Chapter Ten
Avari
Afew hours had passed, and Isaac’s behaviour confused me more every time I thought of him. Judging by the fact Miriam had tracked his family down through his mother to manipulate him into training me, she probably knew him better than I did.
Maybe she could shed some light on this peculiar predicament.
Taking a seat next to my uncomfortable-looking, red-eyed sister, I looked around and, sure enough, the source of the tension sat opposite us, staring daggers.
Like she was deciding which one of us to tear apart first. Miriam didn’t look at her, but her fingers tightened around her fork just enough to notice.
If only Willow knew the girl she was antagonising could make her worst nightmares come true.
The putrid energy and presence of my older sister fouled the dining room, making my hunger vanish without a trace.
Alec sat on the other side of Miriam, brooding, staring my water-wielding sister down like an enemy.
The situation didn’t take long to escalate. Perhaps he had realised what a cheerful and supportive person she was. If only somebody had warned him…
‘I could probably cut the stake with the tension in this room. Anyone care to indulge me?’ father joked while taking his usual seat.
It just so happened to be the closest to the wench. With arms crossed over her chest, she cast the Lord of the Isles such a hateful look that he stopped in his tracks, dumbfounded, before turning to Alec in a silent question.
Alec ignored him, shoving food on his plate and eating like he held a grudge against it. In the whole time I had spent in the Isles, I didn’t think I had ever seen him so on edge.
‘Okay, what happened? Because obviously something did.' I kept my voice steady, even though being right amused me a little.
Willow was promiscuous. More witch than fae, and like many witches, she wouldn’t make good mate material. Those two would clash regularly until one of them killed the other.
But it was his choice to pursue her.
‘It appears your little sister fucked one of dad’s councillor’s sons,’ Miriam explained mid-bite, pointing at her with the fork.
Ohh. That would do it.
Willow leaned forward, venom glinting in her eyes under the bright candlelight. ‘Who are you calling little, you weirdo?’
Miriam chuckled before addressing me. ‘I didn’t even have to send one; he found his nightmare on his own.’
I couldn’t hold in the snigger any longer, but our brother’s distressed expression doused me. They all wanted their mates, and he had been dealt such a shit hand.
‘Eat,’ he barked, looking ahead, readying himself to shove food onto her plate.
With the poise of a beast ready to pounce, she craned her neck, assessing him with a devious grin.
Her long fingernails tapped against the wooden table before going still as she raised a finger.
At first, I didn’t realise what she had done—then the water from Alec’s half-full glass splashed into his face.
My mouth fell open. Willow’s powers were back already?
Blood burst from her nose, flowing in a heavy stream that covered her chin and chest within seconds before she hurried away to stop the bleeding.
‘Fucking idiot, she’ll kill herself just to defy me,’ Alec rasped, pushing away from the table and rushing after her.
The moment he left, father grinned, biting into his meat. ‘I must say, the estate is bursting with life as of late. Don’t you think?’
I was starting to think humour was his way of coping, a shield against the problems piling up around us. Maybe we were more alike than I realised.
Opting for another helping of noodles, I shared my thoughts: ‘She’s a fucking lunatic; I feel sorry for Alec.’
They nodded.
‘You weren’t close back home, right?’ Miriam asked while digging fruit out of her dessert.
‘No, never.’ I stared at the way she kept tossing raspberries aside. ‘Willow’s too selfish to get close to anyone.’
Amid the scrape of cutlery and desserts providing a sweet reprieve from Medeis’ bitterness, we all seemed to agree that Alec was fighting an uphill battle.
Knowing what I now realised about mate bonds and how they affected people…
I wished he were wrong, that it was another mistake, because I couldn’t see him ever mating her.
The rest of the meal had gone smooth and light-hearted. As bad as they were, nobody wanted the headache of focusing on Willow’s outbursts. We needed peace and quiet.
Once we were done, Miriam requested I join her in her room to assess some of the wedding options.
The way our father’s gaze turned sour when she mentioned it told me all I needed to know about his opinion.
I couldn’t believe she was going through with it either.
There weren’t many things this family agreed on, but it was apparent we all stood firm on our belief that Luke wasn’t the right one for her.
She craved a soul fated for hers, one that would complete her in ways she couldn’t yet fathom. Ways I couldn’t fathom until… Yet she had chosen to settle for a man who could barely stand to be around her.
‘There are so many aspects I need to analyse; I need your input,’ she groaned, emptying a box full of papers on her light blue canopy bed.
My heart raced as I tried to gather enough bravery to make her reconsider the commitment. ‘What is that?’
‘About two hundred different types of invite papers.’ She tossed the empty container by the wall and started looking through them.
Poor thing. Shouldn’t fiancés do things like that together?
‘They all have different images and fonts,' I noted. ‘Are we looking for the right paper type or an invitation in general?’
‘Everything’s customisable,’ her red eyes twinkled as she explained. ‘Set aside anything you like, and we can come up with the perfect template.’
‘I love this one.’ Miriam handed me a thick, grainy, transparent vellum sheet. It had its charm. It was quite nice.
My chest tightened. ‘You can’t marry him.’
