Sebastian snapped his gaze back to her. His eyes clashed with hers like cold iron meeting molten gold. “What happened?” A simple question loaded with grief.
She sighed, her serenity faltering for the first time. “Oh, Sebby.” His grip tightened on my leg. Now I was beginning to see that hedespised the name because of the woman who had given it to him. The woman who had clearly hurt him deeply. I placed my hand lightly on top of his, and he relaxed immediately. A bit of pride fled through me at being able to subdue the giant wall of death that was Sebastian. “I wanted so badly for you to know a loving family, with parents who were in love with each other. I kept up the facade while you and your sister were young, that we were happy. But our marriage was political, and no matter how hard I tried, I could never capture your father’s full attention. And there came a point where I just couldn’t try anymore.
“I knew what your father had been up to. He was not a good man. And when I found out Alaric was working with the rebels ...” At Sebastian’s utter stillness, he must not have known that she knew. “I helped him.” My head snapped to Queen Sindri at her gasp. Her eyes glittered with tears. Her mother gave her a weak smile that still held its warmth. “Your father was nearing a path of no return. He spoke of genocide, and these musings were becoming reality. The power got to his head.
“Alaric arranged for my escape during the coup. Because it’s customary to execute the queen along with the king, I had to go into hiding. I didn’t think I’d ever be able to come back. It’s also customary to execute any heirs.” The tears rimming Queen Sindri’s eyes finally spilled over, trailing shining paths down her face. “I helped Alaric with the coup under one condition: you two would remain alive. They would not have had a successful coup without me, so they agreed. Plus, the rebels had confidence that either of you would be a far better ruler than your father, and Alaric assured them of that.”
“So, Alaric ensured their survival and helped them succeed the throne?” I had always assumed that he despised them all, that he didn’t have a good bone in his body. “But his aim is to rule Kilthorne. Why not just take power of Svealin during the coup?”
“He never felt quite at home in Svealin or all of Dreigo for that matter.”
I supposed we had that in common. My world seemed to be set on driving me out too.
She turned to Queen Sindri. “I am so proud of what you have done. You have led this kingdom down brighter paths. Both of you have. I will forever be sorry for the time we have lost. I couldn’t risk sending out any form of communication until I was sure the rebels lost interest in me. Alaric ensured your survival, but the rebels drew a line when it came to me. But when I heard you brought home your betrothed, I just couldn’t stay away any longer. I didn’t want to miss anything else.” Her growing smile turned to me.
Sebastian began to relax slightly, and I wondered if this entire time he thought she had just fled without a goodbye, that she abandoned them and left them to the rebels.
She looked back to him. “I know it may take time for you to accept me back, but I want to be here for you.”
He nodded once and stood as if wrapping up a business meeting. He had held on to my arm forcing me to stand as well. “We have to be on our way now.”
She gave a somber smile. Her previous joyful exterior developed a haze. “I’ll see you both soon.” It was more of a hopeful declaration.
Upon saying our goodbyes to Queen Sindri and Fela, the former who insisted on shoving pistachio cream cakes into my bag for the journey, we were on our way to the portal.
We walked most of the way in silence, a silence heavy with the weight of my unspoken questions. As we neared closer to the portal, I just couldn't help myself. “How long has it been since you last saw your mother?”
He grew rigid again, and I wondered if I shouldn’t have pried. “Twenty-six years.”
My mouth hung slightly open at that, and I didn’t know what to say. But I understood his rigidity, twenty-six years of believing your mother had just abandoned you would do that. I was surprised as he continued.
“I shouldn’t be upset with her. I knew the rebels wanted to kill her too.”
“But you are upset with her?”
He clenched his jaw, shaking his head once. “She could have come back sooner. We eased tensions with the rebels quickly after the coup. She just didn’t want to face Svealin and all it reminded her of, and we weren’t enough for her to come back.”
“I’m sure that’s not true. She knew you both would be safe. And who’s to say the rebels wouldn’t have honored you and gone after her anyway. But she’s here now. And I have a feeling she’ll wait for you for as long as it takes.”
He looked at me with a hint of amusement splashed across his blank face.
“Alaric ensured your safety,” I said with a frown. What should be admired. It was noble. Honorable. But for Alaric it was unsettling, and the look in Sebastian’s eyes told me he felt it too.
It’s easy when evil remains evil. But when it starts to shift into something different, especially when it’s shifting towards something good, then all becomes muddled. What is there to do with evil then? Wait it out and hope it transforms or extinguish it before it reverts back to baseline.
“Alaric has always been calculated. Despite what he does, every action is for himself and himself alone.”
* * *
Traveling back through the portal was just as unsettling as it was the first time. We stopped off at Sebastian’s townhouse for him to change back into his Society uniform, and we parted once we gotto the manor. He went off to join my father in his office for Society matters, and I went off to find Olivia. I found her in one of the sitting rooms with Edward. I paused just before the open threshold. Pinpricks spread across my face. The warmth fled my blood, leaving my skin ice-cold.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
They were sitting on the settee overlooking the vast expanse of green beyond the window. Warm yellow framed them from the light that poured in. It framed his hand as he lifted it to brush her flaxen curls off her shoulder. It framed her now bare neck, glowing golden in the sunlight. It framed his strong jaw, his straight nose, his plush lips as he leaned in closer. And it framed the sharpened points of his canines that hovered above her throat.
My body moved without confirmation from my mind. I lifted my skirts, clutching them in my hands as I charged. I leapt through the air, over the settee, barreling into him. We landed atop the coffee table with a thunderous crash and a shriek from Olivia. Fine porcelain tea cups shattered as they hit the floor. Warmth bled through my dress, and I hoped it was only tea. I managed to stay on top of him as I wrestled him onto the floor.
There was no way I was stronger than him. Perhaps he was caught off guard, and the shock hadn’t worn off yet, but more likely, he was letting me win. For now. As my hands wrapped tightly around his neck, his lips tilted upwards into a smile, one that sent needles skittering beneath my skin.
