Chapter 36
CHAPTER 36
L ila stood beside her mother, holding Galeeta’s hand as if afraid she would disappear. In that moment, it was hard to say if Lila was the protector or the one in need of care. Perhaps they played both roles, and that was how it was meant to be with mothers and daughters. They’d never given each other the chance to find out.
Now, thanks to Rafe, maybe she’d learn.
The wolf had returned to his place next to his father. He’d saved her more than once since they’d met, but convincing the others to spare Galeeta’s life was his greatest gift. None of the court nobles would have squandered a king’s boon that way.
There were no words vast enough to contain her gratitude to him. But even as she tried to imagine telling him that in some bright future, she couldn’t. There was only terrifying anticipation, one moment after the next, until her mother’s sentence was pronounced.
“Galeeta of House Fernblade,” King Elroth began, “you have transgressed our laws. Your guilt has been proven by your own account and the testimony of others.”
Lila’s gaze strayed to Rafe, as if she could draw strength from the sight of him. His expression was grave, a line of concentration between his dark brows. With a sudden rush of loneliness, Lila wanted him back at her side.
“In penance,” the king continued, “you shall be severed from our court. You will not pass into the Gilden Wood with our people, but stay in the cities among the other species, both human and supernatural, until you are released by my word.”
Shock ran through Lila. Her mother in the human city? He might as well drop an exotic koi into a cactus garden.
“I have taken the young wolf’s desire for cooperation between our peoples to heart. Of necessity, you will learn the ways of those around you. If you are wise, you will forget your name and pedigree and present yourself on the strength of your true skills and character.”
Galeeta flinched but said nothing. Lila had gone to the city, but she had wanted the adventure. This ran against every one of her mother’s instincts.
The king went on. “You are a healer, and you will give your services to all in need, free of charge or obligation. You are to conduct yourself as an ambassador of goodwill from my court, so that all may know we are as good as we are powerful. This is your act of contrition and path to redemption.”
Finally, her mother spoke in a low but steady voice. “Am I to go alone, Your Majesty?”
“If your family wishes to be with you, they may join you in your exile. I would suggest that you ask your daughter for advice on how to live there. You will be given enough wealth to survive, but no more.”
Lila pressed her hand over her mouth, not sure if she would laugh or cry. The humans had a concept of Hell. This was it for Galeeta. There would be many dark days ahead.
Galeeta raised her head to regard the king. “You are taking your people away from the human cities to preserve their magic against the taint of human cities. What if I lose mine? ”
“Remember your crimes.” There was no sympathy in Elroth’s face. “If you lose your power, then that shall be part of your punishment, Lady Galeeta. At least you will still have your life, thanks to a wolf you no doubt despise.”
Her mother’s mouth dropped open. “No, I?—”
Elroth pushed on, riding over her words. “I don’t believe a change of heart comes from one night alone, even if that night is fraught with terror and mercy in equal measure.”
Galeeta was silent, no doubt because what Elroth said was true.
“If you hear nothing else, my lady, hear this. I nearly lost my life and my throne to a monster tonight. That wolf is correct. If we were one with our neighbors, even in some small part, we would have brought him to justice long ago and avoided much pain and death for the fae and for our neighbors. Our young have shown us wisdom. It is up to us to embrace that lesson.”
The Alpha put an approving hand on his son’s shoulder.
Lila caught Rafe’s gaze one last time, making sure he saw her before mouthing a silent thank-you . He’d given her a gift beyond price. Rafe ducked his head, uncharacteristically flustered.
Izetta and Malatest nodded, but cautiously watched the lightening horizon. Dawn was not far away.
Elroth paused long enough to look around the clearing before turning to Izetta. “My lady, may I borrow your blade?”
Izetta silently handed it over, hilt first. The king sliced open his palm and used his thumb to mark Galeeta’s forehead with his blood. “Your penance has been spoken and shall not be broken until recompense is made.”
The spell was simple, ancient, and powerful. Galeeta bowed until her face was hidden against her knees. Elroth’s sentence struck at the heart of Galeeta’s pride. After holding herself together through so much, now she wept like a broken child.
The family crowded around her, giving as much comfort as they could. Lila barely paid attention when the king opened another portal for the fae, taking them back to the forest they considered their true home.
Lila didn’t notice the vampires leave at all, and only looked up from her distraught mother when distant wolf howls signaled that the pack had left, too. Rafe had gone with them, at long last welcomed at his father’s side. The long and terrible night was ending and taking him with it.
The future Lila had struggled to imagine was upon her. She had her family, closer than ever before. She was free from any obligation to marry someone she didn’t choose, free to build her life as she chose. And yet, tomorrow was an unexpectedly lonely place.
