Chapter 21
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
D arkness drifted above Novi’s head, holding her down, stopping her from breaking through the surface. It felt like being underwater, only the world here was black and empty. Nothing lived in this place.
Nothing at all.
She could see movement and light shifting above her. She could hear the muffled sounds of people talking, then making all sorts of commotion. It sounded urgent, yet it didn’t invoke fear.
The bells were still ringing, both beyond the castle walls and in her ears. The darkness slowly vanished, leaving her in a daze. A warm, firm hand rested on her shoulder and gave her a nudge. Then Fallon was speaking to her.
“Novi…wake up.”
She immediately looked for her daughter.
She was missing.
Panic set in.
“Where’s Lucia?” she gasped in horror. She sat up in the bathtub, covering her hands with her ears. Those bells…they wouldn’t stop ringing.
“Where’s Lucia?” she demanded again.
“Novi…”
The look on Fallon’s face was scaring her. He seemed…fragile. His black eyelashes were wet. He’d been crying.
“She’s right here.”
Novi stared in disbelief at her daughter, who was tucked safely in the crook of Fallon’s arm.
“What’s happened?” she asked while rubbing her eyes. “Why are the bells ringing? Are we under attack?”
Fallon’s face was twisted into an indescribable expression of disbelief, pushing him nearly to tears. But he held on with every ounce of willpower.
“No. Far from it.” His tender gaze shifted to one of concern. “Are you feeling alright? Should I send for the Royal Physician?”
“The physician?” Novi repeated, struggling to grasp her surroundings. “What for?”
“You fell asleep in the bathtub,” Fallon told her with an amused grin, and motioned to where she was still laying.
Battling confusion and caution, Novi looked around the bathroom. The heavy oak door was wide open, yet it appeared just as it always had. There was no sign of rot, no holes, no splintered wood. No damage at all. In the background, Laena was standing with Mauricio and a tall redcloak with long black hair that she didn’t recognize.
With a theatrical gasp, Laena flung herself at the castle guard, tears glistening in her eyes.
"My son! My precious, long-lost boy!" She clutched at the man’s armored shoulders, her voice trembling with a bewildering amount of emotion. "How I've mourned you all these years! Oh, how the gods favor us today!"
Novi watched the performance, her stomach churning. Laena's acting was masterful—every gesture, every quiver in her voice sounded expertly calculated for maximum impact.
Confusion clouded the guard’s gaunt features, but he allowed Laena to hold him hostage in her dramatic embrace. He stood stiffly, giving Laena's back an awkward pat.
"It's...good to see you as well."
Fallon's gaze flicked between his mother and Novi, his expression inscrutable. Novi could almost see the gears turning in his mind, analyzing every nuance of their interaction.
"Fallon," she hissed urgently, tugging at his sleeve. "There was another woman in here with your mother! She attacked the door with magic and was making it rot away! They were going to?—”
Laena's head snapped up and she twisted out of the guard’s embrace, her tearful facade evaporating the moment she stepped into the threshold of the bathroom.
“Oh, darling Novi," she cooed, her voice dripping with condescension. “Having such bizarre dreams…you poor thing! Sleep deprivation can play such awful tricks on the mind."
Novi bristled. "It wasn’t a dream! Tamira saw her, too. She had gold?—”
"Now, now," Laena interrupted, her tone sharp beneath its veneer of concern. "Let's not take attention away from this joyous reunion and make it all about ourselves. After all, it's not every day a mother is reunited with her long-lost child."
Upon hearing the hypocrisy…the sheer audacity of Laena’s twisted words, Novi’s jaw fell.
“Novi, I want you to meet someone,” Fallon said quietly while offering her his free hand.
“He has no time for that.” Laena turned on her heel and tried ushering the redcloak out of the room. “We must find you proper quarters at once. You need rest after such an ordeal.”
Laena's grip on the man was downright possessive. She glanced over her shoulder, looking at Fallon with contemptuous triumph.
“I’ll decide when I want to rest,” said the man as he expertly maneuvered out of Laena’s claw-like grasp. “Go on without me. I’ll find you later.”
“But…” Laena protested, glancing back at Novi and Fallon. “What about?—”
“I will find you later,” the man repeated, lifting a brow at her. “I do know my way around.”
The assertiveness of his tone made Novi wonder why Laena didn’t immediately reprimand him for his brazen lack of respect. Instead of scolding him, the queen pinched her lips and left with Mauricio, not saying another word.
The touch of Fallon’s hand on hers broke Novi’s concentration. He helped her climb out of the tub and led her out of the bathroom.
