by Eve Newton
Well “fine” tipped him over the edge. I curse myself for using that word, as he knows that everything isn’t fine when I use it. He stalks out of the bathroom and I raise my eyebrows as I hear a massive hole being punched into the wall. I take this opportunity in his absence to leap out of the tub and get dried and dressed. He strides back in and stops dead as he sees me out of the tub and fully clothed, from head to toe. The only skin he can see is my face and hands. The anger goes out of his eyes to be replaced with sorrow. It is my undoing. My lip trembles as the tears fall and he drops to his knees in front of me, clinging to the back of my top as he, too, weeps for me.
I eventually fall to my knees as well, but he doesn’t let go of me. He wraps me up in his arms gently, stroking my hair.
“How? Why?” he asks. “If you want to talk about it, I will listen,” he adds as I stay silent.
“I don’t. I don’t want you to know anything about it. I was going to tell you; I just needed a bit of time.” This is the truth. I don’t want him to know why this happened, but I know that I am going to have to tell him, all of them, soon.
“Okay,” he says. I think he is a bit relieved that I am not going to blurt out the story to him. “Is your father going to do something about it?”
“Yes,” I say and swallow as I remember Drake’s ferocious declaration. In fact, he might have already followed through with it.
He nods grimly. “Good, that’s good. I know you said you don’t want to talk about it, but I need to know how? How did someone get the better of you like that?”
“You have no idea how powerful Faerie magick is. He bound my Powers. This is the reason my mother accelerated them.”
“Oh,” he says and gazes at me woefully. “I’m sorry, Liv. I wish I could protect you; I never want to see you hurt. I hate that I can’t protect you.”
“I know,” I say and console him for a few moments before he realizes what I am doing. He grabs my hands and squeezes them with a reprimanding look.
“I suppose I should go downstairs and see everyone. I’m sure they are all in a tizz,” I say reluctantly.
“Forget about them. They have lasted this long; they can go a bit longer.”
I nod and we still just sit there in the bathroom in silence, our arms wrapped around each other. Cole clears his throat and I hear the strain in his voice as he asks, “Do you want Constantine?”
I shake my head forcefully. He is the absolute last person I want to see right now. I’d even take Aelfric over him, that’s how strongly I feel about it. Cole is surprised, but glad that I refused to see him.
“Can I get you anything?” he asks hesitantly.
“No,” I say and then decide that this is ridiculous. I stand up and pull him up with me. “I’m going downstairs,” I say.
“Okay,” he agrees. I think he will probably agree to everything I want right now. Too bad I am not in the frame of mind to take advantage of that. I catch that thought with a slight frown at myself.
Hand in hand, he leads me from the bathroom. I raise my eyebrows at the big hole in the wall and he looks sheepish and mumbles, “I’ll get it fixed.”
He opens our bedroom door and peers out before he pulls me through into the empty hallway. I am inwardly smiling at his behavior, but I let him do this his way, as I know he is aching over what I told him. He is going to have to know the details, but I don’t want to hurt him. We hit the bottom of the stairs and a convergence of people appears, as expected. Cole growls at them and pushes me behind him. “Stay away from her,” he says to everyone’s surprise. “Back off,” he snarls as no one makes a move to leave. They do as asked in confusion and Cole leads me into the library and everyone follows. He places me in my chair and stands next to me, happy to have the big block of wood in between them and me.
“Lizzie?” Devon asks.
I hold my hand up and say, “I know you all want to know what is going on so sit please and I will tell you.” Everyone sits, except Sebastian, who is glowering at me from across the room. He knows his secret is about to come out, but it can’t be helped.
Again, I start at the beginning and leave out the three major points for the moment. When everyone has taken that in and I have answered a bunch of questions, I take a deep breath. “There’s more.” This is it. I had not wanted to tell them, but I am tired of secrets and it is better that I come clean so that there are no surprises down the road.
