by AE Watson
Though I’d paid with my humanity, the burning desire in my body for Grayson, not the king but the boy at the inn, suggested not all of it was lost. Unlike my aunts and the witches of light and dark, I felt love for this man. Even if his inn had become a kingdom and his quiet life would never exist. Together we would rule forever. Two immortals sitting on thrones together while separated by an ocean.
The idea was terrifying but I’d promised Katy I would take it one day at a time. And try not to glimpse so far into the future of immortality that all I saw was me. A single person. A single star. A single creature made of fire.
And Grayson was my match.
Never my husband.
Never the father of my children.
Never the partner my mother had been to my father.
But always my equal and my lover.
And that would have to be enough, even staring oblivion in the face, it would have to do.
The coronation ended and I hurried to the oasis where Artan was sleeping. I sat against him and stared up at the sky, wondering if they were looking down. Mother, father, Michael, and Mani.
“Hiding already?” Grayson called from the other side of the pools as he walked over, taking his crown off and shrugging out of the heavy robes.
“You’re one to talk.” I laughed and stood, curtseying. “Your Grace.”
“You’re funny.” He scooped me into his arms and kissed me. It was different now. Everything was intensified. His skin against mine felt like ice. We were fire and ice. A moon and a sun. “Can you stay for the feast?” he asked as he dragged his lips up my throat.
“I can’t. I am being crowned in two days, there’s so much to do. I’ve left everyone at the Black Keep, cleaning up from the funeral. And we have to go to the new castle for the coronation.”
He pulled me back and cupped my face, tilting my chin so our eyes met. “I’m so sorry about Michael. I feel responsible. You were here, helping me.”
“None of us are responsible for my grandmother’s choices. The staff said she disguised herself using magic. She looked like the lady Michael was considering marrying. When he figured it out it was too late.” I lowered my gaze and nestled into his chest. “Have you considered how you will rule?” I changed the subject to one we hadn’t discussed yet.
“You mean, will I take a queen?” He laughed. “No.” He kissed the top of my head and inhaled deeply. “I have a queen for a sister and an heir if things should go wrong. I’ve decided to raise Aril, Anamay’s son as my family.”
“What?” I gasped and looked up at him.
“Clarabelle likes him. He’s still just a boy, royal bloodline, and he’s a nice kid. He knows his mother was insane and greedy.” He grinned. “And it makes me look charitable to the people who think me cruel.”
“Of course.” I rolled my eyes.
“In reality, Millia, you have my whole heart. I couldn’t possibly pretend with anyone else. Nothing changes for me. You rule there and I rule here and we meet somewhere else. We sneak away and spend our time together when we can.”
“I know a nice inn in Watergate City. Owned by a couple good lads. We can play cards and drink—”
“And wander down the road to fight for coin.” He chuckled and kissed me again. “I love you. I have always loved you, even if from the moment we met I knew you were trouble.”
“Not the kind of trouble you expected though.” I laughed too.
“No. I never imagined you’d rope me into fulfilling my royal obligations hundreds of years after I shirked them.” His body trembled with the snicker.
“You have to admit we gave it a good fight, avoiding everything and everyone.”
“If only you hadn’t been so set on your vengeance.”
I nodded against him, seeing now how blood thirsty I’d been. “What changed for you? What made you choose this, to become king?”
“Everything I saw,” his words were different, filled with emotion and lacking the almost constant humor he had about him. “At some point I had to see that letting the south live leaderless, forcing them to be on their own at the mercy of who was the wealthiest or had the most powerful friends, had created the perfect conditions for chaos. And the blame for that sat at my feet. Every time we entered a mine and found Vulkodlak collared and chained and working in terrible conditions, I had no place to put my rage. It was my fault. If I’d done what I should have when I knew who I was, it wouldn’t have turned out this way.” He pulled back and stared at me, his eyes flooded with regret. “This land is a mess of corruption and greed. How could I free them and tell them we were brothers and sisters and then turn my back when they needed me most?”
“You can’t,” I whispered and stood on my tiptoes, kissing him softly.
“And neither can you. We have it in us to change the stars of the people we are responsible for.”
“I know.” I closed my eyes. “If I’d done what I was supposed to do instead of running around trying to avoid my responsibilities, Mani and Michael would be alive.”
Artan stood, grumbling and groaning.
“It’s time,” I whispered. “Katy’s coming.”
“She’s here,” Clarabelle whispered inside my head.
I turned to see her padding across the grassy part of the garden with Thomas, Aril, and Katy in tow. Aril and Thomas walked side by side in the back, heading straight for the mighty dragon. As little boys did. Artan liked them, or rather he liked the fanfare they offered.
“They seem to be hitting it off,” I said as Katy and Clarabelle drew near enough for Katy to hear.
“Quite well. Which is perfect. I expect one day you two will run off with one another and leave them to rule your kingdoms.” Katy joked but the idea had merit.
“Are you going home to the north?” I asked Clarabelle.
