Chapter Five
Andi
With the last heatwave of the season amongst us, the fabric of my dress clings to my legs as my swollen fingers pick a multitude of blackberries for tonight’s desert.
Wiping my brow, I gather my long hair and braid it into a bun on the top of my head.
Allowing the breeze to cool my neck for a brief moment before the sun beats down on me again.
Even with the shade of the trees, the heat of the day threatens to boil me alive—what I wouldn’t give for a lounge in the lake today.
But no matter how much I long for the cold water to skate across my skin, I can’t bring myself to step further into the forest. All those years spent with Dad exploring the woods—making dens, maintaining habitats, and swimming in the lake—made these woodlands our escape.
Now there are too many memories. Too much pain.
Mum is busy cleaning when I thump the full basket on the dining table, pouring some water into a wash bowl to splash on my face, savouring the temporary relief. Mum is swift in handing me a note with some ingredients to source in town. Groaning, I walk back into the sweltering heat.
Children splash in the river at the edge of town, cooling off, and their playful laughs are enough to bring a smile to the grumpiest of folk.
“I can see our kids playing here someday.” Myles sneaks up behind me, wrapping his arms around my waist.
I lean into him, feeling an instant ease despite his balmy skin. I spin around to face him, brushing my hand through his wet hair sticking to his forehead, breathing in his calming scent.
“Our kids?” I say with my eyebrow raised. For once I’m glad of the heat to hide the flush rising on my cheeks, the palpitation thumping from my chest.
He brushes his finger along my jawline, leans down, and kisses me gently. “Oh yeah, I have it all planned out,” he says as he spins me around, pointing down the river. “We’ll build a little cottage over there, by the big willow tree. Our kids will spend hours climbing it.”
Myles leaves a trail of soft kisses down my neck, savouring each taste. Instinctively, I tilt my head to the side, his hand spreads out on my stomach, and my heart stops for a split second.
“You do want kids, right?” he questions.
“Of course,” I lie. “One day,” I whisper as his hands grip the nape of my neck, turning my head.
“You would make a great mother, you know,” he whispers. His breathy words calm my nerves, pulling me down from the ledge that is my anxiety.
Myles brushes loose strands of hair off my shoulder. “Your scar looks… different?” he says, tracing the scar on my back.
“Different how?”
“I don’t know. More pronounced. It kind of looks like…”
I wait for him to finish his sentence, but he drifts into thought. “Looks like… Never mind. How did you get it again?”
“Climbing the oak tree in my garden when I was younger, always trying to reach the very top. One time I slipped and fell. Scratched right down my back, there was blood everywhere.”
A curious expression grows on his face.
“What’s up?” I ask. “I’m fine now.”
“Nothing, it’s just… It’s an unusual scar.” He continues to trace the lines with his finger, kisses the scar, and squeezes me tighter.
We watch the folk below playing in the water, and the trees sway as a cool breeze sails over us. Maybe forever with Myles isn’t the worst way to spend a life.
I moan, remembering that I have a list to collect. “Mum’s making chicken, and blackberry pie for tonight. I’m supposed to be getting some stuff from town.”
Myles rubs my shoulders. “Come on, I’ll walk with you.”
“A few more minutes.”
Myles laughs. “You can’t put this supper off, you know.”
I screw up my face as he hooks my arm and tugs me into town.
Mum’s loud voice grates at my nerves, screeching instructions at Elana in her usual demanding way. Guilt gnaws at me. I should have been here to help. Elana’s going to make me regret this.
“No, Elana. Baste it, or it becomes too dry. Oh, just give it to me.” Mum turns to me as I open the door. “About time you showed up to help, this dinner is for your boyfriend after all.”
“If it were up to us, we wouldn’t be having this meal tonight. Or any night.”
Elana looks at me with bulging eyes, silently telling me to just shut up and help.
I relent and ask, “What do you need me to do?”
Mum wastes no time in dragging me into the kitchen, wrapping an apron around my waist.
The food is ready, the table is set. Elana and I sneak off to get dressed. Elana rolls her eyes and smiles, saying, “Your boyfriend just had to make a scene.”
“I know, he’s so weird.”
“No, that was amazing, like out of a story book,” she beams, “I wish someone would proclaim their love for me like that.”
“Can the two of you hurry up!” Mum screams at us.
Elana grins at me when there’s a knock at the front door, smiling coyly, we head back through to the living area. Mum runs a hand over her clothes, smoothing them out before opening the door wide, with a big grin.
“Oh, it’s just you, Wyatt.” Mum has never sounded so disappointed to see him, it makes me chuckle.
