Chapter 2
TWO
GWENNA
Morgan’s mom is exactly as I expected.
No—more.
“Gwenna!”
I’ve barely taken the last step into the Camlann House foyer and she doesn’t ask, or even hesitate, to take me into a massive hug.
Mallory Pendragon—“oh my God, please call me Mal”—is tall, tan, and stunningly beautiful, with the curves and hair of an eighties supermodel. The only thing incongruent about her appearance is her deep black outfit: black boots, black purse, black coat with black fur collar.
A widow.
“Um, sure,” I say, as I stumble out of her camellia-scented grasp, unable not to smile a little despite everything. “It’s really nice to meet you, Mal.”
“Nice!” Mal scoffs. “More like overdue. Morgan’s been telling me everything about you, Gwen.”
Morgan, who is standing just a few feet behind her mom, blinks slowly and mouths Gwen? at me. I shake my head—whatever—as Mal’s gaze falls just behind me.
“Hi, handsome.” She marches over to Kingston, takes him by the shoulders, and peers into his eyes. “How are you doing?” she asks, voice a little softer.
Kingston nods a few times before he answers. “I’m doing well.”
Her manicured fingers tighten their grip. “King...”
“I am,” Kingston insists, putting his hand over hers and gently but firmly moving it off. “I’m more worried about you.”
At that, Mal melts a little. “Of course you are.” She rubs a hand to her forehead. “God. He really did raise you right.”
A small cough from the corner of the foyer, where Kai is leaning against the wall, hands in pockets. Mal straightens up and narrows her eyes—though not unkindly, I don’t think.
“Let me just go check on the food,” Kingston says adroitly. “Are you staying, Mallory? We’d love to have you.”
She shakes her head. “Can’t. Plane to catch. But thank you.” She blows a kiss in his direction, which Kingston returns with a blank look that almost makes me laugh, and then she turns to Kai.
“Now, you.” She puts her hands on her hips. “Staying out of trouble?”
Kai snorts. “Not fucking hardly.”
“Language, Kai.” She glances at me, then Morgan. “There are ladies present.”
“Oh, fuck that, Mom,” Morgan scoffs. “What is this, Bridgerton?”
Mal ignores her and takes a few steps towards Kai, her head tilted. Kai, for his part, resolutely looks everywhere but his stepmother’s face, until finally she’s too close to ignore. In her boots, she’s nearly as tall as he is, and she takes advantage of it as she stares into his eyes.
“You look after each other, okay?” she says. “You and Kingston.” She pauses. “Scratch that. You look after him, okay?”
Kai’s jaw tightens.
“You’re all he has now, Kai.”
She reaches for his face, but he jerks away.
“Yeah. I know.” This time, though, he meets her eyes when she speaks. Holds it.
To her credit, Mal doesn’t flinch. She stares right back, and eventually, her face eases into a smile.
“Thank you, Kai,” she says, softer still. “For the—”
“Don’t mention it,” he says, eyes flashing. “Seriously. Don’t.”
Mal puts her palms in the air in a gesture of defeat and takes a step back.
“Sir, yes, sir.” Looking back at me and Morgan, she shrugs.
“Well, sounds like I’ve got a mountain of fucking paperwork to deal with back at home, no?
" She gives a dry, mirthless laugh, and thumbs at the corner of her eye like she’s wiping away a tear.
But too soon, she’s sliding her sunglasses back on and enveloping Morgan in a bear hug.
“Miss you already, babygirl. Thank you for the quality time.”
“Anytime, Mama,” Morgan says. “A trip to the Bahamas is hardly an imposition.”
Mal disentangles herself from her daughter and turns her warm gaze on me. “Gwen. So lovely to meet you. Thank you for being such a good…” She stops, spinning a hand in the air, and then shrugs. “Such a good everything you are. To everyone here.”
Another hug, this one tighter than the last, and then Mal makes for the door, a blast of ice-cold wind punctuating her departure.
I shiver. Not just from the wind.
A hand rests gently on my shoulder. Morgan’s.
“Hey. Hi.” She smiles at me, her previous jokesy sarcasm gone. “I’m so glad you’re okay.”
She engulfs me in a hug.
“I’m sorry about my mom, too,” she adds, extricating herself. “She just comes on a little…like that. I told her she didn’t need to accompany me back to campus, but after everything that happened, she wanted to see them, and—”
“No, no, of course,” I say quickly. “She’s great.”
Morgan sighs, but it’s a fond sigh. “She’s a lot. But she’s everything I’ve got, so.” She shrugs.
Mal’s words echo in my mind.
You’re all he has now, Kai.
“You hated her,” Morgan says, interrupting my thoughts.
“What?” I shake my head vigorously. “No, no. It’s just…” I pause. “Well, at the risk of sounding rude—”
“Oh, by all means, sound rude,” Morgan says, rolling her eyes. “God knows my mom does all the time.”