“The Faerie have a prophecy,” I say and hear groaning at that word and stifle my own noise of agreement. “Eons ago, it was foretold that the firstborn son of the Light Fae King would marry the only Dark Fae Princess and she would bear a child.” I let that linger for a moment and there is hissing and growling as they figure out that it is about me again. CK already knows all of this, but I have thus far been avoiding his intense stare. I decide I am not going to share about our fight, and I wonder if he thinks I will.
“So who is the firstborn Light Fae Prince?” Devon asks, as I knew he would.
I cast a quick glance over at Xane, who is fully aware of the Prince already and I sweep past Sebastian as well, who has crossed his arms defensively. “Before I get to that, there has been an amendment to the prophecy.”
That catches CK’s attention and I now look at him. I see his sorrow and pain, but I must remain strong and ignore it. “What kind of amendment?” he asks quietly, as I also knew he would.
“Due to the status of the Light Fae Prince, the Light Fae King asked his Seer to have another look, if you will.”
“Why, is he dead or something?” Devon pipes up hopefully.
“Or something…” I mutter. “As a result, the Seer decided that it was only the direct heir, or perhaps even King, that would create this child.”
CK growls loudly at that and stands up to start yelling. I put my hand up and he stops dead.
Huh, neat, I think absently. Must be that Power boost kicking in.
“Wait, I don’t understand,” Lincoln says. “How can a prophecy be amended?” He is looking at me, but I see him glance at Sebastian and wonder what he knows about that. “Aren’t all the Princes direct heirs?”
“That remains to be seen. What I mean is the next in line, it is up for debate at the moment, and what I am trying to tell you is that while I was in the Fae Kingdoms, this amendment was acted upon.” I stand up and Cole grips my hand tighter. I see a sea of shocked faces and I focus solely on Sebastian when I say the next part. “I was sexually assaulted in an attempt to get this child conceived.” Cole makes a distressed noise and there are gasps from the crowd before a surge of outrage on my behalf. Devon is the first to reach me, grabbing my arms and pulling me away from Cole, who is trying to pull me back. I feel like a Christmas cracker, and shake myself off both of them. “I’m fine,” I say, and Devon shakes his head. “No, no! Don’t say ‘fine.’ I hate it when you say ‘fine.’” I take him in my arms, and he gives me a bone-crushing hug in return. “Please, sit back down. I am not finished yet,” I say, gently pushing him away. He doesn’t go, but stays right next to me, protecting me. CK’s face is white and his eyes are black. Sebastian is trying to offer him some sort of comfort, and I resist the urge to go to him myself to do the same. Damn him.
“The Faerie in question bound my Dragon Powers thus rendering me completely defenseless against him. That is why the sudden Shift occurred when I got back and why my mother came for me. She has accelerated my Powers, and I now bear the full force of my Queen abilities.”
Xane is nodding as if he was already privy to that newsflash, as the rest of the group says, “Holy crap.”
“I knew something had changed,” Xane says as I look questioningly at him. “I felt it. Now you are the most powerful being in all the Realms,” he adds. There is something off about his entire attitude towards this whole situation.
“Yes,” I say with a small, proud smile, ignoring the Vampy sense that tells me I should be suspicious of him, but not why.
“Who was it?” CK croaks into the e
nsuing silence.
I look him square in the eye, but I don’t say anything.
“Who was it?” he asks again, this time his voice as steady as a rock.
Again, I hesitate, out of worry for Sebastian, not Aelfric. With any luck, Drake has taken care of that.
CK takes a step forward and is about to repeat his question, when Sebastian takes his arm to hold him back. I look at him. He is grim and determined.
“It was my father,” he says. “The Light Fae King.”
You could hear a pin drop in the seconds after Sebastian made his declaration. I sit again and wait for it. It comes in three, two, one…
I am glad when Xane steps forward, already having been clued in on Sebastian and his dad, to calm everyone down. Sebastian is standing stoic and silent, his eyes on mine.
“That would make you the Light Fae Prince?” Cole asks, pointing at Sebastian accusingly.
