one day until
IT'S DARK WHERE I am. The stars and the moon above me are the only light that allows me to see. The streetlights were out, and that was exactly what we wanted. The target was in front of us - a two-storey house on the end of the street. Inside slept four out of five members of a family - a mother and father with two boys. The lights in their house were out. They have yet to know that there is a black out on their street. I mean, they probably won't notice if the power comes back on before morning comes.
Or, if they're dead.
I know my job. I know how to get into the house. I know what I'm search for. And if it's necessary, I know where the knives are strapped on my body, and I know how to kill.
I slide the window up. No alarm sounded - the security system went down with the electricity. Pathetic, but useful for me. I climb in through the first floor window. I begin my search.
Flowers and plants fill the living room - and every other room, for that. What less did I expect from this family? I know there are at least a couple extra poisonous plants in this room. "They're beautiful," I could almost hear the woman say. "Plus, if there was ever an intrusion, they'd be the ones to tell us what happened."
So a plant was going to snitch on me? That was a first.
I knew these people weren't dumb. He knew that I wouldn't be dumb enough to go back without searching the house for what we needed. One or the other, and I know that one of the options isn't even in the house yet. But he didn't know that the family was down a member.
Would they be dumb enough the hide it with the plants? I mean, for most people it wouldn't be a dumb hiding place, but with their family history and with what I'm trying to find, the correlation between the two would be strong.
I begin looking around the room. He was sure that it was in this house. He was sure it was somewhere hidden in here. He didn't believe it was in the outskirts of the kingdom. He thought it was here.
"Someone's awake."
As soon as the message comes through my earpiece, I hear the footsteps.
"Who the hell do you think you are, breaking into my house?" It was a male voice. I heard it cracking, so probably not out of high school yet. I don't move, listening to him shift inside the room. "Put your hands up and turn around slowly."
Oh, so he liked playing cop?
I did what he said, raising my hands and turning around slowly. The boy held a small dagger in his hands, placed in front of him. He was older than me, but his fear made him seem like he was much younger. In the darkness, I could see the shock fill his eyes.
"You're just a kid."
"Yeah, so?" It wasn't the first time I heard that.
"I don't want to hurt you."
"But the thing is-" I bury my fear inside of me. "-I want to hurt you."
By now, his parents are awake. They're probably heading out of their room right now, trying to see what the commotion what about. Maybe the other boy was up, too. This wasn't going to end up pretty.
I act fast, lunging towards him. He knows how to fight - I'm sure at this point, everyone who needs to know how to fight knows how to fight. He knows how to block my attacks, until I get a firm grip on him and manage to toss him into the bookcase in the wall.
I reach into the back of my shirt, pulling out a knife. This will be easy, I know I could do this. But I guess this would've been easier if he was fully unconscious right now. The son of a bitch was made of steel, apparently.
"What the hell-"
I turn around, glancing at the family at the doorway.
"We're sending backup," I heard through my earpiece. I think that would've been more useful a couple moments ago.
The man recognizes me. So does the woman. The younger boy, probably not much older than me, watched the scene. His eyes darted between his parents and me and his brother. He didn't know what was going on. His parents did, though.
"Where's Iris?" I ask, my voice barely coming out.
The man walks towards me slowly. "I can't tell you that."
"I need her."
"You won't be getting her."
I bit my lip. The boy behind me begins to yell at his parents; "What are you doing? Do something! Call the guard."
"Where is it?" I asked this time. They know what I'm looking for. "I know you know where it is."
"You're in the wrong place, Vera."
The younger boy looks to his father. "Vera? Vera Carmicheal?"
I looked down at the knife in my hand, then looked up at the family. "Well, I guess if this is the wrong place..."
I woke up with my heart pounding, gasping for air.
It was another rough night, but not for all the same reasons as last time. Sure, the episodes still crept up on me in the dead of night, but after what Lorcan said (though I despise the man very much) it helped to get me at least a couple hours of sleep.
But tonight, the nightmares mixed in, jolting me awake at random times in the night.