“I am. Artan has graciously offered me a ride from the Black Keep and you know how I like to fly.” She smiled and for the first time I appreciated her beauty without feeling a single effect of her magic and lure. “The elves have boarded ships and will arrive in Altaros in a fortnight. The queen I left in charge has agreed to being the steward of the elves and bending the knee to my dear brother here.” She winked at Grayson. “And those who prefer not to die in the sunlight and wish to live in the night woods are boarding ships tomorrow from all over the island and heading north. The rest of the fanged ones who like the south are going back to Vicerath.”
“And Clarabelle was hoping you might help them claim the entire forest, including the forest of light, for themselves,” Katy added. “Your magic would change the elements there instead of just create a barrier.”
“Of course,” I agreed. “I will come as soon as I am crowned.”
“I can’t believe we did it,” Katy said, trying to smile pleasantly but there was so much loss in our hearts it was exhausting to fake it when unnecessary. “We’ve ended an age of war and dispute and prejudice.”
“And now onto an age of enlightenment and betterment, hopefully,” Clarabelle said, raising her eyebrows as if the suggestion was more question than wishful thinking.
“I’m not going to get my hopes up for anything.” Grayson gave me a look. “And neither should you. I can be benevolent and tyrannical, depending on what the situation calls for.”
His words were reminiscent of my father’s.
“I’ll see you in two days for your coronation, Princess.” He leaned in and kissed me, pausing as if soaking some of this up.
I let go of him and walked to Artan.
“Can I see the wings, Queen Amillia? Thomas says you have them.”
“He did?” I grinned and closed my eyes. “Let me see if I can muster them up.” I focused and drew the fire within me. It was a spark waiting to ignite and lit faster than dry kindling on a summer’s day. I opened my eyes and the boys gasped. The flames of my wings glowed in the reflection of their wide stares as they drew closer.
“You’re beautiful,” Aril whispered.
I glanced down at the way my
skin shimmered with my scales. The firelight brought them out brighter than the moon did.
“Your cousin is a dragon woman!” Aril said to Thomas who nodded along, making us all laugh. I dimmed the fire, not extinguishing it but tucking it back inside of me.
“I think you and I might be cousins as well,” I said to Aril. “My grandmother didn’t confirm it but I suspect she was also your mother’s grandmother.”
His eyes widened. “So we’re related then?”
“I believe so,” I said. “Which means you and Thomas are related as well. Through me. You’re both my cousins.”
“I don’t believe that’s how it works, cousin,” Thomas contradicted me. He was too smart to be tricked.
“Well, maybe not.” I shrugged. “But you can be best friends, which for some people is better than the blood that flows in your veins.” I glanced at Clarabelle and Grayson. “The people who you choose to have in your life can sometimes mean more than the relations you have from birth.”
“Do you have a best friend?” Aril asked.
“Him,” I nodded at Artan who grunted. “Though in a lot of ways we are related too.” I walked to my dragon and placed a hand on his tough skin, loving the hum we shared. “Artan is my best friend. He has been there for me through everything. Loving me as I am.”
Artan grumbled and snorted, making us all laugh.
In any other circumstances this would have been a beautiful night spent laughing in an oasis and garden filled with magical creatures.
But we were nowhere near that.
I stole one more kiss before opening the portal and leaving Grayson to sort his kingdom. And I headed off to do the same with mine.
Chapter 32
“Knock, knock!” Ed called as he opened the door to the bedroom Michael had made for me at Baltole, the new castle for Enderoth. The king’s castle that would now house a queen. “Is it me or does this look identical to your room at the Black Keep?” He scowled and did a slow turn of the space.
“Identical. He even had them scuff the walls in the right places so I would feel more at home,” my voice cracked.
“Complete with a landing pad,” he said as he looked out on the vast terrace for Artan who was currently there, sleeping off his charred lamb feast. “Is that grass growing on the terrace?”
“He loves it.” I stood from the dressing table and faced my brother. “Well?” I held out my arms for him to inspect the green gown.
“Absolutely stunning,” it was his turn to sound emotional. “Mother and father and Michael would be undone to see you crowned.” He blinked and a rogue tear escaped. He wiped it away quickly. “I still can’t believe it.”
“Me either.” I tried to rush to him but the gown weighed more than a broad sword. “But we still have each other, Ed. I was angry when you chose Keanna over us, but I understood why.” I lowered my gaze, still ashamed of the damage I’d done. “Everything I did, including costing Michael his life, was for a future I never should have contemplated.”
“We were born in gilded cages, Millia. You can’t blame us for wanting to escape them and fly free. Not when we saw everyone else doing it.” He took my hands and lifted them, squeezing.
“But I do blame us, me far more than you. My selfish wants killed our brother and our aunt. I would have stayed in that cage if I’d thought either of them would die.” I sighed heavily, adjusting my burdened chest for the weight of this guilt. “Clarabelle warned me of the cost. Something painful and brutal for every kingdom healed. The magic that had undone our world was the one to put it back together. And she was right.” I lifted my gaze to his and tried not to cry. “I know the journey I took brought me to this moment, and perhaps it was fated and designed long before I was born, but it still hurts. I hate that in order to take the throne as I was intended for I had to suffer this much and change every fiber of my being. There was an easy path to this and I chose the harder one. And people died.”
