Epilogue #2
It was a deeply poignant moment and Blayth closed his eyes, tears streaming down his cheeks as he felt his mother’s touch for the first time that he could remember. She touched that terrible side of his head without fear, without revulsion.
Only love.
“When ye were born, ye were a weak little lad,” she finally said.
“We were a-feared ye would not live. I spent so much time with ye, rocking ye, holding ye, and telling ye what a great man ye would become someday. I’m not sure if I believed it, but I wanted ye tae know that I had faith in ye.
I had faith that ye would fulfill yer destiny.
I think… I think that even though yer destiny wasna as we’d planned, it is still a fine one.
Yer father sent me a missive when he found ye at Lioncross, and he explained what became of ye.
I wanted ye tae know that I’m very proud of ye, because ye’ve been a hero tae people who trusted ye, and that’s a grand destiny for any man. ”
Blayth bent over, kissing her hands as he held them.
He was so choked up that he couldn’t even speak.
Jordan touched the top of his head, the thick blond strands that she remembered so well.
Perhaps he went by another name now, and perhaps he didn’t remember everything of his life as a de Wolfe, but to Jordan, he was still her little boy.
He was still her Jamie.
As Blayth bent over her, wrought with emotion, Jordan’s attention moved to the young woman next to him. Tall, dark-haired, she had a fine-featured face, and Jordan smiled at her.
“Ye must be Asmara,” she said. “I am very happy tae meet ye.”
Asmara smiled timidly. “Thank you, my lady,” she said. “I am happy to know you, too.”
Blayth, realizing he’d been rude by not introducing his wife, stood up and wiped the tears from his face. Still holding Jordan’s hand, he put his arm around Asmara’s shoulders.
“She is a great woman and I am undeserving of her, but she loves me anyway,” he said. “I know you two will become great friends.”
Jordan squeezed her son’s hand before letting it go, moving to Asmara and reaching for the woman.
She took Asmara’s hands, gazing into the face of the woman her husband’s missive had also told her about.
It had been a very long missive that explained everything.
Dragon Princess, William had said about James’ new wife.
She was a great woman among the Welsh. But all Jordan saw was the woman her son clearly adored.
“Of course we will,” she said. “Come inside with me. Ye must be weary.”
Asmara was immediately at ease with Jordan’s sweet manner. She didn’t even hesitate as the woman pulled her along, towards the enormous keep of Castle Questing. She, too, felt instant comfort at Castle Questing and as Jordan pulled her away, Blayth moved to follow. William, however, stopped him.
“Wait,” he said quietly. “There is someone else you must see.”
Blayth looked at him curiously, but his father indicated a dark-haired woman and two small children who were standing several feet away.
In fact, Jordan and Asmara walked right past them, close enough to touch them had they tried.
As soon as dark-haired woman saw that William’s attention was on her, she moved forward with her children.
“This is Rose,” William told Blayth quietly. “The children with her are yours.”
Blayth found himself looking at a pretty woman, very pretty, and two very handsome children. The boy was older, having seen eleven summers, but the little girl was small and shy.
Rose walked right up to him, her expression serious as she saw all of the damage to his head.
It was her former husband, but he’d transformed into something else.
She almost didn’t recognize him. She’d had weeks to prepare for this moment, but now that it was here, it wasn’t as gut-wrenching or emotional as she thought it would have been.
There was a peace about it, in fact. James was here, but only in the literal sense.
The man he was had died at Llandeilo; the man she saw before her was what came in his place.
It was a strange realization, but not uncomfortable.
When their eyes met, she forced a smile.
“Greetings,” she said. “Do you remember me?”
Blayth almost did, but he wasn’t sure. He had that feeling so often that it was frustrating. “I wish I did,” he said. “Greetings, Lady le Mon.”
He was acknowledging her married name, the name that was no longer his.
Rose, too, knew that her marriage to James was no longer valid, thanks to the same missive William had sent to his wife.
It was a missive that had contained, and explained, a great many things, so Rose knew the situation for what it was.
In truth, she felt relief and she felt joy, if only for William and Jordan’s sake.
She wasn’t quite sure how James would fit into the life of her son now, for he was the only child who remembered him, but she had every faith that everything would happen as it should.
