Chapter 3
Chapter Three
As soon as I let Kingston take the syringe, which I did only because I risked stabbing Morty just for being a dick, he skipped out of the hidden passageway.
Swinging back to face us by the bedroom door, he looked far too pleased with himself. “Papa won’t preach ’til tomorrow, I reckon, so I’ll get out of your hair. Is my old room free?”
My mouth popped open to retort, and Kingston sighed, but before he could respond, Morty chuckled.
“What? I’m just assuming it is, since…you know”—he made a crude hand gesture and waggled his eyebrows—“bow chicka wow wow.” Then he winked.
Kingston pinched the bridge of his nose. “Morty, please, don’t make me stab you.”
Delight sparkled in Morty’s dark brown eyes, and he gave us a quick wave before flouncing out of the room. Nothing left to say except, “Toodles!”
In the aftermath of his presence, my head spun. I leaned against the wall, staring up at Kingston. “What the actual—”
“I know.” He shook his head, releasing the pinch of his fingers and turning to face me.
“He’s…well, he’s not harmless, but he’s neutralized, for the most part.
He won’t do anything too out of line, but he’s become a bit more eccentric in the last year.
After what happened while he was King of Camelot Court and after, he hasn’t been the same. ”
“What happened? And why did it affect him so much?” My brow furrowed. “Is he affected? He seems flippant, at best.”
Kingston’s mouth twisted into a sad smile. “Guilt.”
“He was King then. Last year, when she—when Desi died?”
“No, he was King the year before, but still here last year. It’s more than that, though.” At the confusion on my expression, Kingston grimaced in apology. “Morty was in love with her.”
A soft gasp escaped me. “Oh, no.”
Although far too inadequate for the weight of a girl losing her life, and someone who loved her being torn over guilt from her death, I wasn’t sure how much more tragedy I could take. Considering the delirious laughter from earlier, overwhelm threatened with my every step.
My mind needed a break. I needed a break.
But I had a feeling I wouldn’t be getting one anytime soon.
Shaking my head, I refocused on Desi and Morty. “God, that’s awful. Were they together when she—?”
“No,” Kingston said quietly, as he played with the charm on my bracelet. “He always admired her, had affection for her, but she wasn’t from Camelot Court. Best friends with Landon’s sister but still an outsider, so it never seemed like an option.”
I laced my fingers through his.
“When she joined The Quest, he was here, shadowing his father for his future role. My father’s plan was that I’d choose him when it came time for me to lead the Camelot Society, which would’ve made him the next advisor to Camelot Court.”
“That was a lot of past tense. I take it the plan has changed?”
“Yes, after Desi died, Morty went completely off the grid. This year, when The Quest began, he showed up, acting as if no time had passed at all. His father had to turn him away. Plans had changed. There was no room for him here anymore, but all that happened without my knowledge. I didn’t realize he’d come back initially, but later, I pieced together that he’d been the one to turn you away at the gate. ”
“You didn’t tell me that.”
“With everything else you needed to know, love, it didn’t feel like pressing information to share.
” Eyes filled with apology, he took my hand.
“I’m sorry I didn’t, though. I wasn’t expecting him to come back here, to be honest. The last time he and I talked, after I found out what he’d been up to—Well, I ordered him to stay away. ”
I scoffed but couldn’t help laughing. “Yeah, he doesn’t seem like the type to take orders.”
Kingston chuckled, exhaling a breath and shaking his head. “Yes, that’s actually a family trait. Although Merle has proven there are ways to keep a Dread in line, their family has always been known to eschew orders from the King. Mordred was the usurper, so it’s fitting in a way.”
From what I remembered of the legend, Mordred married Guinevere after he betrayed King Arthur and stole his throne.
“It’s interesting how the legends being passed down almost became a part of your stories. Not the greatest legacy to tie your family history to, in their case, but generational trauma is an insidious beast.” When his eyebrows rose, I shrugged. “I read about it in a book my therapist gave me after…”
I bit my lower lip.
I hadn’t thought about the therapy my dad made me do after my mom’s death in a long time, and if the goal remained to reduce my mental load, I had no intention of starting now.
Kingston, as if sensing that, thumbed my lip free from my teeth and traced the marks I’d left behind. “I like the idea of us breaking tradition and going in a different direction than our family lines, don’t you?”
My heart squeezed with relief before my pulse quickened at his touch. “I do.”
