Chapter 8 Wen #2
“Yeah. So no. I’m really not okay.”
Daphne immediately sat beside me, taking my free hand while being careful not to jostle Killian. “Okay. Explain. Everything. From the beginning. Now.”
I gave her the rundown. When I finished, she stared at the wall, processing.
“Okay, so you’re descended from legendary half witches who were basically magical royalty. That’s actually kind of cool. Your whole life is a badass origin story waiting to be written.”
“That’s not...”
“You’re literally magical. Like, actually magical. Do you know how many people would kill for that?”
“People DID kill for it! Or tried to! That’s the PROBLEM!”
“Okay, fair point. But still. You’re like a unicorn. Rare and magical and special.”
“A hunted unicorn.”
“All unicorns are hunted. That’s their whole thing. Comes with the territory.”
Despite everything, my mouth twitched. “You’re ridiculous.”
“I’m helping.”
“She is helping,” Mal said from where he was standing awkwardly, clearly wanting to join the conversation but not sure if he was allowed.
Daphne and I turned to him in perfect synchronization. “No one asked you.” She said. She was still mad at him for keeping things from me. God bless besties who held grudges even longer than yourself.
“I was just...”
“Trying to join our conversation?” Daphne interrupted sweetly.
“I thought...”
“Bad thought. Go stand over there.” She pointed to a corner like he was a child in timeout.
Mal looked at Aurion, who had appeared in the doorway, following his mate. “They are shutting me out.”
“Yeah, you’re in the doghouse,” Aurion said cheerfully, eating what looked like another pastry. Did my brother-in-law do anything except eat baked goods and mock people?
“I am trying to be supportive.”
“Try harder. Or quieter. Probably both.”
Daphne turned back to me, squeezing my hand. “Your tragic backstory sounds like a bad YA novel.”
“It really does,” I admitted.
“‘She thought she was human,’” Daphne intoned dramatically, one hand pressed to her chest, “‘but she was MAGIC.’”
“Stop.”
“‘Her grandparents held a SECRET that could DESTROY her.’” She was really getting into it now, her voice taking on that dramatic narrator quality.
“Oh my god.”
“‘Would she embrace her TRUE POWER? Or would the DARKNESS consume her?’” Daphne clutched her chest theatrically. “Coming this fall to a bookstore near you.”
“I hate you.”
“Can I say something now?” Mal asked from his corner.
Daphne and I looked at each other, then back at him in unison. “NO.”
Aurion snorted with laughter from the doorway.
Daphne’s expression softened. “What can I do? Really? Name it and I’ll do it.”
“Figure out who I am? Because apparently I don’t know anymore.”
“You’re still you.”
“Am I? I don’t even know what ‘me’ means anymore. Who am I if everything I thought was true turned out to be lies?”
“You’re Killian’s mom. You’re my friend.
You’re the woman who manifested fire and portals to protect her son.
You’re Wen, reader of smutty romance novels and founder of The Society of Edward’s Sparkles.
You’re all of those things. The magical bloodline stuff?
That’s just bonus information. DLC content for the Wen experience. ”
I actually laughed at that. “Did you just compare my identity crisis to video game DLC?”
“If the metaphor fits. And it does. You’re still the base game. This is just extra content.”
I looked down at Killian sleeping in my lap, completely oblivious.
“Your grandparents were protecting you,” Daphne interrupted gently, knowing exactly what was going through my mind.
“Everyone keeps saying that. Doesn’t make it hurt less.” I grunted.
“I know. But it’s still true.”
“What am I going to do?”
“Whatever you need,” Mal said from where he was standing. “We will figure it out.”
I still didn’t look at him. Daphne glanced between us but didn’t comment.
“Will we?” I asked.
“Yes. Together.”
“I don’t know if I can do ‘together’ right now.”
“Then I will wait until you can.”
The room fell quiet except for Killian’s soft breathing. Daphne was holding my hand. Mal was standing a few feet away, looking like he wanted desperately to help but had no idea how.
And I was sitting there, feeling completely lost.
Later that evening, after Daphne had left with promises to check on me tomorrow, after Aurion had dragged Mal away for what looked like a very pointed brotherly conversation, I was putting Killian to bed in my room.
Killian was half-asleep already, his eyes drooping as I tucked the blankets around him.
“Mama,” he mumbled, rubbing his eyes with his fists. “Why don’t we sleep with Papa anymore?”
My throat tightened. Mal had been sleeping in his office, but I couldn’t tell that to Killian. “It’s complicated, sweetheart.”
“What’s comp-lee-cated mean?”
“It means Mama and Papa are working through something. Like when you and your friend have a disagreement and need time apart.”
“But I miss when we all had sleepovers together. It was warmer.” His voice was so sad.
“I know, baby.”
