The Fighter

by Elin Peer

  “What did you keep?”

  “A pair of her mittens. We used to have a warming rack outside our apartments for shoes and gloves. After she died, I took her mittens.”

  “Why?”

  “Because I’d never met a woman and Dina was always so kind to me. I kept them to always remember her… And I kept a feather too.”

  “Did you say a feather?”

  “Yes. It’s just a small blue feather that I found on the staircase that same night after Dina had died.”

  “How do you know it was Dina’s?”

  “You’d know if you saw it too. It’s something only rich people would wear on their clothes. Dina had fancy jackets and hats. I knew right away that it was hers. Maybe I shouldn’t have kept any of it. It’s just that at the time it seemed like such small things, but now I wonder if maybe her family want the mittens and the feather back.”

  “Send me a picture so I can ask them.”

  “Of course. I’ll send it right away.”

  After Michael sent her the picture, Raven took one glance at the mittens and the blue feather. “I’ll ask Erika if she wants them back as memories of Dina.”

  While Raven called up Erika, I closed the boxes we had already packed, listening to Erika’s and Raven’s short conversation.

  “Michael wants to know if you want the mittens and the feather back.”

  “No. How many times must I ask you to leave my Dina in peace? Nothing good will come out of stirring up the past.”

  Erika’s response made me look over at her hologram. Her face was stiff and her jaws set in stone.

  “I’m sorry.” Raven didn’t finish her sentence before Erika had disconnected.

  “Don’t take it personally, babe. They are all grieving and that’s why they’re lashing out.”

  Raven gave a sad nod. “I know that.” She enlarged the picture of the blue feather with the red dot in the middle. “If Dina had been my daughter, I would have wanted everything with a connection to her, even a small feather like that one.”

  “Grief is different for everybody. Erika is choosing not to remember.”

  “Yeah, it’s beginning to make sense to me why Marcus removed all traces of Dina after her death. Erika really doesn’t like to think about her daughter.” Raven closed down the picture. “I’ll ask Mila instead. She kept some of Dina’s things from the storage room. Maybe she wants these too.”

  “Yeah, maybe.”

  “Leo, stop. Put that box down.”

  “I’m fine.”

  “Just because you’re not limping anymore doesn’t mean you should be carrying heavy boxes.”

  “Not you too, Raven. The guys were giving me crap at work but it’s been a month and I’m fine.” I had a box in my arms and was by the door when a sudden thought hit me hard. At first, I disregarded it but when I returned for the next box, I asked, “Raven, that article you were looking at when I confiscated your research, can I see it?” I knew she had it since I’d returned all the confiscated research to her.

  Raven found it and showed it to me. “What about it?”

  I stared at the photo and pointed. When Raven saw what I saw, she gasped out loud. “Holy shit, Leo…”

  Looking deep into her eyes, I spoke in a low ominous tone. “We can never tell anyone about this. Never!”

  “But Leo, what if…”

  “No, this is so much bigger than us. Khan being the false heir is a major political bomb that could throw our country into a civil war. With Magni being injured, Khan is already weakened and if any of this gets out, there’s no way to know what’s going to happen to any of us.”

  Raven took a moment before she nodded. “You’re right. We’ll need to keep this quiet and pretend we don’t know.”

  CHAPTER 25

  Big Mouth

  Leo

  Raven wanted to say a few goodbyes before we left the Gray Manor. While waiting for her, I packed the drone and was coming back into the large foyer when Khan came walking through with Solo.

  “Leo, what are you doing here?”

  “I’m just waiting for Raven.”

  “How are you feeling? I heard you returned to work – that’s good news.” Khan patted my shoulder.

  “I’m not complaining. I was the lucky one.”

  “Yeah, Magni has a way to go still.” The two men grew somber as Khan spoke. “For some reason, he doesn’t want to talk about cybernetics, which is bullshit because with robotic limbs he could walk and run again.”

  “Mila told me he’s not doing well and that you’re worried about him being alone.”