Tilting her head, sadness mingled with disappointment in her intense stare. The girl was a sweetheart, but she kept a disturbingly dark side hidden so well, it was easy to forget what she was capable of. ‘We already spoke about this. It’s happening.’
Her voice didn’t waver, but something in her eyes did. Like she had already made peace with something she shouldn’t have.
‘But you don’t love him,’ I whined. ‘Miriam, you deserve love. You can’t settle; you will regret it.’
Sorting through the pile, she looked unbothered, as if my reasoning were gibberish, but I knew the nonchalance was a facade. I had glimpsed her pain when she invited me to her library.
I refused to look away even as she set her mind on ignoring me.
‘It’s okay, Ava,’ she finally said. ‘I’m over three times your age, at some point I have to move on.’
Was there a point in fighting her on this? The gigantic pile of invites suggested she’d made her decision.
She was my sister; our bond was stronger than the ones I ever formed with Willow and Lilian. I wanted the best for her, but it was her life. None of us could dictate it, and deep down I knew we needed to stop. This questioning, this doubt… she needed support.
‘I like that one too,’ I admitted, gesturing toward her recent choice. Even though it felt like agreeing to something, I didn’t understand.
Without delay, she snatched it into her hand for analysis. ‘It’s great, right? And then we can pair it with a red ribbon and black print. Maybe a piece of dried flowers? That would be enticing, huh?’
‘Sure,’ I murmured.
Dried flowers would definitely be more enticing than the future she was signing up for.
Pushing my hand through the variety of prints, I didn’t like the growing discontent that she was trying hard to hide. ‘Can I ask you something?’
Suspicion flickered in her crimson gaze. ‘Is it about Luke?’
I wrapped my arms around my middle. ‘No.’
‘Then yes,’ she responded, putting another invite into her “maybe” pile.
The combative mood she was in made me question this idea, but curiosity outweighed the risk. ‘Isaac, my trainer, mentioned something about you going after his mother to get him to train me. Why?’
Miriam’s eyes widened, then she burst out laughing. ‘Did he seriously complain? It must have really got under his skin.’
I nodded. ‘Why his mother?’
‘Men like Isaac aren't concerned with status. He was a great candidate for the position since I knew he wouldn’t be inappropriate with you. You wouldn’t believe how many socialites would love to marry into our family.’
She laughed under her breath. ‘Still, I can’t believe he told you that. It’s not like I actively hunted his mother down either. She comes to my library every once in a while to seek some book.’
I nodded, my thoughts wandering. ‘He said she was a massive royalist and pestered him into training me.’
Miriam recoiled slightly. ‘Isn’t he just lovely?’
Did I sense a tinge of hostility? ‘Do you two have a history?’
‘No.’ A strained look crossed her features.
‘His mother taught at my academy, and when my nightmare powers first manifested, I materialised half of the kids’ deepest fears.
She had to get him to save the day. The man couldn’t stand me, but I was a little bratty back then.
Still, he recommended the best guides on ways to control my magic. They helped.’
‘You? Bratty?’ Wait… ‘Does he have nightmare powers too?’
Miriam’s brow pinched. ‘Yeah, he’s vicious. Don’t get on his bad side.’
The textured invite slipped from my hands. ‘You’re telling me that after I told him he was an emotionally unstable dick?’
‘You did what?’ She folded over. ‘I never took you for a shit-starter. How did he take it?’
Now his reactions made sense. Getting told off probably wasn’t something he was used to. ‘He was flabbergasted.’
‘Oh, I bet. Nobody ever speaks to him that way,’ she said, still chuckling.
Who the hell did they set me up with? ‘Why? Who is he?’
‘He’s a combat professor at the War College in Waena.’
‘Doesn’t ring a bell,’ I admitted, catching a small pile that was about to fall off the bed.
Miriam smiled at my efforts. ‘It’s one of our smaller isles. Besides, you need some seriously deadly powers to even be considered there. Alec didn’t make the cut.’
Whoa. ‘They refused the lord’s son?’
‘They viewed him as a pampered heir unfit to fight.’ Something vicious settled in her gaze. ‘He appealed, but it got him nowhere. That’s why he looked elsewhere to study and met your king in the process.’
‘And father couldn’t pull strings?’ My eyes widened. ‘My mother would lose it if anyone refused admittance to one of her daughters. Out of principle, of course.’
Miriam pushed the invites aside.
‘He’s been trying to step away from the idea of the ruler being almighty,’ she said, clearing her throat. ‘Did you know he was crowned king when he first took over?’
‘No, I didn’t know that. With everything that’s been happening, I haven’t had time to read about anything: the powers, the history, the mate bonds. I need to explore all of it, but I’m so busy…’
‘It’s okay, I didn’t mean to shame you.’ She patted my shoulder. ‘He doesn’t like to brag. He changed his title to lord because it evokes more trust and fewer connotations of control.’
That was a side of our sire I had not yet met.
‘Did you ever apply to that War College?’ I asked.
Stiffening, she looked reluctant to share. ‘No, but they reached out to me offering a place anyway.’
So nightmare powers outranked necromancy.
‘Did you go?’
‘No.’ Miriam shook her head. ‘I would never do that to Alec.’
It was as I thought.
She considered everyone’s feelings but her own.