Still in a daze from just waking up, Novi frowned in confusion at the stranger standing in their apartment. It was one thing for Cedric, Mauricio, Callie, or even the midwives to see her so disheveled, but a redcloak? Why would Fallon have let a castle guard into their room if it wasn’t an emergency? She tied the laces of her bodice a bit tighter and studied the features of the face looking back at her.
Her throat tightened as she recognized his familiar bone structure, along with a soft cleft in his chin just like King Balerin, Fallon, and Tristan. He had the same nose as Fallon, although his mouth was wider. His cheeks were hollow and his skin was sallow from a lack of sunshine. Dark circles framed his demonborn eyes, which lit up with a rebellious spark when he grinned at her.
“What a pleasure to meet you, Novi. Congratulations on being blessed by Daiyana and giving my brother his first child.”
“Your brother ?” she gasped, falling against Fallon in a temporary moment of weakness. “Are you…are you Prince Dillon?”
Novi’s heart leapt into her throat when he nodded and smiled even wider.
“Yes,” he said, quietly walking closer to look at the baby in Fallon’s arm. “She’s lovely. Well done, both of you.”
Given that this Sacred Son of Sinaryos had been presumed dead for a hundred years, compliments on her baby were the last thing Novi wanted to hear from him.
“How did you get here? I thought Talvi was killed on Bleakmoor Island!” she hissed.
Dillon shook his head and gave a soft, low laugh under his breath. He left the bassinet and joined Novi and Fallon.
“Oh, they tried to kill him, but that motherfucker’s relentless…he just doesn’t give up. I’m glad he didn’t give up on me . I owe him my life. My freedom. My everything .”
Novi’s eyes blew wide open as she looked up at Fallon. But he spoke before she had a chance to open her mouth.
“Annika’s alive,” he assured her while rubbing her shoulder. “Our prayers were answered. Dillon and Talvi arrived just in time to save her life.”
Novi’s breath caught in her throat as she covered her mouth. She thought she’d already cried all of her tears, but more began to form.
“She’s alive ?”
Fallon nodded, smiling wider. “She and her husband are both alive. They returned with us back here to the castle. I asked them to stop by later, once we’ve all had time to…recover.”
“The execution’s been canceled. We’re having a celebration in honor of my return,” Dillon added. “I hope you’ll be able to join us for this evening’s festivities.”
“Annika’s alive ? She’s here with Talvi, and there’s a party tonight? I have so many questions!” she squeaked, making both Blackwood brothers laugh.
“Of course you have questions. Don’t worry,” Fallon said after kissing her on her temple. Lucia began to fuss, and he rocked her gently in an attempt to soothe the hungry baby. “My brother’s here to stay, so you’ll have plenty of time to get acquainted.”
“Preferably after I’ve had a long bath,” said Dillon as he turned to leave. “I’d love to stay and chat, but there are about a thousand people who want to speak to me. I’ll see you both this evening.”
The moment the doors closed behind him, Novi’s jaw fell open. She whirled around to face Fallon, who hadn’t stopped smiling since he’d woken her up.
“How?” was all she could manage to say.
“I honestly don’t know,” he replied, shaking his head as he passed Lucia to her mother’s eager arms. “I’ve been asking myself the exact same question. The only explanation is that the gods are indeed smiling upon us.”
Novi loosened the strings of her bodice and took out a breast, offering it to her daughter. Lucia’s tiny cries immediately stopped as she began to nurse.
“I did pray for a miracle,” Novi admitted, not taking her misty eyes off her baby. “I prayed to all the gods, but especially to the Queen of the Chimera. I think you and your brother and our new friends are meant for something bigger. I just don’t know what.”
Fallon hummed in satisfaction, then led Novi over to the chairs. He waited for her to sit down before kneeling, smoothing back her hair, and pressing a tender kiss against her lips.
“We are so blessed by the gods,” he murmured. “We’ve been given everything we could ever want.”
“ Almost everything,” Novi said softly as he sat down. “Your wedding is only a few days away.”
Instead of looking annoyed, Fallon flashed a confident grin.
“I’m not concerned about that in the slightest. Not now that Dillon’s returned. It’s so strange to see him in the flesh…walking and talking as if he’s only been away for a month.”
Novi laughed to herself.
“I’m glad he’s here. Did you see the way he talked to your mother?”
“Oh, I noticed,” Fallon nodded. “I’m sure he learned that from my father.”
Novi was quiet for a few moments, not wanting to break the spell of Fallon’s incredible experience.
But he had to know what had happened in his absence.
“I didn’t fall asleep in the bathtub.”
Fallon looked up from his private thoughts. “What do you mean?”
“Your mother came into the room when I was with Tamira,” she began. Her heart raced, palms sweating as she clutched Lucia closer. “She was with another woman—I’m pretty sure she was a witch. I’ve seen her before, at the Temple of the Chimera. She met with the Prioress, and Kai was terrified of them both.”
