29. What’s in a Name?
29
WHAT’S IN A NAME?
*Kieran*
The moment Blanca starts naming names, I know we’re in for it. I want to tell her to be more vague, but I also don’t think it’s a wise decision to be secretive right now, and we still don’t have the mind-link. I was an idiot for not believing she was my mate and going ahead with the ceremonial shit before. Now, it might cost our lives.
She says my last name, and everyone in the whole damn–whatever the hell this is–freezes. She says Blake’s name, and the Luna almost passes out.
Still, I stay back, right next to Blanca, and wait.
After Luna Delaney recovers from her near swoon, she continues to question Blanca. “You’ve seen him? With your own eyes?”
Blanca’s head rocks back and forth. “Yes. King Gavin keeps him in a cell in the dungeon, but I used to go there often to bring the prisoners water.”
“Why would you do that?” The woman who caught the Luna looks to be about the same age as Delaney, and their facial features make me wonder if maybe they are related. Sisters, perhaps?
“Because it’s the kind thing to do.” Blanca doesn’t miss a beat. “I was mistreated in my time at Dun’s Crossing, and whenever I could, I tried to take pity on others who were equally abused. Besides, Mr. Blake was always kind to me. He used to tell me stories. He’s the one who encouraged me to come here. I discovered right before I left Dun’s Crossing that I had the ability to mind-link with him. I also found out about my powers to control the animals.” Her countenance changes as a solemn expression sinks into her face. “I’m afraid he was badly injured because I used my powers, and the guards assumed it was him.”
“Badly injured?” Delaney presses a hand to her cheek. “Is he going to be all right?”
Blanca doesn’t speak for a moment, and I see a tear forming in her eyes. I decide it’s time to chime in. “I think he will be. Blake is a tough guy, that’s for sure.” I can’t allow myself to think about how horrible I have always been to the man, to all of the prisoners really.
When I speak, the Luna looks at me for a moment and manages a nod, but it’s Blanca she is most concerned with. “All these years, I’ve wondered why he didn’t use his powers to set himself free. I assumed the fact that he never returned must have meant that King Gavin went back on his promise not to kill him.”
“Why did my fa–the king–promise not to kill him?” The words almost slip from my mouth. I’m sure the Luna must’ve noticed, but she doesn’t ask what I was going to say, only stares at me. Blanca sucks in a deep breath and holds my gaze for a second, but she also doesn’t call me out.
“Why don’t we take this conversation to my home?” Delaney offers. “It’ll be more comfortable there.”
“Of course.” Blanca starts to trot off behind her, but I tug on her arm. She bounces back to me and turns with wide eyes. “What?”
“Are you sure this is a good idea? What if they’re just luring us in so they can kill us?” I ask her.
She scoffs. “They won’t. They’re nice. Besides, why did you come all the way here if you thought my people were going to kill you?”
I am temporarily distracted by the feel of her slender fingers wrapped around mine but manage to pay attention enough to answer her question. “I couldn’t let you come by yourself.”
“You couldn’t let me die by myself?” She snickers and shakes her head. “The Luna knows Mr. Blake. He’s my friend. We’re fine. Just… be careful what you say.”
I mumble under my breath that I know she’s right, and then we follow the Luna, who has paused for us to catch up a few feet away.
This place is all hollowed out tunnels with the occasional wooden beam to keep the ceiling from falling in. It’s dark, save for the lamps, but it also seems like a massive space with lots of twists and turns.
A lot of people congregate along the path as we walk along as well. Most of them have curious expressions on their faces, which are clean despite the fact that we are walking on dirt and walled in by dirt. I have a thousand questions about this place, but now is not the time to ask them.
We pass mud houses carved from the earth. Some of them have straw mixed in for support. There are markets with fruits and vegetables, and I wonder where those are grown. Everything above the surface that we encountered was ash. I do remember the fertile soil we passed over, though.
I also see a well. That explains how everyone is clean. They have fresh water. I’m assuming they tapped into something my father and his men didn’t poison.
The Luna’s house isn’t too far away. By the time we arrive, I’m glad I’ll be sitting down soon. My back hurts from the fall, and I have a slight limp. I’d tried to reach out to grab the ladder with my paw but all that did was twist it. I should have taken the advice I’d given Blanca to shift, but I heard noises below me and wanted to be prepared to fight.
The Luna leads us into a modest house that appears to be one large room with a kitchen area, a bed, a couch, and a couple of chairs. The kitchen has a sink with a pump and a fireplace, which makes me wonder where the smoke goes, but again, I can’t ask. The chimney is made of mismatched stone I assume they gathered from the remnants of their previous dwellings above. It’s all very sad to me that they’ve been living this way for over two decades now because of what my father did to them.
The Luna offers us each a chair, and I gladly accept, thanking her. She doesn’t ask if we want water, just brings it to us, as well as a few scraps of dried meat. I bite into the salty substance and think it tastes a lot like rabbit. Despite how difficult it must be to live this way, they are making it work.
“Now, Blanca,” Delaney begins, sitting on the couch. “Tell me everything you can about your life, dear. It will help me to understand why Cole didn’t use his magic to get out of prison and why you are clearly very important to him.”
“Cole?” Blanca echoes.
“That’s right. My husband–Cole Blake, the Alpha King of Escuro.”
Blanca nods in understanding. She obviously never knew his first name, and neither did I. She starts off by telling the Luna about her childhood, how she was told she was a daughter of the Solbergs but was never treated like one. She talks about things I’ve never been aware of, like how her nursemaids mistreated her, etc., and it makes me angry at those people, but then, I am one of the worst offenders, though she doesn’t mention that to the Luna.
She tells her how she snuck out during the Haze and found out that I was her mate. She is kind in not disclosing my reaction. She doesn’t even mention the fact that we were told we were siblings since I am still Keery Lightmanguy. Then, she talks about discovering her powers, the friendships she’s had with the mice, and how Blake took the blame for her when she used her powers to assault the guards.
“When I realized I could speak to him through the mind-link, I knew we had to be from the same pack. He told me to find you, his people–our people–that they would be kind to me. So I ran away, and Keir–Keery came with me.”
The Luna takes a deep breath and says, “All this time, he stayed there on the promise that Gavin would fulfill his end of the bargain, and it sounds like he never did.”
“What do you mean?” Blanca asks, leaning forward.
The Luna silently stands, crosses the room, and takes an object from beneath her pillow. When she brings it back, I can tell it’s a framed photograph, but all I can see is the back.
“When we heard we were about to be invaded, we rounded up as many of the children as we could and hid them. Most of them we deposited in caves or other places where it would be difficult to find them. Our own child, we sent away with her loving nursemaid. She was on her way to our allies across the mountains. Gavin claimed he had found her and had her in his possession. I didn’t believe him, but Cole said if there was even a chance that was true, he would go with Gavin. The king of Dun’s Crossing promised to return our daughter to us if we surrendered. Cole did just that. They burned everything to the ground, took my husband, and I never got my daughter back.”
Blanca has tears in her eyes as I wonder if it was a bluff, and their daughter is in that other kingdom. But then, wouldn’t their allies have sent word by now? Unless they think everyone died.
“Can I see?” Blanca asks.
The Luna nods and turns the picture around. It’s her, twenty years younger, Blake, and a small baby.
“This is our sweet girl,” Delaney says. “My precious daughter. Raven.”