  Khan groaned “He’s too damn proud for his own good and he feels sorry for himself. Have you seen him yet?”

  “No. I’ve asked to visit, but Laura says he doesn’t want anyone to see him like that.”

  “Ah, yes, but when he comes around, you’ll need to speak loud because my brother lost some of his hearing.”

  “That’s not because of the accident,” Solo pointed out. “Magni lost most of his hearing in one ear after a fight with me years ago.”

  “He never told me that.” Khan crossed his arms and then he shrugged. “Anyway, Solo has temporarily taken over for Magni as Commander until we find a solution. It turned out to be a good thing Magni did that paternity test last year. Now I have a nephew to help me out in his father’s absence.” With a hand to Solo’s back, Khan gave him a proud nod.

  Solo and I had been friends before he discovered that Magni was his father and it was still weird for me to think of him as part of the ruling family.

  “Solo will keep you updated about Mila’s tournament.”

  “I thought you were going to postpone it.”

  Khan pursed his lips and tapped his foot. “We’re not sure. There’s still a few months and we’re hoping Magni can grow strong enough to attend, but it’s tempting to postpone it. I never agreed that it should be a winter event to begin with. Spring and summer are always better for tournaments anyway. It’s just that a wedding always brings joy and a lot of men will be disappointed if we don’t follow through.”

  “I’m not one of them.”

  Tilting his head, Khan lowered his gaze to my thigh. “Ah, because of your injury. Yes, I can see that pushing back the tournament will give you time to heal properly and get back in top shape.”

  I shook my head. “No, the reason I’m not disappointed is that Raven and I…” I hesitated, but she had promised to make it official this weekend so I didn’t feel too bad about telling Khan and Solo.

  Khan waited for a second, but then his eyes grew wide “Really? You and Raven? But I thought you found her annoying.”

  I smiled. “What can I say? She grew on me.”

  Solo chuckled. “Yes, she has that effect on people, but are you sure she’ll commit? Have you asked her to marry you?”

  “She’s moving in with me today.” I squared my shoulders with pride.

  “What? Without being married?” Khan shook his head. “You’re a good man, Leo, but you’re not too bright if you let her move in with you without being married.”

  “Why not?”

  “Solo and I have known Raven longer than you. She’s not like other women.”

  “I know that. Raven is fucking strong and amazing.”

  “Sure, but she carries the pressure of wanting to make a difference in the world. Sometimes, that pressure makes her appear tougher than she really is.”

  “I understand that.”

  “Do you?” Khan’s expression was serious. “Because Raven is special to all of us and we need to be certain that you can handle someone as complex as her. She’s sensitive and soft on the inside but most can’t see it because of the way she presents herself as a badass.”

  I nodded. “I get that.”

  “Good.” Khan patted my shoulder. “Be strategic! Make sure you get her to marry you fast.”

  “Strategic, Lord?” I shook my head to signal I didn’t follow him.

  “You don’t want her t
o think it’s a possibility to live with you without getting married. If you give her that option, she’ll never want to marry. Why would she if she’s getting everything that she needs without having to conform to our tradition of marriage?”

  Solo crossed his arms. “Lord Khan has a good point. Motlanders think of marriage as archaic. I know Raven used to think of it that way but maybe her many years in the Northlands have made her more susceptible to the idea. Just tell her it can be a small ceremony at our place in the woods or here at the Gray Manor, with only the closest of friends and family if she prefers.”

  Khan looked thoughtful. “Or it can be a large wedding.”

  “I hear what you’re saying, but just because she hasn’t agreed to marry me yet doesn’t change that she’s still mine.”

  “I hope she agrees.” Solo placed his large palm on my shoulder and shook it. “Did you claim her yet?”

  “Yes, several times.”

  Khan gave a satisfied smack of his tongue. “Good, then soon we can finally put this police nonsense behind us.”

  “Why? Wouldn’t you support Pearl if it was her dream?”

