I got up, and there was no sign of the Rubicon. What did that mean? Was the threat taken care of?
My stomach growled, and I went to the bathroom to take a shower.
The warmth of the water heated the knots of my muscles, and my thoughts went back to Blake. I hadn’t seen him since I came to Paegeia. His dad came regularly, but not him.
Was he as old as Lucian, or were they just friends?
Was I ever going to forget about him? The memories of how we met were still fresh in my mind, and I missed his scent and his warmth.
Stop it, Elena. He’s not yours.
I closed the taps and got out of the shower. The warmth of the towel soaked up all the water. An urge to cry uncontrollably laid heavy on my chest as tears pricked my eyes. This world wasn’t my home either. I felt so lost.
My body shook softly as the tears rolled down my cheeks. I felt more alone than I’d ever felt on the other side of the wall. Sometimes I wished we could go back as a world filled with fire breathing beasts and magic wasn’t my home, either.
I had a good cry and then washed my face as my mother’s and father’s faces replaced all the thoughts in my head.
They’d given me up to fulfill my destiny. This was my world, whether I wanted it. I prayed things would get better.
I got dressed in a pair of shorts and a shirt. Georgina came back with bags of clothes. Seventy percent of it was designer brand and formal attire. Plenty of suits and dresses with fancy shoes. The other thirty percent were jeans, shorts, slacks and shirts. I got plenty of training outfits too. The weather was beautiful outside. This afternoon, Devon would come back and train again for a few hours.
I walked past the window and found the Rubicon back on his spot. The threat wasn’t over. He just took a break.
I went down and greeted all the staff as I passed them in the hallway.
Some still stared at me.
I found everyone around the patio table. They loved having breakfasts here.
“Morning, Elena.” The queen got up from her chair and rubbed my arm. “How did you sleep?”
“Like a baby,” I lied and sat down in the chair.
Lucian came for the weekend and was in a deep discussion with his dad and mine, speaking Latin again.
I learned it was the beasts’ language and would probably learn it too if I wanted to communicate with the Rubicon.
“You okay?” Lucian asked, and I nodded with a smile. I put some eggs and toast on my plate and nibbled on it.
I found Dad’s gaze on me, and when I finished, I excused myself.
“You don’t want to go for a walk?”
“Maybe later,” I answered Queen Maggie and left.
I stood against the wall just to catch my breath.
“Jako, what is wrong with her?”
“I had to tell her the truth, she was freaking out with him here.”
“Are you insane?”
“She needs to know. This is not going away, Maggie. It’s her life now. Stop trying to sugar coat everything.”
“She is not even sixteen yet.”
“He is right, Mom. Just let her process,” Lucian said, and I shook my head.