His smile, the way he ran his hand across my cheek, and tucked my hair behind my ear—it recentered me.
It cleared my mind in a way I’d desperately needed and confirmed my next move. “I’m going to find Max.”
Kingston furrowed his brow. “Yes, we should warn him about Morty’s presence here.”
“Yes, that.” I grimaced, about to pull a one-eighty on what we’d agreed before all this.
“I’m also telling him anything his psychotic brother might know.
Aside from just being shell-shocked, in general, I’m not sure what I was thinking, keeping secrets between us, but—Consider me shucked, or whatever.
I can’t hide things from him. He needs to know what’s happened between you and me, and Landon. ”
“But—”
“I know. Trust me, I do. But…” I gripped the lapels of his shirt, meeting his gaze and pleading with him to understand. “He deserves to know. And there’s no way I’m leaving it for Morty Dread to rub in his face.”
Kingston’s brow furrowed deeper, but he didn’t argue.
“There’s so much bad blood between the three of you—so much history—and these secrets are just going to make it harder to bring us all together.
I believe there’s a chance for forgiveness between the three of you.
I believe you can all let the past go, because it was out of your hands.
And that he’ll understand why I didn’t tell him sooner.
But this? If he finds out from his brother and learns we kept something from him that everyone else knew? He’ll never—”
“You’re right.”
Kingston cupped my face, resting his forehead against mine as my pending arguments left me in a rushed exhale.
Relief lifted my spirits, but concern lingered on his face. “Are you sure?”
“No, not really.” He sighed, shaking his head. “But weighing the damage of the two outcomes, and my reasons for wanting to keep the truth from Max initially, I need to reconsider. My plans have gotten thrown off track so far from where I started, I think, I didn’t want to risk any more changes.”
The weight of Kingston’s secrets pressed heavily on his shoulders. He’d put so much effort into finding a way to get out from under his father’s control, trying to keep Landon and me safe the whole time, and doing it alone.
It had to be hard, letting that control go, but he’d opened up to me about what he’d faced, sharing his father’s cruelty when they were children, how Landon lost his memory because of their bond—and love—and the larger stakes in The Quest.
I gave him time to process as he released more weight.
After a few minutes, he nodded. “I need to have faith in Max, too. Trust that in the end, we’ll figure out whatever comes our way.
So, if Max doesn’t react well, I do trust at this point he wouldn’t do anything to jeopardize your safety because of it.
I’m at least partially convinced he won’t actually kill Landon.
Although I’d like to be there, when they see each other for the first time after you tell him, to make sure of that. ”
I chuckled to lighten the moment, even though there was a very real possibility of a fight.
“And on the other hand, if Morty tells him…you’re right. He could react far worse given their history. So, it’s worth the risk. He deserves to hear it from you.”
Closing my eyes, I smiled and pressed my forehead into his. “Thank you.”
“You don’t have to thank me.”
I nodded. “But I want to. I know it’s not easy for you—trust—but I believe we’ll figure out whatever comes our way, too. And we’ll be better for it, if we’re together. All of us.”
He released a breath, nodding, too. “It’s easier to trust you. To have faith you’ll help me find a way through it. You already have. More than you know.”
“I’m glad it’s easier. I want to help.”
I wrapped my arms around his back and pulled him close, and when we were both ready, I released him. “If he’s not in his room, I’ll bet you five dollars he’s in the bath.”
Kingston laughed. “He does seem to be a big fan of those. I’m concerned the water bill for Pendragon might be astronomical with him in the house.”
“Yeah, you might need him to chip in if you’re strapped for cash.” I snorted, and he smiled broadly.
“Well, that’s a silver lining for all that wealth, I guess. It might be a society of elitist assholes, but at least Max can have his baths. And one day, we can use it to make sure each of us has the things we want most here.”
“Ooh, I like that idea. I’ll need a wing for Gia, obviously.”
“Of course,” he said seriously. “And I want to build an indoor pool for Landon. He started swimming again, but he hasn’t wanted to go in the lake, so…a pool would be nice.”
“And what about you?”
“I’ll have everything I ever wanted, if you’re all here and safe…and happy.”
Emotion swelled in my chest, springing tears to my eyes unexpectedly. But I didn’t know why it affected me so much. When he thumbed my cheek, swiping at a tear as it escaped, I searched his features.