Chapter 13 #2
Words spill from my mouth, the story flowing freely from the very beginning—at least the beginning as I experienced it. Dane is from home. He is connected to my mother. He manipulated me.
I tell her it was actually he who killed the last Guardian, and blamed it on Weston to control us.
I tell her he almost killed Weston intentionally because of his friendship with my parents.
I don’t miss a single detail, recounting it all down to the moment in the cabin when he revealed everything, and as the words tumble out of me, I watch fury rise in her face.
“That asshole!” she yells when I am finally finished. “How did he get away with all of this? How are we stranded here, and he just left after holding us hostage? How did Dawnlin let this happen?”
I shrug, and I can’t keep the sorrow out of my voice. “I don’t know. But I have to trust that what was meant to happen, happened. We’re all still alive. We’re not hunting each other anymore. Hopefully, we can find happiness here, despite everything he took from us.”
She shakes her head in disbelief. “So all this time, the Castaways were just searching for a way home?”
“Yes, that’s all they wanted. They weren’t trying to take anything or anyone. They were trying to protect the waters from him.”
“I tried to kill you,” she says, a look of horror on her face. “All because he lied to me.”
I scrunch my nose in a playful wince. “It’s probably not a good idea to remind Weston about that.”
“Yeah, I gathered. By the way he looks at you, he’d probably have my head if I hurt you. Again.”
“He was not thrilled the first time,” I say with a laugh. My cheeks heat as I remember exactly what he did with all the emotions of finding me hurt, returning to the ship. I push it down and wave the next Voyager through.
“For what it’s worth,” she turns to me, her face laced with sincerity. “I really am sorry. I know Dane was controlling all of us, but I should have known. I should have seen it. When he disappeared for so long and then came back with you, I should have known something was wrong.”
Sig’s lesson comes crashing back to me, back from when I was having this same internal crisis, back when I found out Dane had lied to me, too.
The betrayal cut deeply, and that was before I knew the extent of it.
I feel like Mara needs to hear the words, if only to help her grieve the friendship she thought she had over so many years.
“It isn’t our fault how others treat us, especially if they try to harm or control us.
What matters is that when our eyes are finally opened to it, we remember our value and don’t let it happen any longer. ”
Her face hardens as if it’s set in stone. “It won’t. If he ever comes back, he’ll have all of us to deal with.”
“He will. And we’re stronger together.” I reach out and squeeze her hand, and she squeezes mine back.
Peering past Mara, I look at the front of the line to find Roley with a nervous look on his face. I smile down at him, ruffling his hair the same way I do with Fin.
“Are you ready, Roley?”
“I dunno,” he says and kicks the ground beneath him with the toe of his boot.
“It’s safe, I promise. There’s nothing to be afraid of. The island will take care of you,” I say, and he looks up at me with a sheepish smile.
“What if it says no?” he asks.
I crouch down and set my hand on his shoulder. “Then it says no. We can’t control it, and we can’t change it. You wouldn’t be alone. It’s the same answer the rest of us got. There’s nothing to be ashamed of.”
“Okay,” he whispers. I smile, then glance over my shoulder toward the entrance, only to find Weston scaling the ledge back to our side. He steps back onto the solid ground and walks over to us, his clothing completely soaked through from the spray of the falls.
“Let’s go, Roley. I’ll carry you over,” he says, extending his arms out.
Roley’s shoulders touch his ears as he takes a hesitant step forward. He looks back between Mara and me as if asking for permission, or more likely reassurance.
“He won’t hurt you, Roley. He’s not the bad guy,” I say, and watch as Roley’s throat bobs with a gulp.
“I’m going to put you on my back, alright?
You need to hold on tight,” Weston says to him, and before Roley can utter any denial, he reaches down, hoisting Roley onto his back.
The moment he’s in the air, a grin breaks across his face before he’s wrapping his arms around Weston’s shoulders and wiggling with glee.
Weston scales the ledge again, Roley’s tiny body dangling down his back the same way I’ve seen Fin do countless times, until he sure-footedly disappears through the portal on the other side.
“I can’t believe we thought he was a monster,” Mara murmurs, shaking her head in disbelief.
My chest squeezes, and even though I can’t see him any longer, I know he’s probably reassuring Roley again, making sure he’s safe entering alone.
He may think he’s just doing his duty as the captain, but I know it’s more than that.
Weston cares, and he’s a good man. One that deserves more than the life he’s been dealt.
I swallow the lump forming in my throat. “We only saw what we were told to see, but that’s not who he is. Not at all.”
“He wouldn’t have kept all of you safe for that long if he was a monster.”
The morning moves along as the suns trail across the sky. The entire line of Voyagers disappears into the mountain, leaving only Mara standing beside me.
“This is it,” I say, smiling at her. “Are you ready?”
“I’m terrified,” she says with a deep sigh.
“But I have to know, you know? I don’t want to wonder.
I’ve been wondering if my mom is still even alive for all these years, and I don’t need something else to add to it.
” She steps to the edge of the land, where the boulders form beneath the ledge.
“Maybe it’s better this way.” She stares at the waterfall, her face drawn with her own internal thoughts and preparations before walking into what she wanted the most. “I doubt there’s anyone left for me at home, so at least here, I’m not alone. ”
“You wouldn’t have to be alone, Mara. If we could go home, I’d find a place for you at the castle.”
Her head snaps toward me. “Wait, did you just say castle?”
Shit.
I may have left out the future queen part of the story, only focusing on the fact that Dane previously knew my mother.
I gape at her, trying to come up with a quick explanation, but there’s only the truth, and we don’t have time for that right now. She has something to accomplish, and I will not stand in her way.
Mara laughs, her eyes wide as she stares at me. “Tell me, Lennox!”
I shake my head and shove her shoulder, causing her to stumble toward the mountain wall. “There’s plenty of time for that. Right now, you have more important things to do. Get inside that mountain. We’ll see you on the other side.”