"Vera," I heard my brother say my name. I slowly turn to him. "You okay? Is it an episode or a nightmare?"
"Nightmare," I say, rubbing my eyes. I wasn't sure if I was seeing right at first, but now I was sure I wasn't seeing things. Lysander was dressed in an old JAU sweater I know belonged to out father years ago. He wore sweatpants over his cast and I was still able to see the black of his cast sticking out of his left leg hole. He wore one running shoe.
"Are you... going somewhere?" I asked my brother.
He nodded. "The palace, Vera. Doctors said Leo and I are good to go. You're being released too, but you're going to be watched over while at the palace." I turn to my other side, finding the bed empty. "Leo went downstairs already with Tori."
Ah. "Is there a reason why I'm being released when I'm not ready?" I asked my brother. I pulled at the collar of my hospital gown, realising it's been sticking to my skin. "I could just stay here."
"You wanna stay here alone?"
No, I didn't. It comforted me knowing that I could roll over to my side and see Lysander there. "I mean, I'd probably be a lot of work to take care of at the palace."
"If you're going to ramble about how you think you're a burden, then you can stop talking now, Vera," Lysander said. "The real reason is that despite everything the happened these last couple days, tonight's celebrations are still going as plan."
I gave him a questioning look. Was I missing something? There was something going on tonight? Who the hell would plan something after Leo went missing a couple days ago? The public might not give a shit about me and Lys, but did anyone here care about the kid's safety?
"The... king's birthday?" Lysander clarified, reading the confused expression on my face. "The king turns thirty-eight today, and it's tradition for the entire family to join him for breakfast. That includes you and me."
I rolled my eyes. "If you asked me a couple weeks ago, I would not expect to be forced to attend the king's birthday breakfast. I'm sick, can't I just sit this out and crash in Tori's bed for today?"
"The king seemed pretty firm about having you there, even if it was for a couple minutes." Lysander grabs his crutches from under his bed.
It seemed iffy, the king having me there. I still didn't know what his clear feelings were towards the legends and the idea that after tonight, he may not be king of Noatra. I don't want to be queen, still, but I have a bad feeling about tonight. That bad feeling is telling me that fate has something up their sleeve.
Lysander gets up. "I'm gonna head downstairs and I'll let a doctor know you're up. I'll see you in a bit, okay? Don't die in the next five minutes."
I let out a small laugh. "I'll try not to. You better hurry, just in case."
He knows I'm joking, but I could still see the worry behind the warm smile he gives me. There's no doubt that he was worried when I woke up from the nightmare, and he probably was worried throughout the night. They'll never stop worry about me, will they? I'm always going to be my siblings' younger sister, that constantly needed to be watched over.
Lysander limped out of the room, the sound of his crutches following him. He leaves me with my thoughts, and there's about a million running through my mind.
But the most prominent: why did I dream of the night I killed Iris Everdeen's family?
✶
TORI'S ARM IS wrapped around my waist as I walk into the dining room. She stuck behind to help me get ready and make sure I was okay. But I knew something was up when she kept asking if I was okay, kept asking the doctors if I was really sure to go. Unlike Lysander, Tori was keen on the idea to keep me here, and she wanted to stay. With me. In the hospital. On her husband's birthday.
The king looked up when we walked in. His children were surrounding him, sharing the gifts they bought or made for their father. Tori and King Pheon made eye contact and he began to get up from his chair. My sister's arm left my side.
I divert away, heading towards Lysander and Sophia. They watched the royal couple with worried eyes. Sophia cradled baby Annalise in her arms, who also stared at the scene with awe. It was easy to detect the tenseness in the air.
"Morning, love," the king said, leaning in to kiss Victoria, but she dodges and heads in out direction. She's mad - it's written all over her face. She collects Annalise from Sophia and heads to her seat in the table.
"Victoria," the king says her name but she doesn't look up. He says it again.