One month later, Lila juggled her shoulder bag, coffee, and croissant to her usual table at the bistro. It was late on a Saturday afternoon, so she had the luxury of scrolling through the online news while drinking her latte. It was the first time she’d relaxed in the weeks since she’d returned from the way station.
The first sip of coffee was heaven as she let her fae senses explore the bold taste. There was a snatch of song and sun-warmed earth coupled with the crisp air of the high mountains. She’d never tasted coffee or a croissant before coming to the city, but now that she had, there was no way she could give up such colorful flavors.
While she’d been at the way station, she’d missed the pleasure of the bistro, with its glass-topped tables, blue-checked curtains, and busy chatter. That had been the least of her problems, but now she appreciated the place even more. It sat next door to her apartment building in East Bay and was lively but never overly crowded. People spread their visits out according to their schedule and, given the mixed clientele in the area, the bistro served breakfast all day and all night, too .
Lila began scrolling on her tablet, skimming without really reading. There was a going-out-of-business sale as the light fae owners left for Gilden Wood and a new story from Errata about bacchante—sadly, the drug hadn’t vanished along with the Magician. The reporter had tried to write about Farras and the destruction of the way station, but Elroth had put a stop to that. Some fae business would always remain hidden, and no one who’d seen the king’s justice in action was likely to defy his wishes.
Lila’s family had been lucky, thanks to Rafe. Still, nothing had been simple. She’d held herself in a fist of worry while she’d found a place for her parents and organized the thousand necessary things to set up their lives—bank accounts, utilities, bus schedules, and even library cards. She missed Rafe’s steady presence every minute. She’d done everything with no help from other fae, who all seemed to feel she was the one with the time and expertise to handle the assignment.
The result of her efforts was a mixed success. Her father adored the library. In contrast, it had taken a monumental effort to convince her mother that their budget would not extend to a housemaid, and an automatic dishwasher would have to do. One might have thought civilization had crashed around Galeeta’s ears.
No, it had not been an easy beginning. Even so, it was progress. They had their space now, and Lila could reclaim hers. She could sit and have her coffee in peace. When someone pulled up a chair to her table, she was ready to blast the intruder at least three tables away. She set down her cup and looked up, barely wiping away a scowl.
It was Rafe. Her mouth went dry, as if she’d been drinking sand. She hadn’t seen or heard from him since the trial. “Hello.”
“Hello.” He smiled, and it was the first true, carefree smile she’d seen from him. There were dimples involved. “I hope I’m not disturbing you. ”
She stuffed the tablet back in her bag. “No, not at all. How are you?”
“Fine. How are you?” He took a sip of his drink.
“Fine.” Hearing the bland politeness of their words, she stopped.
They had united, wolf and fae, in a desperate search for truth. They’d risked death for it. She owed it to him now.
“Actually, it’s been dreadful. I’ve had to introduce my mother and father to the modern world.”
“Parents,” he said, saluting her with his mug. A paper tag identifying his drink as English Breakfast hung over the edge of the mug.
“Siblings,” she countered. “Sala and her family have joined King Elroth in the woods. So did Ademar. I doubt I will see any of them for a while.”
“And you? Are you staying here?”
He asked the question lightly, but she heard more beneath it. This conversation—and everything that came after—depended on her answer.
She looked away, desperately uncertain. “I think so.”
“You aren’t certain?”
“Maybe. I don’t know. The fight with Farras shook me.”
That was a mild way of describing the nightmares she’d had since planting a tree through his body. She’d jolted awake too many times, covered in perspiration and utterly alone.
“I’m not surprised,” Rafe said. “No one with an ounce of sanity could easily shake that off. We’re still mourning our fallen kin.”
“I’ve wondered over and over again what made Farras like that. He was the last survivor of his own House when he arrived at court. Something bad happened to him, but I’ve never known what that was.”
“Did you find your other sisters?”
“We did, but not until the next day. They were wandering in the woods beyond the way station. ”
Lila turned to the window, but she wasn’t seeing the street outside. Her older sisters had been shocked, bewildered, and terrified, but no longer gargoyles. Rosemund had a mane of curling hair that surrounded her like a cloak. Arabelle wore hers straight, but when they’d been found, they both looked as if they’d been rolling in a pile of leaves.
“The spell that bound them was broken,” she continued. “It failed when Farras was stripped of his power. Even so, they will not recover all at once. They are physically themselves, but they have not regained their power of speech. They may not remember much of what happened.”
Rafe set down his mug hard enough that it clicked against the glass tabletop. “Where are they now?”
She turned back from the window. “King Elroth took them. He has the finest physicians among the fae.”
He reached across, putting his hand over hers. “I’m glad they were found.”
She pulled her hand away. “You left without saying goodbye.”
She hadn’t meant to say it, but there it was. Regret flickered over Rafe’s face, but he quickly hid it.
