Counting Stars
If disappointment had another name, it would be Victoria.
Camille fainted at my declaration.
“Help?” I call out, bemused and unsure what to do.
Her chest rises and falls, signaling she’s breathing. So there’s that.
River rushes in, eyes bouncing from me to the floor. When he sees Camille, he rushes to her side.
“What did you do to her?” he barks.
I roll my eyes, exasperated at his reaction—or rather, overreaction. “Told her the truth.”
His brows lift to his hairline, if that’s even possible. “You told her about Lucifer?”
“Obviously.”
“Why in the hell would you do that within an hour of meeting her?”
“She asked.” My voice pitches in irritation.
A swarm of reaper guards filter into the room, backing me against a wall, while what must be a healer falls to the ground next to her.
“She’s fine,” I groan. “She fainted.”
“Something she’s never done before,” the healer bites in my direction.
“This is overly dramatic,” I say, looking anywhere but at any individual reaper. “I’m hardly a criminal. You can back up.”
Their heavy stares and pointed glares press down on me like a concrete block.
“Someone remove her, so I can concentrate.” The grey-haired healer man doesn’t look up as he continues to inspect his queen.
She’s still supine, eyes closed.
“I wonder if she’s faking simply to avoid speaking to me.”
“She isn’t,” River snaps, coming to my side.
“I swear to all that is holy, I will …”
“Yeah, yeah. I know. You’ll cut me. What for this time?”
“Taking her side.”
“She fainted, not you. It’s suspicious.”
“Are you freaking kidding me?” I throw my hands into the air. “What exactly would I have done to her, River?”
“It’s my duty to ensure you don’t do anything. It’s not like you don’t have a number of reasons to be angry.”
“I don’t want her dead.”
“Good to hear. Otherwise, I’d need to lock you up.”
His hand is under my elbow, ushering me from the room.
“Get your hands off of me,” I gripe, snapping my arm from River’s firm grasp. “I’m not a damn criminal. I simply told her something she didn’t want to hear.”
“I don’t blame her. It’s a lot of information to have dumped on her in one day.”
“Well, too damn bad,” I screech. “Isn’t that how the mother-daughter relationship is supposed to work? I’m getting caught up for a lifetime of moments just like this.”
I’m not sure where the anger is coming from, but it’s building by the second. Not that I don’t have a million and one reasons to be angry.
I have a mother and a father that were kept from me my entire life.
The man I love forced me to come here, to uncover that on my own.
My mother just made her thoughts on who I love very clear, by throwing herself to the ground.
And the one person I know here and had hoped would be my ally is currently glaring down at me, as though I knocked out his beloved queen with my own bare hands.
“You know, River, if I had any plans of following through with the sham of a marriage with you, this would be one epic strike against you.”
“And why is that, princess?”
“You’re a turncoat, just like the angels.”
“I’m not. I’ve always been on the queen’s side. You’ll have my loyalty when your marks don’t include Camille.”
“Ugh. You’re so transparent. Get a life, River. She isn’t yours. She promised you to her daughter, for Heaven’s sake. Which—news flash—is me!”
“I’m not going to dignify that with an answer.”
“Too late. You speak, you lose.”
His eyes roll back into his head, entirely too melodramatically. “For the damn record, your jealousy is ridiculous, considering you’ve made it abundantly clear that a marriage between us isn’t going to happen. So, like I said, my allegiance is still to my queen.”
That’s fair, I suppose, but I won’t admit it out loud. He’ll have to pry like usual to uncover my acceptance of his allegiances.
“Noted, princess. I’ll continue to pry away.”
“Ugh!” I groan. “You can start calling me Your Highness,” I say, sounding like a hoity-toity brat but unable to stop myself.
This reaper grates on my nerves and boils my blood, almost as well as Lucifer himself did when he reappeared.
“I can find my way back to my room. Unless you plan to lock me in a cage? Jail me? Since I must’ve permanently scarred your precious queen,” I continue to taunt, pressing my luck if River’s severe stare is any indication.
He takes a deep breath. “You’ve both had a long day, Victoria. Maybe you should head back to your room and get some rest.”
The fight bleeds out of me at the mention of how long a day it’s been. Exhaustion sweeps over me and suddenly, rest sounds like precisely what I need. “I don’t know the way back, but yes. I’d like to rest.”
“I think she can help you with that,” he says, motioning toward someone behind me.
I turn around to find Leanna standing with her arms crossed looking agitated, which leaves the door open for me to poke the bear.
“What are you? My personal angelic chauffeur?”
She doesn’t say a word but cuts me with a glacial scowl. So I continue on with my aggravation.
“Since when do you run errands for reapers?”
