Chapter 14 Carla
CARLA
Istand outside the castle, looking back at the window where Amari and Bobby strategize about the new security system. Their silhouettes move behind the glass, heads bent together over the projection screens.
The remaining soldiers of Medina Shadow bow to me as they walk over to a truck, loading into it as they prepare to depart for the Royal Island. They’re going to offer King Amir and Queen Anora some extra protection.
I start to walk into the forest, thinking about how to channel that kind of energy. My feet find the well-worn path without conscious thought.
I find myself stopping in a clearing within the forest. It’s clear of my children—they’re all in limbo, protecting Wintermoon as much as possible. The absence of their comforting presence makes the space feel too empty, too quiet.
I look up when I feel a burst of energy crackling through the air. Anora suddenly steps out of the shadows, lifting the hood of her cloak from her head. Her dark hair spills around her shoulders.
“Is everything okay?” I ask, already knowing the answer.
Anora narrows her eyes at me. She starts to circle me like a predator, and I can see the darkness swirling in her eyes. The power radiating off her makes the air thick and heavy.
“Why isn’t this handled?” she demands.
I glare at her. “Excuse me?”
“Something in your little void is trying to take my son away from me. Do we need to fight again?” Her voice carries a dangerous edge.
Magic trickles from my fingers, pink webs sparking to life. “Let me remind you, Blackwoods have sent their own magic into limbo. So let that be a confirmation of what I can do to you.”
“Do you not understand the weight of what I’m dealing with?” I continue, frustration bleeding into my voice. “The fate of Wintermoon rests on my shoulders.”
I sigh, trying to reach the cousin I know is buried beneath all that rage. “Look, I understand about Solomon. I want the best for him too.”
But Anora just keeps circling me like a shark scenting blood.
“You aren’t getting it.” She stops suddenly and glares at me. “How is it that you don’t see it? We are hated everywhere. We’re hated by the humans, hated by supernaturals, and now, FUCKING LIMBO.”
Anora’s eyes go completely black, the whites consumed by darkness.
“You are letting your dark magic take over,” I tell her. “Calm down.”
Her eyes fade back to brown, but then she gives me a wicked grin that’s somehow worse than the darkness.
“Let me tell you now, I am a woman desperate. They keep trying to take my man from me, and now my son. What do you think is going to happen when they do?” She steps closer, her voice low and dangerous.
“Are you going to put me into the same prison as Nathaniel, or are you going to let me grieve properly?”
Anora gets right in my face, but I don’t blink. I’m not afraid of her anymore. We are matched, power for power. The Queen of Limbo doesn’t bow to anyone.
She grins at me, appreciating my courage. “You all know how I like to grieve.”
“You’ve made your point,” I snap. “Now get out of my fucking face.”
Anora laughs, the sound carrying unnaturally through the trees. “Let Nathaniel come after my son again,” she says as she walks away, not looking back.
“I’ll wipe all this shit out, and it will be just me, Amir, and Solomon.”
“And I’m sure Amir and your son will appreciate your madness,” I call after her.
She gives me the middle finger, keeping her back turned, then disappears into the darkness like smoke dissipating.
I let out a frustrated sigh, clearly irritated with my cousin. The weight of everyone’s expectations, everyone’s threats, presses down on me.
I take a minute to myself, breathing in the forest air, trying to center myself. But then Aya’s voice comes to me, and it just irritates me further.
“I told you my sister-in-law was far worse than me,” she says, appearing from the shadows. “Born of dark magic? Why would Mother Fate make such a creation?”
I look up at Aya as her ghostly form approaches.
She taunts me. “Ah, she’s the answered prayer. The woman who changes Wintermoon for the better. But it comes at a cost, balancing out the darkness that made me the monster I was.”
“You sound bitter,” I observe.
Aya puts her fingers up like she’s pinching. “Just a little.”
“This isn’t going to work,” she says suddenly.
“What are you talking about?”
“You!” Her ghostly form flickers with agitation. “I need you to get your shit together.”
“You are the Queen of Limbo,” she continues. “You don’t get the luxury of being selfish.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about!” I raise my voice, and suddenly I feel power stripping from my fingertips, pink magic dissipating into the air.
Aya pauses, her ghostly form staring at me with those penetrating eyes.
“I have a chance to go home to my mother, and be with my sisters, letting my daughter be at peace and truly heal. Hazel will never truly be able to move on with her life with me stuck in limbo. I’m still tethered to her.
” Her voice softens for a moment. “And as difficult as it is to believe, I love my nephew. I love my brother. I love all of you. But I need you to stop being selfish.”
She fixes me with a look that cuts straight through me. “You cannot keep Amari and Limbo. You will have to choose.”
My heart sinks at that, plummeting to my feet.
“The more you’re away from limbo, the more you give Nathaniel the power to do what he wants,” she explains, her voice almost gentle now.
A tear escapes my eye as I just stare quietly at Aya.
“I know it hurts,” she says softly. “But sometimes, the life of a supernatural isn’t a fair one. I know that more than all of you.”
“And what will come of him?” I ask, my voice hollow.
“I don’t know,” she admits.
“Go away.” The words come out flat, empty.
“You can’t call on Tabatha. It’s not her problem anymore,” Aya tells me.
“I said go away.”
Aya falls quiet and nods to me. She disappears, leaving me alone in the darkness of the forest.
I don’t try to use my magic to summon Tabatha. What I do is use my magic to create a web bed, the pink strands weaving together to form a hammock between the trees. I float into it, letting the magic carry me up.
I lie back on the web and just think. The stars peek through the canopy above, indifferent to my pain.
I look up into the sky and just break into tears.
“Why?” I ask Mother Fate, my voice cracking. “Why give him to me, Amari, and you’re just going to take him from me? You give me love just to take it away. He’s the only one who’s seen me besides my children.”
I break down and just sob. I cry until my throat is raw, until my eyes burn, until I can’t breathe. I curl into a fetal position, wrapping my arms around myself as if I can hold the pieces together.
I don’t realize how long I’ve been crying or how long I’ve been there. I’m cold. I’m tired. I’m broken.
Amari suddenly flashes into the clearing, and I can feel his worry through our bond, but I can’t move. My time with him is limited. I know it now with crushing certainty.
I suck in another sob because my heart is just breaking, shattering into pieces too small to ever put back together.
Amari finally looks up at the web bed and sees me curled up, crying.
“Oh, baby. What happened?” His voice is full of concern, but I don’t respond. I can’t.
He looks to the tree one of my webs is attached to and climbs up. He climbs into the web bed with me and pulls me into his arms, resting against the tree trunk.
“Are you hurt?” he asks gently.
I don’t respond. I just cry harder. Amari pulls me up against his chest and just holds me. I can feel his heartbeat, steady and strong. It’s destroying me.
“You’re scaring me, baby.” His voice wavers, but he just rocks me, holds me, lets me know that I’m safe.
My Amari. I cannot live without him. I cannot do it. Everyone gets to keep their man. Angie, Anora, but me... I have to let go. It’s not fair. It’s not fair.
“It’s okay, baby. Let it out. Let it out,” he whispers against my hair.
I just cry and cry until exhaustion takes over, until I fall asleep in his arms. And still, even in my sleep, I can hear him. I feel him kissing my forehead. He’s telling me how much he loves me, urging me to just rest.
So I do.