Behind Wyatt, Myles appears, standing awkwardly, unsure of whether he should invite himself in or not. I lift my hand to wave him inside just as Mum spots him at the door.
“There you are. Welcome Myles. Come in, come in.” Mum ushers him inside.
Myles walks through the door, freshly shaven, wearing a charcoal grey shirt, the sleeves rolled up, showing off his toned arms. And thankfully wearing trousers.
“Thank you, Mrs Kohan, I brought a bottle of wine. I hope that’s okay?” Myles smiles, handing it to Mum before walking to me, kissing my cheek with his hand around my side, squeezing gently.
“Hope you’re hungry, we’re having roast chicken tonight.” Mum grins.
“My favourite,” Myles answers, and I can’t tell if he’s just being polite or not. “Can I help with anything?”
“No, no, everything’s under control, Elana, Wyatt, come help set the food on the table, please.” Wyatt protests but snaps his mouth shut, sensing the already tense atmosphere.
Mum grabs Elana by the wrist tugging her towards the kitchen, and she pouts at me before being dragged away. I show Myles to a seat, he takes my hand on his lap, rubbing his thumb along my knuckles, reassuring me.
Elana and Wyatt lay the feast on the table.
“This is quite the spread, Mum, can we spare all this?” I ask. Mum squints her eyes, and I can hear her voice inside my head telling me to be quiet. Myles nudges me under the table. “I mean, this looks great, thank you.”
We are going to be eating leftovers for days.
“It smells delicious, Mrs Kohan.”
Mum smiles at his compliment. “Thank you, Myles. Please, everyone, dig in.”
Wyatt narrows his eyes at Myles, taking on the protective big brother role while he fills his plate. Luckily, Elana breaks the awkward silence. “Tell us about yourself, Myles.”
“There's not much to tell, I moved here about eight months ago, I grew up in Eilia but fancied an adventure,” Myles says.
He picks up a forkful as Elana questions him further, “What about your parents? Siblings? Why choose my sister?” I toss a pea at her; she jumps to avoid it. Myles watches us and laughs.
“My parents are dead, and I’m an only child.
I was raised by my uncle. He was a blacksmith; he taught me the trade.
I’ve been travelling for a while, looking for something special.
” He glances towards me. “Or someone.” He takes a sip of his wine.
“And as for your sister, I was besotted the first time I saw her, something told me I needed her in my life. I kept trying to find the courage to talk to her but fell short every time. As luck would have it, I was passing when Misty lost her shoe.”
I cover my face with my hands. “That was the most horrific night ever, I couldn’t get out any words. Utterly humiliating.” Wyatt nods in agreement, and I scowl at him.
Myles takes my hands in his. “Yes, it was.” He springs back as I go to push his shoulder, laughing, he continues, “Trust me, if you hadn’t stuttered when you did, my body would have crumbled before you.
I was so nervous, my legs were shaking, and I wasn’t sure they would keep me upright.
Then you stumbled over your words, and I saw you were just as nervous as I was. ”
I stroke my hand over his cheek.
Elana’s eyes widen, her hands flailing around, nearly hitting Wyatt in the face. “What if?” she squeals, “What if you two are mates?” She pulls her hands up to her face to hide her growing smile.
“Come on, El. This isn’t one of your stories. Mates are a myth.” Elana’s face drops, her doe eyes begin to well. “El, you're almost an adult now, you know that fairy tale endings aren’t real. Have you ever heard of anyone being mated?”
“Actually,” Mum interrupts Elana’s sobs, “it’s rare, but I have met a mated couple. Many years ago.”
Elana’s pleading eyes look to Mum, a silent prayer that everything she has grown up believing in isn’t a lie.
“A mating bond is not something to be taken lightly. It’s said that once they have met, the bond solidifies, making it impossible to fight. That being separated from each other is pure agony.”
Maybe I’m too much of a cynic to hope for happily ever after.
Myles rests his arm on the back of my chair, and I lean into the nook.
Mum holds up her glass. “Mating bond or not. I think you are perfect for each other. I wish you many years of happiness.”
“Thank you very much, Mrs Kohan, for a fantastic evening.”
Myles holds out his hand to Mum. She stares at him, but instead of taking his hand, she wraps her arms around him, stretching up on her tiptoes.
Myles' eyes widen, but he doesn’t pull away.
Elana and I stare at each other in astonishment, and my jaw hits the floor.
Mum’s warm reception of Myles shocked me, given her earlier behaviour.
When Mum lets Myles go, she smirks at me with pursed lips and raised eyebrows. I didn’t have time to ponder her expression. Myles takes my hand and pulls me out the door, towards the edge of the path.
