“He got through our guards, our security. How did you find him?”
“I assumed he would come to the castle. To pick up something.” My father’s secret journals, to be precise, but I don’t tell Zorwal that. Instead, I look down as if embarrassed. “It… made sense.”
He steps down from his chair and stops in front of me. “Look into my eyes, Mirella.”
I do as he says. For some reason, my eyes are misty with tears, and I make no effort to hide them. “Yes?”
“Don’t you want to be queen? To safeguard your birthright?” His voice sounds melodious, calming.
For the first time, I hear it for what it is; compelling magic. Strange magic that can affect even a high fae. Strange magic that caught me in its web, that cursed me to a dreadful fate.
“I value my birthright. I always did.”
“Then Marlak must die. As long as he lives, the throne won’t be yours. The crown won’t be yours. His mother ensorcelled your father. Killed your mother. Don’t you want to avenge her?”
I don’t even need to try to use vague words or circumvent the truth. “Revenge is my biggest wish. It’s what wakes me up in the morning.”
“Then if you have a hunch, a vision about Marlak, even if you’re not sure, tell me. Can you promise it?”
“Yes. If I have a hunch about Marlak, I promise I’ll tell you about it.”
“Well, good. You don’t want anything standing between you and your crown.”
I nod even if my ears discern the power embedded in his words, the command, even if I’m immune to it for some reason.
All it does is stir that infinite pot of anger sitting in my insides, ready to consume everything around me. And yet I can’t let it explode. Proper revenge needs craftiness, patience, precision. My fury will have to wait.
MARLAK
The swirl pulling me rotates faster than ever in a dizzying, disconcerting spin. At least it’s quick. Not a second can be wasted, when so much is at stake.
When I feel the rocky edge of the island, I pull myself up, then see Astra running towards me with a relieved, happy, gorgeous smile.
My clothes are drenched, but I don’t care, I pull her towards me for a kiss. A long kiss full of yearning, desire, and love. For a moment, there are no problems surrounding us. The dark cloud is gone. There’s only me and my wife, my azalee, together in eternity.
Astra breaks the kiss and asks, “What happened?”
It’s when I notice curious eyes around me. My brother, Ferer, Lidiane, Ziven, and even Azur are standing nearby. Wait. Why is my brother unchained? No matter.
“Zorwal was distracted, so I took the opportunity to get to the secret compartment,” I say, and turn to Lidiane. “Your magic worked once they didn’t have their eyes on me. And I got the journal.” I smile.
Astra looks at my empty hands. “Where?”
I kiss her cheek. “You know where.”
She frowns at first, then gives me a knowing look. “Oh.”
I look at my brother. “I’ll be right back to discuss the contents.” As much as I don’t fully trust him, it’s true that he was the one who led me to the box, and he knows a lot about magic.
Renel narrows his eyes. “Don’t tell me you stuck the journal up your ass.”
“Some bizarre imagination you got.” I snort and pull Astra’s hand, then turn to the others. “I’ll be right back.”
Renel raises an eyebrow. “So you actually need privacy to get it out?”
“Exactly.”
Bemused, I head to my bedroom and close the door behind Astra and I.