Tori turns to her kids. "You guys have been holding up alright, right?" she asks. "You haven't been giving Michelle or Sage or John any trouble, right?" Isadora, Romeo and Camden shake their heads. "Good, I'm glad. Leo, you're fine, right?"
Leo glances at his father. "Yeah, I'm fine."
"Victoria," Pheon repeats. He walks over, back to where he was originally. My sister finally addresses that he's here. "You've been ignoring me the last two or three days, you haven't talked to me, you spent all your time in the hospital leaving me-"
"Oh," she finally speaks. "I left you here and I instead was with my brother, my sister and, frankly, our son." Now it clicks why Tori's angry, and I think she has every right to be. "Your son was in the hospital for two days and you were aware of the condition he was in, yet you didn't even go and visit? Not once did you think that our family means more than your kingdom. Not once did you pick yourself up from your desk and drag yourself to the hospital to see if he was even alive."
"Mom, I'm fine now, you don't have to make a big deal-"
"No, Leo. That's not what this is about." Sophia grabs the baby from my sister's hands before she begins to rage. "If you could stop thinking about your kingdom for once-"
"I can't do that, Victoria, you know I promised to keep this kingdom safe," Pheon argued.
"And you're the one that wanted to start this family," Victoria yelled back, tears in her eyes. "I put so much into raising our kids and I make sure that they know that they're loved and being cared of and you hardly show them that you love them."
"I'm a king, you're a queen, we have people that could raise them. I told you right from the start, Victoria, you never had to give a damn about these kids."
Harsh. He was speaking really, really harsh words, right in front of his own children. Isadora leaned into Leo's chest, and I could see the tears form in the corners of her eyes. Romeo and Camden may not have understood what they were fighting about, but their tone was enough to scare them.
I saw one of the twins - Romeo - go under the table cloth. Next thing I know, he reappeared by my feet, grabbing onto my leg with fear.
"I never wanted that and you know that. If you knew one thing about me, it was that my family means the world to me." She glanced back at me. "How dare you speak like that in front of them?"
"Victoria you know where my responsibilities lie," the king starts to calm his voice down.
"And I am telling you, Pheon, that if you don't begin to put an ounce of effort into loving our kids, I will leave you."
That took an unexpected turn. I looked at Lysander, and I now he was itching to get in between the two of them. By the look on his face, he's worried someone is going to get hurt.
Pheon pursed his lips, running a hand through his hair. He tries to collect his senses. "I'm sorry, Victoria. I'm sorry for my actions and what I said... I know you care a lot about the kids, our kids, and that's part of the reason why I love you so much."
He walks towards her and holds her hands gently. "Please. I love you. Don't leave me. I'm sorry. I'll care more. I'm just... busy. Stressed. You... you understand, right?"
I could tell for a fact that this was not the first time they had an argument about this. Victoria hesitates, like she knows he won't keep his end of the bargain. Like this isn't the first time he promised that. She lets go of his hands, kissing him on the cheek. There was no "I love you" in return, just silence from my sister.
What an explosive start to the king's thirty-eighth birthday.
"Okay, with that aside-" Victoria looks calmer, but she's still on edge. She plays with the wedding band on her ring finger. I look at Lysander, my expression asking if they were just going to leave it like that. Lysander nodded. The two royals act like they didn't fight in front of a dining room full of people. "-breakfast time, I'm famished."
She calls over a servant, who brings Tori a baby bottle. She takes Annalise from Sophia's arms again and sits in her seat at the table. The morning begins rocky, and the tense air remains in the room.
Romeo is still clutching onto the fabric of my dress. He's still scared. I pick him up and bring him to the empty seat between Tori and his brother Camden. Leo and Isadora sat across from them. I'm sure that normally the younger children, maybe even Leo and Isadora, didn't eat in the dining room with their parents. Actually, most of the time the grand hall wasn't used for morning meals. But today was a special occasion, and that was almost forgotten with the fight occuring moments ago.
I tried to set the little boy down, but he refused to let go of me. Tori gives a small chuckle. "Seems like someone really likes you." She gives her son a funny face, but he shakes his head, burying his face into my shoulder.