Fallon's dark eyes narrowed, his jaw clenching. “Go on. Tell me everything."
Novi's words tumbled out in a frantic rush. "She had braided brown hair and these creepy golden eyes. They’re nothing like a chimera’s. They were trying to take Lucia. You have to believe me. I didn’t fall asleep in the tub. I ran to the bathroom and locked myself in, but the witch used magic to rot away the door. I climbed into the tub to protect Lucia. Then your mom pointed at me, and the next thing I knew, you were waking me up.”
A muscle twitched in Fallon's neck. When he spoke, his voice was deadly calm.
"And you're certain this is the same woman you saw at the temple?"
"Absolutely. I'd never forget those eyes."
Fallon nodded. "I'll find out who she is. I appreciate you telling me.”
“What are you going to do about your mother?"
“You saw the way she carried on with Dillon,” Fallon said, his tone surprisingly nonchalant, “I doubt she’ll continue to indulge in her obsession with Lucia now that he’s returned. She has her golden child back."
Novi's stomach twisted. "You can't honestly believe that."
Fallon's gaze softened as he looked at her. “You don’t know my family like I do,” he explained. His expression shifted, and a glimmer of hope lit up his dark eyes. He reached over and and took Novi’s hand in his, his touch surprisingly gentle for one with such lethal power. “Don't you see? Dillon's return changes everything . He'll be reinstated as Crown Prince. All the pressure, all the responsibilities I never wanted—they'll fall to him again."
Fallon's lips curved into a rare, genuine smile. His gaze drifted to the window, where the salty breeze carried the distant cries of seagulls.
"And come summer...I'll be back on the ocean, training new sailors like I used to…before all of this."
He let out a deep breath, shuddering at the possibilities. The dream of that future slowly unfurled in Novi’s mind. She’d rarely seen Fallon be truly happy or carefreee. She’d only caught occasional glimpses of it in their time together. To think of him feeling that way all the time was too enticing to resist.
Now that Dillon was home, that dream was looking more and more like a reality.
"We could really have a future together? Without all the politics and backstabbing and bullshit?”
"We could have everything ," Fallon murmured, squeezing her hand.
A timid knock at the door interrupted their moment. Tamira stepped into the room, her cheeks flushed. “Greetings, Your Highness…Novi. I came as quickly as I could. Is everyone alright?"
Novi exchanged a quick glance with Fallon before turning to Tamira. "We're fine, thanks to you." She took a steadying breath. "Tamira, would you...would you consider being Lucia's nanny? Officially?"
Tamira's eyes widened, a mix of shock and joy spreading across her face. "I would be honored!"
Fallon nodded approvingly. "Excellent. You can start immediately. Could you watch Lucia for a few hours this evening? There's a celebration in honor of my brother's return."
"Of course, Your Highness," Tamira beamed. "I'd be more than happy to."
As the young woman quietly excused herself to give them privacy, Novi felt her relief start to curdle. She let go of Fallon’s hand and repositioned Lucia to offer her other breast.
"How could you make that decision without talking to me first? After everything that just happened?"
Fallon’s brow furrowed. “What are you talking about? You just offered her the position right in front of me.”
Thoroughly exasperated, Novi rolled her eyes.
“I mean asking her to start tonight . I don’t want our first time leaving Lucia with a nanny to be right after your mother tried to take her from me and there’s a witch in the castle.”
For a brief moment, the air crackled with tension, but Fallon channeled his patience in an attempt to snuff it out. His eyes softened as he considered his words with great care.
"Nothing is more important than her safety. But isolating ourselves will only make us more vulnerable. We need allies, and my elder brother is at the top of that list.”
He reached out, his fingers ghosting over Lucia's cheek.
“Dillon’s return is no small thing. It's crucial for us to present a united front…starting with tonight’s celebration. The court needs to see no one but you as my partner. You don’t have to stay for the entire thing…but long enough to make your presence known.”
Novi's irritation deflated, leaving a cold knot of fear in its wake. “I understand what you’re saying, but I’m still worried about leaving Lucia alone.”
Fallon gave her a sympathetic smile.
“Would it help if I assign extra guards to our door? Four instead of two? Six?”
“Four is good,” Novi compromised as she got used to the idea of being more than a few feet away from her baby. But it wouldn’t be for long. And she trusted Tamira.
But when it came to the queen, Novi didn’t trust her at all.
“I’d still like you to talk to your mother,” she said.
To her surprise, Fallon rose from his chair and smiled.
“I’ll do it right now. And I will make certain she understands the consequences if she tries anything like this again."