He leans against the gate, “I like your family,” he says as he looks back at the cottage, Mum visible through the window, rushing around the kitchen on clean-up duty, with Elana and Wyatt in tow.
“I think they like you, too. Mum seems to approve anyway. Did you see that face she made before we left?” Pursing my lips and raising my eyebrow, I copy her face. From the way Mum was behaving last week, I had no idea she would take to Myles as quickly as she did. He impressed her.
Myles reaches forward to push the hair over my shoulder. “Your sister is the double of your mother. Did your father have black hair like you?”
“No, he had warm brown hair. I’m just the anomaly.”
“Hrm.”
“What does ‘hrm’ mean?” I say playfully.
“Your scar was… the shape of it is unusual. It reminded me of something, but I couldn’t think of what. Then it hit me, I spent all afternoon searching for this.” He pulls out a piece of paper that has been ripped from a book.
Myles points to a symbol that looks a little like my scar. “I pulled this from a book my father left me, ‘The histories and legacies of Linorah.’ I was never much interested in the stories when I was younger, but the symbols always stuck out to me.”
“I don’t understand.” I take the piece of paper from his outstretched hand and examine the symbol on the page. Yes, it’s similar, but that means nothing.
“I don’t know exactly what it means, Andi, but this symbol is the marking of the Tanith family.” He looks at me with wide eyes, grinning from ear to ear.
“The Tanith family?” That name seems to make an appearance in all walks of my life. My mind races, trying to take it all in.
Myles blinks at me. “They were the royal family of Linorah? Or they were before King Zayn. They are known for controlling forms of ancient magic.”
Myles steps out to face me. “Do you understand what this could mean? You have the same marking as the royal family.” His eyes widen, his body restless, piecing together random information in his head. “You don’t look like your family members. You just said it yourself.”
“This is ridiculous. It’s a mark, a scar. From falling from a tree, I remember it. And as for my hair and eyes, maybe I take my genes from distant relatives.” I laugh at his suggestion.
“You fell from a tree, but did you actually see the wound? Or just blood?”
“Do you hear yourself?” I scoff at him. I remember it all, the smell, the pain, the warm blood running along my skin. Mum was cleaning up my back, saying I’d be left with an interesting scar.
Myles snatches the paper from my hands, slicing my fingers. “Look at it. Whether you believe it or not, this is the same mark you have. It’s too coincidental that your scar is an exact copy of the Tanith’s. You are royalty.”
“Hold on, I’m sorry, let me get this straight.
You are saying those folk in there,” I point to the cottage, “are not my family? That I’m what, adopted?
” My blood pressure rises. “That’s absurd, so what if I don’t look like them, but to say I am not even related.
Can you hear yourself? Do you know what you sound like? ”
Myles grabs me by my arms, squeezing a little tighter than usual. “They are not your family.”
I push him off me and start backing away.
“Don’t you dare imply that woman in there is not my mum because some book says so.
It’s outrageous.” Pointing my finger into his chest, I yell, “It’s not a magical symbol, it’s a stupid scar from being a stupid child.
” I glower at him; Myles furrows his brows.
“You need to go.”
“Andi, no, I…” Myles reaches for my arm, but I pull away. I storm off into the cottage, as tears build in my eyes.
I slam the door behind me. Elana and Mum are reading in the corner, Wyatt scoffing on leftovers at the table. Mum lifts her head from her book. “Is everything ok?”
“Fine.” I stomp towards my room, anger making me pause. I shout, “Myles has it in his head that you guys are not my family because of this stupid scar on my back. That I’m from some royal family.”
Mum chuckles. “That’s ridiculous, Andi. You fell. Remember?”
“I know.” I throw my hands up in the air. “Misneach, who does he think he is?” I reply. Storming to my room, falling onto my bed, I crawl under my blanket and cry myself to sleep.
For once, I don’t dream of the man and the smoke-filled room; instead, Myles’ words thrum in my head, playing in time with the witch’s words. ‘Suppression spell,’ ‘Royal family of Linorah,’ ‘Same markings.’ Repeating vigorously. A slow, steady drumming, growing in crescendo.
The sun has not yet risen, but I am wide awake. Unable to drown out their words. Bouncing off the bed, I cast off my necklace, studying it. It is beautiful, the black gemstone encircling the white, suspended on a silver chain.
The necklace feels heavy in my hand. I toss it onto the bed, pulling on a dress and grabbing my boots. I take another glance back at the pendant shining in the moonlight and run out of the house.
I need air, space.
I need to get far away from here.