I nod. “Well, she doesn’t seem too, um, broken up about Luther?”
Morgan scrunches up her mouth. “Yeah. Well. Not the first husband to die on her, A. And B, she was a wreck. Absolutely. Weeping, wailing, I’m talking literally crumpling to the ground.” She swallows. “It was hard. I brewed her some stuff, but still. And she doesn’t even know the whole…”
Morgan’s gaze drifts towards the dining room, to where Kingston’s just emerged from the kitchen, and it hits me.
Mallory has no idea. She has no idea her stepson killed her husband. She doesn’t know.
And Kingston knows she doesn’t know.
My heart aches, sharp and sudden, for him.
No wonder he could barely look her in the eye.
“Yeah. Happy fucking Easter, right?” Morgan gives my hand a squeeze. “How about some food, huh?”
There’s more food than all of us can eat—more food than anyone wants, I’d guess, but we all take to the table regardless.
The Camlann House dining room is grand and proper--all dark wood, leaded crystal, and fine china--although nothing compared to the Black Table.
Decked out for Easter brunch, it's almost laughably incongruous--the table with the floral centerpiece of lilies and greenery, the colorful spread of honey-glazed carrots and peppercorn-studded ham and arugula-blackberry salad, and the picture windows revealing nothing but stark white as the snow bears down in full force.
“Have fun sunbathing and skinny dipping?" Kai slugs back some wine. "Sure weren't in a hurry to get back, it seems."
Beside me, Morgan tenses her jaw. "For your information, there was only one flight a week back from the island, so it's not like we could get back any sooner. Unless you wanted us to, like, hijack a plane or something.”
“What, like, it's hard?” This from Lanz, who flashes a quick grin that dies just as quickly when Kai glares at him. Lanz pales even further, if that's possible.
“It's all been kind of a mess,” Kingston says tersely, neatly slicing his knife and fork across his plate, but not actually eating any food.
“I'll say.” Morgan eats a strawberry, thinking. "But she's good. Mom.”
Kingston and Kai both look at her.
"Yeah?" Kai says at last.
"Yeah," Morgan confirms. "Well, emotionally? Who knows. A hot mess. But in terms of—you know.” She pauses.
“I told her what you told me to." She swallows and sticks out her fingers, ticking off items as she speaks.
"Heart attack. Sudden. Embassy will coordinate repatriation of the remains.
" She glances at her stepbrothers. "Is that right? "
Kingston stares at his plate, saying nothing. Kai glances at him, then at Morgan.
"It's what she needed to hear," he answers.
"Mm." Morgan purses her lips and slides a glance at me. I give her a half-smile, a sort of I don't really know what to tell you and I'm sorry expression, because I don't. As far as I know, Luther Pendragon's body still lies on a distant airstrip, untouched, unmoved.
And, if I'm being honest? I hadn't even thought of the logistics until now. Hadn't considered that killing a powerful man like Luther--
I wince in spite of myself. Across the table, Kingston stares into the middle distance.
Hadn't considered that losing a powerful man like Luther Pendragon would have so many…implications.
"We informed the trustees." I look up, surprised to see that Kingston's speaking. "They sent their condolences."
"And this fucking bouquet," Kai adds, nodding at the centerpiece.
"Lovely," Morgan says, eyeing it like it's booby-trapped. "And what about the rest of the, you know. Details." She looks around the room. "I take it you all are handling that somehow?"
At that, Kai looks to Kingston. So does Callahan, and after a moment, Lanz. I do too.
Kingston stabs a leaf of salad onto his fork. “We’re getting to it.”
“Getting to it?” Morgan says. “What is that supposed to mean?”
“Your mom will get paid out,” Kai says. “Relax.”
“Oh, fuck you, Kai,” Morgan spits back. “That's not what I meant. I just meant—” She looks at me. “This is a big deal, isn't it? For your whole quest?”
Kingston swallows and sets down his fork.
It occurs to me that even I'm not sure what's going on.
"Do they know?" I ask. I direct the question at Kingston, but quickly swivel to Kai, then Callahan and Lanz. "Does the Consistory know?"
"That reminds me," Kai interrupts. "Lent's over, right? I'm taking this fucking thing off." He stuffs a hand down his shirt and fishes out the two leather strips and pendants that hang down his chest and back: the scapular. He drops it on the table unceremoniously.
Morgan cocks her head. "What even is that?"
"A scapular," Kingston answers. "We're meant to wear them in Lent. A devotional practice."
"A talisman, you mean?" Morgan raises an eyebrow. "And you guys claim you're so different from magic."
"Can someone answer my question, please?" I raise my voice a little. "Do they know, or not?”
“About what?” Callahan clarifies. “Which part? The part where--"
"Any of it," I interrupt. “About me, about...what happened"--I can't find the right words--"when we were at St. Ignaty, about--”