“Yes. I was before I was turned,” he replies.
“The one from the prophecy?” Devon asks in disbelief and turns to me to add, “He is supposed to marry you and knock you up?”
Way to be sensitive about it, Dev. “Yes,” I say quietly to yet more growling.
“Liv,” Cole says, squeezing my hand. “You can’t…” He shakes his head at me.
“I have no intention of,” I reassure him to his and everyone’s relief. Except Sebastian, he looks pissed.
“But, his father…what he did to you. What if you are already?” he asks hesitantly, and I know everyone else was thinking the same.
“The Dragon Shift has taken care of that, don’t worry,” I say, patting his hand, hoping that Sebastian was right about that.
“Hang on a minute,” Devon says. “None of this makes any sense. You are a Vampire, Lizzie. You are unable to reproduce. Not to mention, so is he.” He points to Sebastian.
I look away from Sebastian, to Xane, and finally to CK. His anguish is hitting me hard. It is even worse because he is staying out of this. I know how it must be killing him to hear all of this and to stay quiet, but he knows I don’t want to hear from him.
“Hence the amended prophecy,” I say. “Also, it has been suggested that as I am no longer just a Vampire, it is a strong possibility. Other Liv has seven kids,” I add for extra benefit. I refrain from mentioning Cassis and the Other, Other me.
“How long have you known this?” Cole asks me and I had been dreading this question.
“A couple of months,” I say with a quick look to Xane, who had in fact been the first one to mention it.
“Months?” Cole asks. “You mean you have known about this for months and yet you still go to Lincoln knowing what might happen?”
Aaaaaahhhhh! My brain is tired of the differing versions of that question being asked. I should have kept my mouth shut.
Lincoln stands then. I haven’t heard much from him, but that is standard for him. “You have no need to worry about that, Cole, I cursed myself to not bear children, before Liv and I started our, uh, physical relationship.”
My eyes snap to Lincoln’s, who is looking at me intently. This is the first I have heard of this, but I can’t say that I am not relieved, since I had to remove my own curse. I look gratefully at him that he has jumped in and saved me from a potentially explosive situation. I see CK relax a fraction at that news as well and it angers me. As soon as I get out of here, I am replacing my own curse, as this is one oven that isn’t going to produce a bun of any kind.
Cole nods grimly at Lincoln who sits again. This is getting far too complicated. I hope that Xane keeps his trap shut about his lack of a curse and our couple of dalliances. Lucky for me, he does, and Jess asks a question. “Back to Sebastian’s father,” she starts, and we all look at her in surprise. I had forgotten she was even there; she had been so quiet and still this whole time. “Does your own father know what happened?”
“Yes, he does. Sebastian told him after it happened.” Ah crap, I sigh at myself, and hold my hands up again before anyone can speak. “Sebastian was with me this last day in the D.F.K.”
“D.F.K.?” Jess asks.
“Dark Fae Kingdom,” I clarify.
“How did you get there?” Devon asks him suspiciously.
“My father came to get me,” Sebastian says.
“And you didn’t think to tell anyone?” Devon asks.
“It was of no one’s concern but mine,” Sebastian says.
“Excuse me?” Devon asks. “You knew we wanted to get her out of there. This would never have happened if we had gotten her out of there in the first place.”
“Devon,” I say. “Calm down. I told you I didn’t want to leave and now that I have made my appearance and Drake has acknowledged me, Sebastian’s presence is required at Court. Both his own and mine.”
“This is all getting a bit much,” Devon says. “I think we all just need to take a minute.”
“Agreed,” I say, and we all sit there staring at each other.
“I still haven’t finished with my question,” Jess says suddenly.
“Oh, sorry,” I say. “What is it you were getting at?”
“If your father knows what happened to you, what is he going to do about it?” she asks.
All eyes turn back to me. “He made a threat on Aelfric’s life. I have no idea if he has seen it through.”
“He hasn’t,” Sebastian says.
“How do you know?” Jess asks him.