I manage to sound like a snotty child, but it can’t be helped. I came to the reaper kingdom a strong warrior and have regressed to an infant with lackluster jabs.
In all fairness to me, I was never allowed to be a child. Guess I’m making up for it now.
I need to get the hell out of here.
It’s making me entirely too pathetic.
Leanna shakes her head. “Glad to see you’re not in denial, Victoria.” She turns to River. “Got any of that melatonin stuff that humans drug their kids with? Really, any sleeping concoctions will work.”
River chuckles. “All out of human drugs.”
She groans. “I don’t think I can deal with whatever this is,” she says, motioning to me.
“Yeah, good luck. I need to get back in there to see what’s happening with Camille.”
Leeanna cocks her eyebrow, clearly wondering what’s up with that whole dynamic.
I shrug. “If you figure it out, let me know.”
River looks between us, confused by the unspoken conversation we’re having. I don’t need to read her mind, and she doesn’t need to read mine, to know that we’re both equally mystified.
It comes from centuries of training and fighting side by side.
“Let’s go,” she says, and I follow her, turning my back on River. I don’t glance in his direction again.
Wherever she’s taking me doesn’t look familiar.
“Is this the way back to my room?”
“No. I think you’re in need of some stress reduction.”
“Good Lord.” What does she have up her sleeve?
“Trust me, Victoria. This place is getting to you, and the effects are not pretty.”
“What is that supposed to mean?”
“Did you just hear yourself back there? You sound like a sixteen-year-old twit. Pull yourself together. It’s embarrassing.”
I cringe at her description because there’s not a part of me that doubts the accuracy.
“All right. whatever you have in mind, I’m game. Let’s do this. Snap me be back together.”
I probably shouldn’t trust her, but I do.
We walk out the door and into the garden I could see from my window, but she keeps walking toward the tree-lined edge of the yard. When we break the barrier of the pines, we find a wide-open field, with over two dozen reaper guards in various states of combat.
“We’re gonna train?”
She nods. “Best way to release the stress.”
I could kiss her. She’s never been more right. I take back all the things I said about her … at least for the next hour.
“Hiya boys,” she calls, and at least five reapers look in our direction. The rest completely ignore her, too caught up in their training.
The few that look in our direction stiffen when they realize who we are.
Two step forward and one removes their cap, allowing long black hair to fall over her shoulders. I recognize her immediately.
“Hi Cat.”
She smiles at me. “Come to join us?”
“Please. I’m in desperate need of letting off some steam.”
She chuckles. “A few hours in the presence of River will have you feeling all sorts of pent-up.”
Something tells me her idea of pent up and mine where River is concerned differs greatly, but I don’t call her on it.
“This is Max. He’s one of the reaper guards.”
“Hi,” he says, tipping his chin.
“This is Princess Victoria,” Cat tells him, and every reaper who wasn’t paying us any attention before now swings toward us in shock. “River told me,” she explains. “Should I bow?”
“Good Lord, please don’t. I’m still not quite adjusted to this.”
She smiles. “Something tells me you never will be.”
I laugh. “You’re probably right.”
“Okay,” she says, getting back to the reason we’re all here. “Why don’t you two come with us,” she says, motioning towards a makeshift ring. “We’re working on martial arts. Isn’t that what they call it on Earth?”
I smile. “That’s a blanket term, but yes, that’ll work.”
“Good,” she says, nodding her head one too many times. “Who is your angel friend?” she asks, finally addressing Leeanna.
“This is Lee. She’s my escort.”
“I’m her friend, not her escort,” she says.
“God made her come to chaperone me, so she’s my friend and escort today.” My tone is teasing, but Lee doesn’t appear amused.
“I’m not.”
“She is,” I counter. “Just ignore her. She’s bitter about it.”
Lee glares in my direction.
“Lee, you go with Max. I’ll train with the princess.”
I groan. “Can we maybe just stick with Tori?”
She smiles. “Whatever you want.”
For the next two hours, we train vigorously. Cat is a worthy opponent. Her skills are some of the best I’ve come across. I don’t doubt why Camille made her one of her personal guards.
When we’re done, my body aches and sweat coats my back. Drops of moisture run down my cheeks. I have not felt this good in some time.
“Ah, I had no idea how badly I needed that,” I rush out. “I really need to make sure this happens every day. It’s been killing me not to train.”
“So, you truly hunt demons on Earth?” Cat asks, sounding skeptical.
“I do. I had to contribute something.”
“But from what I’ve heard of Earth, there is so much to do. So much to see. You didn’t have any interest in exploring?”
“You’ve never been to Earth?” I ask, surprised by this revelation.