Chapter Forty-Seven
Avari
Ihad been waiting for the moment the former Queen of Fire knocked on the estate door. It felt like light-years had passed since I last saw her, and I needed to know more about her situation. Surely my father hadn’t just abandoned her in town and wished her good luck?
I was certain that, although my father turned out madder than I expected, he wouldn’t burden his failed conquest with impoverishment.
As I paced the dining room, studying the portraits, it struck me that none of my father’s children’s mothers were in the picture. I hoped it didn’t mean his relations with them had been as disastrous as with mine.
Before I could dwell any longer on what it all meant, the moment I had been waiting for since waking to the clouded moonlight finally came.
I rushed to the door and flung it open before Clara could, making her step back in shock. The housekeeper looked appalled and murmured a litany of incoherent curses under her breath.
‘Hi,’ I said, hating how my voice cracked, betraying nerves I didn’t want her to see. I gestured eagerly for the woman to come inside.
River’s mother assessed me with a curious gaze before stepping across the threshold and greeting me cautiously. She placed a vast rolled-up canvas on the cupboard in the foyer before smiling as if she meant to bid farewell already.
‘Would you care to take a walk with me, please?’ I begged, my voice trembling as desperation clouded my vision.
Unable to withstand the pressure, I kept fidgeting ceaselessly.
The former queen’s brows pitched as if searching for a reason to refuse, her surprise softening into hesitation. ‘You would like to walk with me?’
My confession spilled out before I could stop it. ‘I know your sons.’
Her eyes glistened with unshed tears, thin shoulders shaking as her whole body trembled with an ache for the family she’d been ripped away from. Taking a steadying breath, her plea rang out, ‘You know my boys?’
The conversation was already more difficult than I had anticipated. The woman looked ready to fall apart at the mere mention of her children. How much would it take to stitch her back together?
‘The Elders forced me into a deal with your eldest. I met all of your sons in Fogoya. I stayed there for weeks.’
Her pupils blew wide with sharp concentration. ‘Please, let’s take that walk. I need to hear about them.’
Without a destination in mind, I instinctively led us to the meadow. After so many training sessions, I began to feel something for it—a quiet fondness, almost calming.
We walked in silence for several minutes before the former Queen of Fire finally murmured, ‘May I ask why the Elders forced a deal with Blaze upon you?’
I blinked. ‘Blaze? No, they forced me to train with River.’
The mention of the king piqued her interest even more.
‘River?’ She blinked rapidly. Perhaps I should have called him by his title instead.
‘Yes.’
‘I’m sorry,’ she said softly. ‘I thought you said my eldest.’
‘River isn’t the oldest? I assumed he was, being king…’
She smiled gently, wiping a stray tear that slid down her cheek. ‘Our throne goes to the strongest, not the oldest. River won the tournament, though I don’t think he ever wanted the crown. It’s a burden. Tell me about them, please.’
‘Well, as far as I know, Michael is some kind of spy. We were friendly, but he travels a lot, and I barely got to see him. I met Blaze too,’ I said, choosing not to elaborate. I definitely wasn’t going to mention that the king pawned me off for a curse cleanse. ‘And obviously River…’
I tried to sound casual, but talking about them tightened my chest in ways I didn’t expect.
A question hovered behind her stare. She searched my face, and though she looked troubled, she decided to press. ‘Were you close?’
This was not something I felt comfortable discussing with his mother—the woman he believed dead and hadn’t seen in a decade. Not that I would have liked to discuss it under any other circumstances either.
The pause between us stretched uncomfortably as we both stared ahead, searching for a way forward.
It was she who finally cooed, ‘I apologise; I didn’t mean to put you on the spot. I’m just happy to learn what they’ve been up to.’
‘The war is still wreaking havoc on your people,’ I admitted. ‘But I helped them with cleanses for the curses, so at least some of your soldiers have a chance of becoming themselves again. And Blaze.’
Her eyes widened as she assessed me in a new light. ‘Blaze? He was cursed? And you helped with the cl— You’re a witch?’
‘A halfling,’ I admitted.
‘A halfling?’ she echoed, disbelief deepening on her face with every second.
I hoped my race and nationality wouldn’t turn her against me. ‘Yes. I’m Ortensian. And of shadow, since recently.’
‘Ortensian? And they trusted you in our court?’ she mused, mostly to herself, a faint smile of amusement touching her lips. ‘That’s peculiar.’
‘It’s not even half of it,’ I said lightly. ‘My life’s become a cautionary tale lately. I might elaborate one day.’
A genuine smile spread across her lips. ‘I would like that.’
Careful not to make promises I couldn’t keep, I offered her one that resonated deeply with my plans. ‘Listen, I realise you have no reason to believe me, but I will train my shadows, and we will escape together.’
‘Escape?’ Alec’s voice cut through the air, anger lacing every word.
People needed to stop sneaking up on me.
‘This is your home!’ he spat. ‘Father kidnapped her, yes. It’s horrible, but we’re not all like that. We deserve a chance!’
Though I wanted to disagree because Alec had kidnapped me too, I knew the situation was different. I hadn’t meant for my private promise of reprieve to offend anyone.
‘Alec, you know it’s not that simple…’ I began.
Before I could answer, shadows exploded around him, and he vanished.