  Khan groaned. “Leo, if you knew how much Pearl and I discuss all the crazy things she wants to do. Women aren’t always realistic about what can and can’t be done.”

  Solo raised an eyebrow. “True, but Pearl has changed a lot of things around here; you can’t deny that, Lord.”

  Khan shifted his balance. “I don’t disagree. Much is better because of her ideas, but it’s a constant balance between supporting her and protecting her from her own naiveté.”

  “I get that, Lord.” I gave Khan a small smile. “Still, I doubt Pearl could have done any of it without your support. I reckon it’ll be the same with Raven. She’ll need me in her corner.”

  Solo shifted his balance. “That woman is the most stubborn daredevil I’ve met. Willow is a handful, but Raven, oh man, that’s a whole different level.”

  I huffed out air. “I know. So far, I haven’t been successful in stopping her from doing anything she wants to. It wasn’t until the crash that she stopped inv… ehh…” I had said too much and made a bad attempt at changing the subject. “Anyway, robotic limbs sound cool.”

  I should have known Khan wouldn’t miss a blunder like that. “She stopped what? Are you referring to her investigation?”

  It was eerie how he was spot on. I swallowed hard.

  “Yeah, I didn’t want her to investigate Dina’s death and now she finally stopped.” Knowing what we had just discovered, I was looking at his elbow.

  “I see.” Khan frowned. “But tell me: did Raven find any clues to my sister’s death?”

  “Nothing much.” Lying to my ruler could cost me my life; my ears were beginning to get hot.

  Khan gave me a sharp glance and I felt like he was doing an x-ray of my mind, seeing every secret I was holding from him. In an attempt to smooth things out, I made it worse by rambling:

  “Well, she found the file as you know and I told her to stop. She has stopped. It’s not a priority any longer, what with Magni injured and all.” My nerves flared up. Dina had died, and so had her husband and his friend. I didn’t want Raven and me to be next, and even though Raven didn’t seem to understand the significance of Khan’s bloodline or lack thereof, I did.

  “Huh.” Khan rolled his thumbs. “Tell Raven to come and see me. I want to know what she found.”

  “She really didn’t find much.”

  “Just have her bring her notes. Maybe Pearl and I can help figure out what happened.” He tapped his right temple. “I am a genius, after all.”

  “Are you bragging again?” The sound of Pearl’s voice made us turn to see her approach.

  Khan opened his arm to hug her. “Not bragging, just stating facts. I just told Leo that we’d like to go over Raven’s findings in Dina’s case.”

  Pearl snaked her arm around Khan’s waist and leaned against him. “Of course. We’re always happy to help.”

  “It’s just that Raven has abandoned the case. After all, it was because of her research that Magni and I crashed that day.”

  Pearl frowned. “Nonsense. Is that what Raven is telling herself?”

  “Yes. She feels very guilty.”

  “She didn’t ask either of you to fly through a thunderstorm, and she certainly didn’t cause the breakdown of the drone. You were two grown men rushing to assist two women who never asked for your help in the first place. For her to feel guilty about that is pointless and wrong.”

  I just stood there, not sure how to respond.

  “Anyway, we can’t stop the world because of Magni’s injuries. He too will need the world to go on and to find his new place in it.” Pearl turned to Khan. “We should include him in Raven’s findings.”

  Khan frowned. “But he’s not feeling well.”

  Pearl didn’t back down. “Which is why we’ll give him something that will distract him for a short while.”

  Solo cleared his throat. “Magni can’t get out of bed yet.”

  With Solo being more than seven feet tall, Pearl looked up at the giant man. “Then we’ll all go to him. I want Magni to be present. It’s not like he has anything better to do in his room.” With her regal grace, Pearl turned to me. “How long do you think Raven needs before she can go over her findings with us?”

  “Ehm, I’m not sure.” On the inside I was scrambling to find a way out of it.

  Solo looked thoughtful. “You know, Pearl, I think it’s a good call to include Magni. You’re right, he does need something to take his mind off his own misery. This might do it.” Solo walked to the staircase. “Let me go and check in with him and see if he’s awake. Leo, will you get a hold of Raven and tell her?”