She had her father’s philosophy on life, and considering she’d spent many an hour with Kieran speaking on this very subject, she’d come to the conclusion that James’ return wouldn’t disrupt her life.
But it was rather bittersweet to see him again.
“For your family’s sake, I am glad that you have returned,” she said. “And for Ronan’s sake. We have kept your memory alive for him, and he still remembers you.”
Blayth looked to the boy with the white-blond hair standing next to Rose. He looked very much as James had when he’d been that age, something that brought William and Jordan much comfort over the years. He smiled at the lad.
“Do you remember me?” he asked.
Ronan had his grandfather’s strength, his father’s humor, and his mother’s wild streak. He looked up at his father, fearlessly. “Aye,” he said. “Are… are you really back from the dead?”
Blayth laughed softly. “Some would say so.”
“What was it like to be dead?”
Blayth shrugged. “If your mother will allow it, then I should like to spend time with you and tell you,” he said. “Of course, only if you will allow it, too.”
Ronan looked at his mother, who nodded encouragingly, before lifting his slender shoulders. “I think so,” he said. “I have a pony. Would you like to see him?”
Blayth had never heard such a wonderful question.
Although he didn’t remember his son, the moment he saw the boy, he felt a familiar connection.
He wasn’t determined to be a father to the boy, because the lad had a father in his mother’s new husband, but perhaps he could have some place in his child’s life. A friend, a mentor…
He realized that he would like that very much.
“Aye,” he said. “I would.”
With a wink to his father and brothers, Blayth followed young Ronan as the lad led him off towards the stables of Castle Questing.
William watched him go, feeling a sense of contentment that he couldn’t begin to describe.
His son was home, and even though the world was different now, it was no less wonderful. It could only get better.
He could see the old James in the folds of Blayth’s persona, and he knew in his heart that James would make a full return someday.
He could feel it.
“Well,” Patrick said, breaking William from his train of thought. “It seems to me that all is well in the world again. Blayth seems happy, doesn’t he?”
They had all taken to calling him Blayth because it was the only name he remembered. His family had to accept that James, for the moment, was no longer with them. To Patrick’s question, William nodded.
“He does,” he said, turning to Troy and Patrick. “As am I. My son was dead, but I got him back. For every parent who has lost a child, that is the dream. Today, I am living my dream.”
Patrick and Troy understood. And in particular, Troy did. Having lost two children of his own to a terrible accident years before, what his father said was particularly poignant.
He understood, indeed.
As the two brothers headed off to take care of the horses and help disband the army, William continued to stand there, thinking that he was incredibly blessed to have all of his children returned to him, even if it wasn’t exactly as it had been before.
In truth, he didn’t care that it wasn’t.
He was very happy with this new world he lived in.
As he stood there, pondering what the future would bring for Blayth and Asmara, Rose came to stand next to him.
“Uncle William?”
William turned to her, the lovely young woman who had been his son’s first wife. He still loved her like a daughter. Reaching out, he picked up Isabella, kissing the little girl on the cheek.
“You were very brave, Rosie,” he said. “I cannot imagine this was easy for you.”
Rose shrugged. “To tell the truth, I was not sure how I would feel,” she said.
“Hearing that James was alive, and then understanding the circumstances of his return, I truly wasn’t sure how I would feel.
But when I saw him… it wasn’t James. I do not know if it makes any sense, but that isn’t the man I loved. He is very different.”
William nodded. “He is, indeed,” he said. “But our James is still there. I catch a glimpse of him now and again. But this Blayth… I like him, too.”
Rose simply smiled. She knew how devastated William had been at James’ death, but she was glad to see that he wasn’t disappointed that the James he knew wasn’t the James that returned. There were no unrealistic expectations on William’s part, only gratitude.
“I am glad,” she said, patting his arm. She, too, turned her attention towards the stables, where she could see her son and Blayth disappearing into the structure, but her mind was elsewhere. Her manner sobered. “You have not asked about my father, Uncle William.”
William’s entire manner seemed to tense. He’d been so happy, and now Rose had brought about a subject that instantly brought him down. He was afraid to even continue the conversation, but he forced himself.