“Papa’s really sad. I feel it here.” He touched his chest, right over his heart. “Like big sad. Really really big sad.”
“You can feel Papa’s feelings?”
He nodded sleepily. “Uh-huh. And you’re sad too. Why is everyone so sad?”
“Grown-up stuff, sweetheart.”
“Grown-up stuff makes everyone sad. I don’t want to grow up if it makes me sad all the time.”
“You have a lot of time before you have to worry about that. Many years of being a kid first. Get some sleep.”
“Can Papa come sleep here too? So he’s not sad anymore?”
I hesitated, my hand stilling on his hair. “Maybe.”
“Good,” Killian mumbled, already drifting off.
I kissed his forehead and walked to the door. I knew Mal was out there. I could feel him through the bond, even though I’d been blocking him out for days. His presence was like a constant hum just under my awareness.
I opened the door. He was leaning against the wall in the hallway, looking worn and uncertain and so pathetically hopeful when he saw me.
“Come in,” I said.
He looked surprised. “Are you certain?”
“Killian asked for you. And honestly, I’m too tired to keep being pissed right now. I don’t have the energy.”
We approached the bed from opposite sides, falling into the familiar routine of tucking Killian in together. We’d done this hundreds of times over the past four years, our movements synchronized without thought. Our hands brushed over him briefly and I didn’t pull away.
Once Killian was deeply asleep, his breathing soft and even, we both settled onto the bed on either side of him. For a moment, we just lay there in silence.
Then Killian’s eyes fluttered open. He saw both of us and smiled, looking far too smug for someone who was supposedly asleep. “Finally,” he mumbled.
Then he was out again.
I stared at the ceiling. “Did he just...”
“Yes,” Mal said, and I could hear the smile in his voice.
“Our four-year-old just sassed us.”
“He gets that from you.”
“Fair.”
We were both silent, staring at the ceiling while our son slept between us.
“He’s been trying to get us back together,” I said finally.
“I noticed. I found a purple flower crown on my pillow yesterday. With a note that said ‘Mom’ in his attempt at handwriting.”
I laughed softly. “So subtle. Master of manipulation, that one.”
“He also asked me if I made you cry.”
“What did you say?”
“That I was stupid and made a mistake.”
“Good answer.”
“He suggested I bring you flowers to apologize. Said that’s what princes do in his storybooks.”
“Did you?”
“I was going to. But then assassins happened and ruined my romantic gesture.”
“Assassins ruin everything.”
“Everything,” he agreed solemnly.
We fell quiet again, the comfortable silence we used to share slowly creeping back. Then Mal spoke. “I should have told you. About my suspicions.”
“Why didn’t you?”
“You were overwhelmed. New queen, new mother, navigating a completely new world, juggling Earth and Lytopia. I thought you needed time to adjust without more chaos being thrown at you.”
“So you decided for me?”
“Yes. And I was wrong. I see that now. I thought I was protecting you but I was just keeping secrets.”
I turned my head to look at him. He was staring at the ceiling, jaw tight with guilt.
“I understand why you did it,” I said. “Doesn’t mean it didn’t hurt.”
“I know.”
“You should have trusted me to handle it. To decide for myself what I could take.”
“I know that too now. I fucked up.”
“Promise me. No more secrets. Even if you think you’re protecting me. Especially if you think you’re protecting me.”
He turned to meet my eyes. “I promise. No more secrets. Even when I think I know better.”
“Good. Because I have a black belt in holding grudges.”
“I am aware. It is terrifying.”
“Good. Fear keeps men honest.”
His mouth twitched. “You are magnificent when you threaten me.”
“I’m still mad at you.”
“I know.”
“But I’m slightly less mad than I was three days ago.”
“I will take slightly less. I will take any version of less mad.”
“You’re also sleeping in here from now on. Killian’s right. It’s warmer with all three of us. And both of us are tired of feeling your sadness.”
“Yes, my queen. Whatever you want.”
“Good answer.”
I leaned across Killian carefully and kissed him. Soft and sweet and tasting like coming home after a very long journey. When I pulled back, Mal was looking at me like I’d given him the entire world.
“Hold me,” I said, my voice shaking slightly. “Please. I’m tired of being scared and confused. I just want to feel safe in your arms for five minutes.”
“I will always hold you, little mate,” he said immediately, arranging us so his arm was around both me and Killian. “For as long as you need. Forever, if you want.”
I rested my hand on his chest, feeling his heartbeat steady under my palm. Killian was warm between us, breathing peacefully, finally getting the family sleeping arrangement he’d been campaigning for.
“We’re going to figure this out,” Mal said softly. “All of it. Your bloodline, Killian’s powers. Together.”
“Together,” I agreed, my eyes closing.
“I love you,” he murmured. “More than I can adequately express.”
“I love you too. Even when you’re an idiot.”
The last thing I saw was his beautiful smile.