“If my father were dead, I would have been recalled, and I am still here,” he says, hands on hips.
“What do you mean recalled?” Lincoln asks.
“My father dies, I become King,” Sebastian says to a stunned silence.
He sounds definite about that so, regardless of his so-called status, he is still the one. “Oh man, I can’t cope with anymore of this,” I say, standing up. “I need some air.” Cole opens the French doors and I step out onto the terrace, with him at my back.
“Get me CK,” I say to him. I am going to have to face him at some point. Might as well be now.
He goes off to get my sire and I walk further out into the gardens. It looks like snow and I shiver. I call a thicker coat to me and I instantly feel warmer. It is so strange; I still haven’t become used to it.
“Aefre,” his voice comes from behind me and I stop walking. I brace myself and turn to him. “Please let me speak first,” he says to me.
I nod, as I am still unsure what to say to him and I want to hear what he has to say.
“I’m sorry,” he says, and I look away. “I know that it doesn’t cover it and I will spend the next several lifetimes making it up to you. What I did to you in the tower was unforgivable. I hate myself for hurting you, it is killing me when I think about what I did. And the spelling was the single stupidest thing that I have ever done. I love you so much, I wanted us to be together. I never meant any harm to Cole, I wanted you to bring him with you when you came to me. But I just couldn’t wait any longer to have you as my wife. I’m sorry about how I went about it. I should have waited for you. What happened over there to you, I just, I want to kill him for hurting you. I want to help you heal.”
I turn and walk away from him, deeper into the woods. He follows me after a moment, and silently we walk until we reach the clearing.
“First things,” I start, “The fight that we had in the tower, I am partly to blame for.” He starts to interrupt me, but I shush him. “We completely blindsided you and you had every right to be angry at me. You asked me to leave, because you knew what was going to happen if I stayed. I didn’t listen, and that is on me. I am more upset by what you said, than what you did.”
“I didn’t mean any of it, Aefre. I knew it would hurt you and that is what I was trying to do. Please know that I do not think that about you. I never have and I never will.”
I nod and ask him, “Have you ever used your power on me before, to get me to do what you want?”
He shakes his head vehemently. “No, Aefre. Not ever. I made a promise to my
self when I sired you, that I would never use it on you. I didn’t want to tell you about it because I knew you would always wonder if I had, or would, use it on you.”
I believe him about that, but that is the least of our issues. “The spelling,” I say. “I can forgive why you got Sebastian to spell Devon. He explained it to me, and you’re right. I never even thought about it. It was an underhanded way to go about it, but I understand you were trying to protect him, and me. But what he did to me. Now that is something I cannot forgive. You had no right to mess with my head like that. You violated my mind, but that aside, I told you I wasn’t ready to leave Cole. You made me believe that you were waiting. You promised me, and when I called you on it at Ponte you threw a fit at me for suggesting it. I don’t think I can get past this, Constantine.” I pull the ring he gave me off my finger and hold it out to him. I feel cold and dead inside and it makes me shudder. It is an ugly feeling and I don’t like it.
He looks devastated and shakes his head. “No, Aefre. Please don’t be hasty. I will do anything you ask to make it up to you. Anything. Just please do not give that back to me. Please,” he begs me, closing his hand over mine.
My heart is breaking over his sorrow, but I can’t forgive him. Not this time.
“Please, Aefre. Please don’t give it back to me,” he whispers. “I will give you time, just please put it back on.”
We stand like that in the clearing for some time. My tears are falling, icy cold against my cheeks. His head is bowed, his hand clutching mine, waiting for me. The feeling inside me warms up again, a sudden shift from a crushing blackness to warm, white light. He lets go of my fingers and walks away from me. He has put the ring back on my finger and I, for my sins, have let him.
Cole finds me awhile later standing over the Faerie ring. I am dying to go back and see what exactly Drake is doing about my assault. “What are you looking at?” he asks me as he wraps his arms around me.
“A Faerie ring. You step into it and it takes you to the Fae Kingdoms.”