, Leo." Mother returns, her voice softer. "You always were saving us, but it was our turn to save you." What was Mother referring to? Why did my parents need saving? "What happened was not your fault, Leo." She says suddenly, as though he has made some face, or said some remark that I could not hear.
"Of course it was my fault." He bursts out in anger, and I flinch back slightly at the sudden noise. What is it with him being dramatic?
"That man would have paid anyone to do his evil deeds, and yes, it happened to be you who carried it out, but it wasn't your fault." My mother's tone is one of understanding. She always understands, no matter what. There is another moment of silence and her words burn in my head, giving me even more questions that I already had. "What happened to those poor girls was not your fault." There is an emotional crack in my mother's voice. "No one could have known."
"But I should have." There is a new emotion in the pirate's voice, almost too where I didn't recognize it. "They were so afraid, and I didn't even question why."
"Sometimes, the heart doesn't want to see what is right there, Leo." My mother returns. "Do you think I wanted to see Gabriel for who he really was?" I flinch again slightly at the new information. Who was Gabriel? "Of course I didn't. I didn't want to see the man he was, because I would have realized that I could have never gotten away." There is a pause. The name stung in my head. Gabriel. What did he do? "If I had known, who he was, I would have listened to Derrick and in the end it would have gotten us all killed." I chew on my bottom lip, still listening in. "You didn't want to see what they were afraid of, because seeing it would have made you realize the person you became. And you did, in the end. That is why you left. You left because you didn't save them when you had the chance."
I am startled by a small tap on my shoulder and I whirl around seeing my father looking at me with amusement. "I was coming to get you." I find myself saying, knowing full well I was just caught ease-dropping. He raises and eyebrow, with a grin forming on his face. This wasn't the first time he had caught me listening in, and he used to say his sister did the same thing, and probably still does.
"Hear anything interesting?" He questions, glancing around the corner and peering into the open door, before looking back at me with interest.
Tons. I want to say, but I clamp my mouth shut and shake my head. His mouth twitches again into a smile and I know he knows that I heard far more than I should have. His eyes settle into a hard stare and he raises a hand slightly, only to wave me off like a stray dog. I straighten up slightly, jaw clenching. I want to keep listening in. I can hear they are still talking, but I knew that as long as I didn't move, he would continue standing there and eventually Mother would come out and realize I didn't listen to her. Reluctantly, I turn around and stalk off back to my room. I only turn around once, and see that he is still standing there, arms crossed with a smile plastered across his face. One of love and pride as he shakes his head, his shoulders bouncing with a silent laugh. I grumble to myself and turn back to the hallway, and continue walking. My questions will have to wait for later.