“Your family wouldn’t have welcomed the intrusion. Not right then,” he replied sitting back in his chair. “And I knew I could always find you if you were in town.”
Of course, he could. He was a tracker. “So you did.”
And he was here now. That was something. She broke her croissant in two and pushed the plate across to him, keeping half for herself. He gratefully accepted the pastry and bit into it.
“So I did,” he said after swallowing the bite. “I wanted to see how you were doing. Whether my boon was doing any good.”
“It’s early days,” Lila said with a shrug. “One of the braver neighbors took Mother up on her offer of healing, although it was for a sick labradoodle. Father is amusing himself trading chess lessons for wine. I fear the reputation of the light fae will be classified less as a benevolent powerhouse and more as a collection of hapless eccentrics.”
Rafe chuckled. “It will take time. Shifters, Undead, witches—we have to get used to each other when we all share the same laundromat and drugstore.”
“I moved here to learn what that was like,” Lila mused, dusting the pastry crumbs from her fingers. “It was easy when I was on my own, with no responsibilities to anyone but myself. I could leave my past and immerse myself in a new environment. It’s different with my parents here, and I have to explain why taxes are a thing.”
“It’s harder?”
“It makes me question myself more. I believe in love and truth between all the human and supernatural communities, but when I see their blind spots, I wonder where mine are.”
He made a face. “Family has a way of making us overthink everything. My father is mellower than he was when I left home, but not enough to make things completely comfortable.”
“I hear a story there.” Lila drank the last of her coffee. “Shall we take a walk?”
If she’d wanted to end the conversation, send him out of her life, she missed her chance right there. Once they were out on the street in the summer sun, peace flooded into her. He was at her side again, his gray T-shirt and blue jeans showing long, lean muscles.
“My father wants to step down as Alpha,” Rafe said as they turned toward the park at the end of the street. “He wants me to step up. That’s changed the dynamic between us. Made it easier in a way.”
“What do you want?” she asked. “Do you want that more than your job as a tracker?”
They reached the park. It was a few acres of trees with a playground and community garden at the other end. It felt good to get off the pavement and stand on the chip trail that ran around the park’s perimeter. She could think better with dirt and bark under her feet.
“I used to want nothing more than to escape this place,” he said. “Now I’m fine with sticking around here. Enough time has passed, and the pack needs fresh blood.”
It was his future. She could hear it in his voice—he would accept the challenge because that was who he was. “But?”
“It’s not all I want.”
Lila’s heart made an unexpected skip. So, the fork in the road hadn’t been when they left the bistro—it was now, under the chestnuts that lined the park. Wolves and fae don’t mix. But here they were, standing too close to pretend that they were polite acquaintances.
It was time to make a choice—not out of drama and defiance or under the cover of secrecy, but in the Saturday afternoon sunlight. Wolves and fae mixed because they said so.
“Is that why you followed your nose to my favorite coffee shop?” she asked.
“After what happened, you needed time,” he said, his voice soft and low. “Now I need to know if I’m welcome.”
She cupped his face between her palms, pulling him down for a kiss. It had only been four weeks, but all at once it felt like an eternity since she’d last breathed in his warmth. “You are welcome.”
And they kissed, deep and long. A skateboarder whizzed by on the sidewalk, letting out a whistle as he passed. Lila wrapped her arms around Rafe’s neck, drawing him closer. He grasped the small of her back, holding her steady as they repeated the kiss. Then a car horn honked. There was no such thing as privacy on the neighborhood streets. She didn’t care.
By unspoken consent, they headed deeper into the trees. He took her hand, engulfing it in his warm fingers. There were many questions, many bumps in the road ahead, but none of them were impossible now. Magic was the meeting of will and power, and they had both.
Dappled shade danced on the lawn. Most of the trees were young, new plantings from when the park was built a dozen years ago. Lila had discreetly shaped them—a nudge here and there—to make a canopy over the path. After the ancient forests of the fae, it had seemed odd at first to be in a place where it was still possible to so boldly leave one’s mark. Whether humans knew it or not, their cities were still new, raw creations with infinite futures.
“What shall we do today?” she said, savoring the we . “Where should we go?”
“Home,” Rafe said, stopping with his back to a tree. “Right here.”
He circled her waist, drawing her in until she stood between his legs. His eyes danced with happiness. Lila leaned into him, her cheek against the hollow of his collarbone. With curious fingertips, she traced the landscape of his hard chest. He laid a hand over hers, stilling her movements.
“What are you thinking?” he asked, his low voice a husky whisper.
“That this moment is an end. We’re both free. The nightmare is over.”
“And a beginning?”
“Of everything that comes next,” Lila said, lacing her fingers through his. “I can’t wait to see what that will be.”