“Then maybe it’s time for you to name an heir who could marry into Alfheim.”
“You know that is not so simple,” Aelfsi said sharply.
Koa turned to the Alfheim princes, who stood to the side. “You may leave now. Solveig will join you in a moment.”
The princes bowed to the queens, and soon enough only Gerrie, Solveig, and her mothers remained.
“You are four hundred and twenty-six years old. It is time to take a husband—a partner,” Koa said, her voice soft.
“You know I never meant to marry,” Solveig said quietly. “You promised you would never force me.”
“An arranged marriage is not a bad thing.” Aelfsi tried to comfort her with words Solveig thought she would never hear. Aelfsi approached carefully, as if sensing Solveig’s warring emotions, rightfully wary of them. She stood in front of her. “This is its own kind of battlefield, Sol, one that you have been raised for.”
“We will not force you,” Koa said, joining them. “But we do hope that you can see how valuable this would be, how many people you could save.”
Solveig swallowed the rising emotions down, her magic consuming them. She stepped out of her mothers’ hold, unable to stand the comfort while still reeling from the news.
Just this morning she’d raced with Helle along the beach, almost carefree. It had energized and recharged her. Enough so that when she’d encountered Westley, she had been strong enough to be honest about her feelings.
She’d been strong enough to allow herself to start forgiving him. And she’d been rewarded with the most incredible moment of her existence.
In an hour, it had become nothing but a dream she’d had to wake up from too soon.
Another life she had to leave behind.
It was a cruel trick from the gods.
“Very well. It has been good to see you,” Solveig said stiffly. She left through the side entrance, not wishing to cross paths with Westley after learning her fate. Her magic darkened, tendrils of light flickering within her as the storm brewed outside.
Time for battle.
Koa sighed, watching her sister’s retreating form. Aelfsi’s hand found hers as their daughter left them. Solveig’s emotions were volatile, but Koa didn’t blame her.
“Are we doing the right thing?” Aelfsi whispered, turning to meet Koa’s gaze.
She smiled sadly at her wife. “Yes, love, we are.”
Aelfsi pressed their foreheads together. “I know,” she said, resigned. “But at the moment, it feels wrong.”
“The hard choices always do. But I have Seen this. They are the key, and they must walk these separate paths,” Koa said, leaning in to place a small kiss on Aelfsi’s lips. She missed the feel of their bond when they touched.
“She has been through so much already. Putting her through more feels cruel.”
“Her happiness is coming,” Koa assured her, though doubt trickled like ice through her veins. She’d had these visions before the Block, before this all began. She did not know if the lack of magic changed anything.
They had to trust in her Sight—it had never steered them wrong.
She lost herself in Aelfsi’s eyes a moment more, the two queens burdened by their daughter’s turmoil. Aelfsi gave her a small smile, lifting some of the weight from Koa’s shoulders.
“Gerrie.” Koa called Solveig’s shieldmaiden over to them. “There is one more thing we must ask of you.”
“Yes, my Queens, anything.”
Gerrie listened as Koa delivered her final order, the blood draining from her face.
WestleyandBrennawalkedthe halls, poking their heads into all the unlocked rooms down each wing of the palace.
No one had seen Viggo or Noren since last night, and they were not in their rooms. Westley was becoming increasingly agitated, barrelling through the corridors.