“Because of the actions of others. You didn’t kill anyone who didn’t deserve to die.” He lifted my chin and forced me to look into his stare. He might not have been our father’s son by both, but his expression matched exactly. “You have done everything you could do to avenge our parents and our kingdom. And you were right when you said this is a new day and you are a new person. You will give them a hundred percent of your devotion and love. I know that because when it came down to even the smallest betrayal of our family, you acted. And I know in my heart you will be the queen we need. You are father’s daughter. And Master Lindley’s. And mother’s. And Aunt Mani’s. You carry all of the best people in our lives within you. And all of their good intentions and hopes and dreams are not lost with their deaths. You will achieve them and fulfill a legacy that hasn’t come to fruition for an age.”
His words crippled me. I wanted to blink and let lose the tears blinding me. But I would ruin my face and the green satin dress if I did. I cried on the inside, grateful he was with me still.
“Now let’s go and crown you as the queen of the kingdom of Enderoth. Leader of the free men and women of this glorious nation.” He kissed my forehead and held me, letting me draw strength from him.
He pulled me to the door and through it, where Keanna was waiting. She smiled brightly, shining in her pale silver gown. “You’re beautiful, Queen Amillia.”
“Sister is fine,” I said softly as I took her hand in mine as well. “You are my family Keanna.”
She sniffed and nodded. “Sister it is.”
We walked to where the Master of the Queen’s Guard stood, looking proud and strong in his armor. Master Lindley bowed deeply. “My queen, your people are waiting.”
“Thank you, Master Lindley.”
We followed him down the hall to where the throne room was located in the western wing of the castle. It wasn’t quite done being built but the work had gone far enough that we could hold the ceremony here, on the crossroads between Midland, Strath, and Ettelbruck. In the center of Enderoth, on the southern shores of the Black Lake. Close enough to the Black Keep Ed would be joining me for dinners here often.
The noise of people was deafening as we stood to the side, waiting for my moment to enter.
My stomach fluttered with nerves but the magic inside of me calmed me. That was a new experience, one I didn’t hate.
Music played and as if this were a marriage ceremony, the large doors were opened and they waited for me to walk in.
Keanna fixed my gown as I made my way to the entrance. Everyone stood, watching, eyes wide when they saw me. The windows and doors were opened, leading to the vast courtyards Michael had designed with the builders. Big enough to house ten thousand people. The crowd sounded as if it might be that large today. I walked into the throne room along the deep purple carpet that had been laid for Michael’s feet. I took his steps for him and prayed he was in the stars with mother and father, watching and guiding as she promised.
The music dulled but couldn’t drowned out the sound of the gushing and oohing and aweing that was happening on both sides of the colossal room.
But it didn’t matter. Every single person and sound vanished when my eyes met the person waiting for me. He smiled, his bright blue eyes sparkling with delight and pride. Grayson stood at the end of the carpet and deep down I imagined we both saw this as a wedding of sorts. The only one we would ever have.
When I reached him, I stopped, almost curtseying but remembering that we would not greet each other that way anymore. As king and queen we would offer the slightest of bows, more of a nod. But he was Grayson the innkeeper’s son in his heart of hearts, so he bowed deeply to me.
I smiled and curtseyed, deciding we would be the ones to choose how we lived and ruled.
Ed brought the crown with emeralds and diamonds on it, carrying it on a black pillow. Egar followed with my father’s sword in his hands, lying flat for me to take from him.
Erick followed with an orb in his hand, a crystal ball that had once been said to help the prophets
see the coming storms.
Clarabelle came in last, her presence brought uneasiness to most of the crowd but they watched in equal parts of fascination and fear as she carried a stunning ring on a small red pillow.
“Is Your Grace prepared to begin?” Grayson asked, clearly he’d memorized his part in the short few days he had notice of this.
“I am ready,” I answered, trying to be loud the way my father always was.
“Take the ring.”
Clarabelle brought the ring to me, holding it out though it was Grayson who spoke, “Do you accept this ring as a gift from the Vulkodlak and the Fae, as a symbol of the peace between our people that must be maintained at all costs?”
“I accept it.” I held out my hand so Clarabelle could place the white gold ring shaped as a tree of life with small rubies and diamonds in amongst the branches. The metal was gold and there was magic in it, a type of agreement was made between me and the ring. I imagined it would know if I intended to lie about my oath.
“Take the sword and swear the oath,” Grayson said and motioned at Egar.
I took the sword and held it in my hands, not as if to stab someone but in reverie of this ancient blade.
“Do you promise to protect the people of Enderoth without bias or weakness?”
“I promise.”
“Take the orb.”
I turned to Erick who beamed as he handed me the orb.
“Turn and face your subjects,” Grayson said and I did. He took the crown from the pillow and held it up next to me. “With this crown and this ring and this sword and this orb, I crown you the Queen of all of Enderoth. Long may you reign, in peace and prosperity and the love of all your people.”
The crown sat on my head, a weight of a pound or two but also a thousand or more. The bronzed metal crown and jewels held the obligations I was agreeing to within it.
Every single person in the room, including Grayson knelt before me. My hands shook and I swore I would drop the orb or sword but I held my breath and watched as a sea of people, including those outside lowered to their knees.