  Before I had a chance to protest louder, Pearl smiled and said, “We should make it a family event. That way we can all surround Magni without focusing on him. It will give him a sense of connection without suffocating him.”

  It took me a few seconds to find my voice. “When you say family event, what do you mean exactly?”

  Solo kept ascending the stairs while Pearl addressed Khan. “I would say everyone should be invited, but maybe not the children. What do you think?”

  He nodded. “No children.”

  “I’ll tell Mila and Erika then.” Pearl raised her voice when she spoke to Solo, who was already at the top of the stairs. “Solo will you let Laura know?”

  “Will do.”

  Pearl planted a quick kiss on Khan’s cheek before she walked off too. “I’ll just ask the cook to send up some cake and drinks.”

  Khan and I were the only ones left in the foyer when he patted my shoulder again. “You’d better get a hold of Raven, she has a case to present.”

  My heart was racing as I searched for Raven and found her coming down from the third floor.

  “I’m sorry you had to wait for me, but the kids wouldn’t let me go.” She pointed her thumb over her shoulder. “I just passed Solo and he said something about seeing us in a minute. What was that about?”

  I took her hands. “Raven, we’re in trouble.”

  “Why, what’s wrong? You look like you’ve eaten something bad.”

  My tone of voice was low and urgent. “They’re all gathering to hear you present what you found out in Dina’s murder case. Khan, Pearl, Solo, Erika, Mila, and Laura. It’s going to be in Magni’s room so he can hear it too”

  “But you said we could never tell anyone.”

  “I know. Trust me, it wasn’t my suggestion.”

  “Then why didn’t you say no?”

  My voice rose to a high pitch. “How do I say no to Khan and Pearl?”

  Raven chewed on her lips. “You could have told them that Erika is upset with me for digging around in her daughter’s death and that with Magni being injured it would be better to wait.”

  I rubbed my forehead. “Yes, I wish I had thought of that, but I didn’t. Argh, why the fuck didn’t I keep my big mouth shut? I could have just
passed Khan with a simple hello.”

  “But we can’t tell them what we know.”

  “No, we absolutely cannot.” My head was spinning rapidly. “Or maybe… I don’t know.”

  Raven waited for me to gather my thoughts.

  “Maybe it could work. The more witnesses, the better. If we tell what we know with Pearl and Mila in the room it will improve our chances of leaving unharmed. Don’t you think?”

  Raven leaned in and muttered. “I can’t believe we’re discussing this like our lives are in danger.”

  I scoffed. “Trust me, they are. This is the ruling family, and just like every ruler before them they’ve had to do what it takes to stay in power.”

  “Yes, but I’m like family to them.”

  With a hand at the small of Raven’s back, I nudged her forward. “Let’s hope that makes a difference. Now let’s go get the box with all your research. You’re going to need it when you do your presentation. Your accusations are strong, so your proof better be strong too.”

  CHAPTER 26

  Dina’s Death

  Raven

  Leo carried my box of evidence as we walked to Laura’s and Magni’s suite. Our footsteps were heavy and our breathing shallow. My mouth was dry and when Leo stopped before entering, we exchanged a long look.

  “Every instinct I have as a protector tells me to take you away from here. To shield you from whatever is going to happen in that room if we enter.”

  “The truth shall set you free.” My words sounded hoarse because of my dry throat.

  “Yeah, but the kind of truth we’re bringing often results in an unwanted kind of freedom.”

  I tilted my head, silently asking him to explain.

  “You know, the kind of freedom where your soul leaves your body because you’re silenced.”

  Closing my eyes, I heaved in a deep breath of air. “That won’t happen. The Northlands have changed and there are good people in that room.”

  “Yeah, but just in case.” Leo moved closer and shifted the box in his arms to make room for him to lean down and kiss me. “I want you to know that meeting you and loving you has been the highlight of my existence.”