Wrath.
Cameron’s words grew louder, pressing in all around me… strangling the light out of me. “Cassiel could not save you from The Mission’s power, for he wasn’t strong enough. I will be a monument to our plight, a god among Elves! After centuries of struggling to survive in the supernatural world, it is time to accept our extinction, and acknowledge our fate. His ashes may be scattered to the wind, forgotten forever, but mine will go down in the books as the last, and greatest, Elven Emperor!”
This was going too far. All Cameron cared about was being remembered as the last Elven Emperor by default, because he’d already given up on trying to win the war. Maybe he was happy Cassiel had died, so at least he could take the spot and claim the fame as the last of the Elvish monarchy even though he hadn’t earned that right.
I wouldn’t allow my father to ruin my grandfather’s name at his own funeral, even if my head would roll for it. I went to stand, but before I could speak out, another did, her will thundering throughout the hall.
“Your majesty, sit down.” Ava’s demanding voice rose over my father’s, and the wake went even more silent than before. “There is no need for this.”
My father’s stunted gasp leaked from his obtuse mouth. “I did not give permission for the princess to speak?—”
“You are grieving. All of us are. You have lost your father, but your people have lost their Emperor, and your son has lost the most important man in his life.” Ava’s tone showed little mercy as she pounded her fist against the table. “You have said what you needed to say. We have all acknowledged you. Now hold your tongue and let Cassiel be at peace, so the rest of us can be as well.”
The ease was palpable. Everyone was relieved she’d spoken up. Even so, I felt terror suffocating me from the inside out. Ava couldn’t speak out like this. There was no telling what Cameron would do to her, and I wasn’t sure if I could stop it if he demanded her execution, though I’d kill myself trying. Nobody would ever touch her, even now, unless I was dead first and unable to do something about it.
Cameron staggered on the table, weaving back and forth like he was about to topple off of it. I expected him to tell the guards to arrest Ava, before I heard him hop down. Without another word, he returned to his drinks, and shut the hell up.
“You didn’t have to do that,” I muttered.
“Yes I did.” The tip of Ava’s little finger skimmed against the edge of mine. I gently brushed it back, then retreated my hand.
Ava and I didn’t speak the rest of the night, but she remained close by. She simmered, while I remained frozen in the moment. I didn’t need to do anything but make sure she was near me. It was enough just to get me through this.
It was insane this beautiful ballroom had once hosted our wedding reception, such a day of joy, and now it was swathed in bereavement for the loss of someone dear. Though she didn’t have to, Ava had stuck up for my grandfather and advocated for me.
I was once again reminded of our wedding vows. I’d promised to serve Ava as her bonded partner until the day we died, to celebrate her victories and carry her sorrows, believing in faith and braving through doubt.
Ava and I weren’t bonded anymore. But maybe there were still ways to keep those promises to her.
Because she was still keeping her vows to me. And in this moment, mending those broken promises I’d made became the only thing that still mattered.
Chapter Six
AVA-MARIE
The days following the funeral were just as forlorn as the dour event itself. Watching Charlie crumble upon the altar’s steps as he grieved the loss of the only parent who’d ever been there had been my undoing. I hadn’t been able to stop myself once I’d seen him in pain. He’d needed me, so I came.
I’d received a bit of hope when the elder tree had responded to my prayers. I thought my connection to the afterlife was still present, and there might be a way for me to summon my spiritual abilities to contact Idril and Caralyn. I’d pleaded with the temple’s Great Mystic to help me perform one of the rituals, and she’d obliged, but nothing had happened. I’d laid upon the altar, pleading with the goddesses to send me a message, yet all had remained silent.
With the absence of my magic, my power to communicate with the Elvish goddesses was also taken away. I still held the title of Holy Mother, but none of the abilities.
My powers were gone, like so much of the rest of me. Even my hallucinations of the Warden— or The Beast, as I’d called him— had stopped when Charlie broke our bond. There was so little left of me that even my crazy mind couldn't muster up the ability to care about him anymore. My hallucinations were my way of sticking it to the Warden when I couldn't actually get to him, but now that I'd lost the ability to kill him entirely, the game wasn't fun anymore. So The Beast had left, and taken everything with him.
The engagement pictures my mother had taken of me and Charlie hung on the wall of our bedroom like ghosts of my former life. I hated that they were there, reminding me of the foolish girl I had been and that there was no fairy-tale ending. I couldn’t bear to throw them away, so they remained there as tombstones in a cemetery of what could be, rotting into the past.
I couldn’t look at them anymore. I’d been sleeping in the Ladies’ Court to avoid Charlie, so I decided one day to move all my things there permanently. There was no reason to stay in his quarters anymore. We were divorcing, so might as well move out. I’d managed to avoid him most of the time in the past few days, but every now and then we’d run into each other, and it turned into nothing but petty words and screaming matches whenever we were face to face. We’d been fighting all throughout December, and I was sick of it. It was nothing but the same argument, and our interactions never lasted longer for a few minutes, one of us throwing accusations at the other before we stormed off in different directions.
I think it hurt me more, because he dragged Oberi off with him every time. I couldn’t stand to watch him take Oberi away from me again and again, when he’d already done the worst by breaking us apart. If I hid in the Ladies’ Court, where Charlie couldn’t get in, I’d never have to see him again… and I wouldn’t have to keep saying goodbye to Oberi and his sad black eyes. I missed him more than I missed Charlie. I couldn’t keep watching my beloved dog walk away, trailing the heels of the guy who’d ruined my life.
Everything I needed was in the Ladies’ Court, including food, a bed, and a pool I could chill out in until the Warden decided to show his ass up, so it was good enough for me. I never needed to leave this part of the palace ever again. Charlie had tried to imprison me, but now, I was willingly imprisoning myself, because it was easier this way. The servants were more than willing to move my things for me, but I wanted to get out of there as fast as possible, so I helped where I could.
On my way to the Ladies’ Court, I saw Aunt Maddie leaning against a balcony, looking over Ilamanthe with a peaceful visage. I’d rarely seen her be so… still. She always seemed to be fretting about one thing or another, but perhaps the fulfillment of my prophecy had been a weight off her shoulders.
I hadn’t spoken to her at all in the past few weeks, not since I’d tried to end the world. I wasn’t sure if she wanted to see me.
But she didn’t object when I came up beside her. “What do you see?” I asked.
“For once, I don’t see anything. Everything is quiet.” She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. “That’s never happened to me, not since I was a small child. It’s an extraordinary feeling. I’m enjoying the moment before the visions start up again. I know they will, but I can’t help but hope that my role as a prophet is done for good now that your story is complete.”