I roll my eyes, knowing that the tiny human was attached to me now. Tori gestures for me to sit next to her and I do so, placing the little boy on my lap.
"Excuse me, Lady Vera?" I turn to the servant that says my name. She looks nervous, tucking her hair behind her ear. "We're aware that you haven't been eating for the last couple days, is there anything specific that we could-"
"I don't think I'm hungry," I say, cutting off her sentence. That was a lie, I was starving, but I'm positive that nothing will actually stay in my stomach. "If you have some juice or maybe tea, I'd really appreciate that."
Victoria gives me a worried look. Two days without eating. We know the reason why, but she still has a right to think that I'm not okay. I'm not okay, in fact. I could feel my body shake, wanting to go back into a bed. But I guess I'm going to have to suffer through this breakfast.
"So, what do you want for breakfast?" I ask the little boy who was still sitting on my lap. "You don't drink coffee, do you, little guy?"
Romeo snickers. "Cheerios!"
I turn back to my sister. "How dare you ruin a perfectly good set of tastebuds with cheerios?"
"I will never understand your hatred towards cheerios, Vera," Tori shoots back. "It's a type of cereal, you don't need to hold a grudge against it."
"They taste weird," I argued.
"I like the honey ones," Lysander adds to the debate. "I think they're the only acceptable ones."
"What do you two have against healthy cereal? This is why both of you had your first cavities in first grade. You guys just like sugar."
"And your hatred of sugar is partially why you've always been the second mother to us," I say. The servant from before places a cup of tea in front of me and a black coffee in front of Victoria. "See, even a black coffee. No sugar."
She looked annoyed. "What am I supposed to do with you, Vera?"
I give a smug smile. "Love you too, Tori."
Victoria places the baby bottle of the table, realising that the baby finished it. Breakfast gets served, stacks of waffles being placed in front of us. Toppings are placed in the centre of the table - strawberries and blueberries, bottles of syrup and cans of whipped cream. My stomach grumbles but my throat closes up.
I hate my body.
"Waffle buffet?" Leo questioned. "You hate waffles, Dad. We usually have them on my birthday, and Izzy and I usually finish yours."
The king rubbed the back of his neck. "Yeah, well, I thought you might enjoy them, after... everything." He shoots my sister a see-I-do-care glance. She sinks in her chair, realising there was a little heart in her husband. "Dig in, but don't get sick."
Romeo points to a bowl. "Booberry."
I pull the bowl of blueberries closer. I realise that a smaller waffle was placed in front of me, and in front of Camden. But Romeo apparently had a love for blueberries, along with cheerios. He pushes the plate away and begins to munch on the berries.
Sophia breaks the lack of conversation among the group. "So, everything is set for tonight? You seemed to have been planning it for months, Vic."
My sister lets out a sigh to relief. "Yep, everything is set for tonight. I've heard that everyone is ecstatic for tonight. Most people will arrive shortly, actually. Sir Lyall is helping to increase security, after everything that happened. Some people are a little shaken..." Her voice trails off.
"Is this, like, a ball for the citizens in the city or is it, like, wealthy families from across the kingdom or..." I began to ask. I needed to know what I was going to be faced with.
"Both," Pheon says. "It's a party and people are aware that the stars align tonight, and it's supposed to be a spectacular show. Most people will be awake until midnight to watch."
Was he trying to remind me? Did he believe in legends and fate and if he did, was he aware that he might as well lose his kingdom in a couple hours? The universe had a few tricks on its sleeve, I'm sure.
And Leo decides to ask the million dollar question on my mind. "Dad, are you going to give Aunt Vera the kingdom tonight?"
Silence falls in the room.
"What?" Leo asks when he doesn't get a response. "Aunt Vera is supposed to be crowned queen tonight and everyone in this room knows it. Legend knows it-"
"It's just a legend, Leo," the king says sternly. The warmth he had for a split second before disappeared. "We don't know what's going to happen and we're just going to let history take its course, okay? Vera has made it clear to me that she does not want to be queen-"
"I also said I didn't want Noatra to be in the wrong hands," I interrupted.
Pheon glares at me. "So you're beginning to question my authority, Vera? We have half the amulets, Ansen Grey won't get his hands on them, so he won't get the power he wants."
"He still has half of them," I muttered.
"And who's fault is that?" Pheon said, glaring at Leo.
I shook my head. "It's not Leo's fault. We didn't know Ansen was going to take him and Leo was just curious about the green amulet. You can't punish him for being curious. I won't let you."
Leo gives me a silent thank you. I nod. "Your Majesty, you are right: I do not want to be queen. I'm sure you are not oblivious to the fact that there may as well be a war in the near future."
I take in a sharp breath, my chest suddenly hurting. "I'll... I'll be back." I needed to get out of here. I pulled Romeo off me, placing him in the chair and walk out of the dining room.
Tears appear in the corner of my eyes as I hold myself close. I rub my side, as if that was going to help stop the pain. I wanted to get as far away as I could without getting lost, so I start walking down the hallway.
I was losing my balance, I realise, as I find myself drifting towards a wall and continue to walk using the wall as a support system. I couldn't do this. I couldn't stay here. Somehow, being in the castle was making me feel worse.
"Vera!" Tori runs to me. She makes me stop walking, her hands squeezing my shoulder. "Vera, you don't look so well. Sit down for a second, I can go grab Dr. Maxwell. Vera... Vera, come on."
I turn away from her before I throw up. She holds my hair back as I do. There wasn't even anything in me to throw up, what was this bullshit? I hear Tori call a servent, asking to help clean the mess up. Once I was sure I wasn't going to throw up again, she helped to walk me away and had me sit against the wall.
The servant handed me a bottle of water before they went to clean the contents of my stomach off the floor. I can barely lift it to my mouth and need Tori to guide it for me.
"You were fine," Tori said. "You were fine and then, suddenly, you're sick. How is that even possible, Vera? Why is this happening to you?"
"One more day until it stops," I say. My head tilts to one side. "That's what Lorcan said."
"Do you think you can walk up the stairs?" Tori asked. "I really think you should go lie down. If you can't, we can go to the den and you can lie down on the sofa."
I shake my head. "I just need a minute. I need to sit here... for a minute..."
Tori sits down, cross legged, next to me. "I can't wait until this is all over."
"Trust me, I do, too."
I clutch my chest again, trying to lessen the pain. I hate this, I hate this, I hate this.
"You don't trust Pheon to remain as king, do you?" Tori asks.
Do I want to be honest with her about her husband? I know there would be no use in lying to Tori about this, she would be able to read me like a book. "No, no I don't. There's just something that feels off. He seems kind of... calm? About everything happening. About the legend, but I have a feeling he believes them, even if he said no to Leo."
I closed my eyes, feeling dizzy. Tori helps me drink some more water.
"There was a battle, the month you were born, you know that?" Victoria asked.
I gave her an odd look. The conversation with Olivia from a while back floats into my mind. She told me of that. I nod weakly, wondering where my sister was going with this.
Her voice lowers. "I know you don't believe in legends, but the world we live in does. Pheon knows that the people are expecting a coronation tonight. The people expect a change in rule tonight. I'm going to tell you that there has been a breach of trust between the kingdom and the people for a very long time now. I'm gonna tell you that council members are tortured to follow what Pheon says." She bites her lip. "Ansen Grey may plan to become an immortal tyrant, but behind everything, Pheon is a tyrant, too. Lies build the throne, and I've seen it, Vera."
"Why are you telling me this?" I asked my sister.
She pursed her lips. "Pheon believes in legends, he's just denying it to the public. No one forgot the history, Vera, we just buried it within the stories we tell our children."
"I don't understand, Victoria."
My sister draws in a deep breath. "You have to be prepared to be crowned queen, Vera. It's going to happen. Tonight."