by Nora Cobb
I smiled faintly as the SUV pulled into a tiny graveyard, a small stone church in the distance. This was far removed from the States and likely far away from any remaining relatives my mother had left.
But it was lovely at least, the picture-perfect English church.
“Do you want me to go with you?” Johanna asked as I opened the door.
I looked back at Johanna and the kings, and shook my head. “Let me have some time alone, all right?”
She nodded and I stepped out, the cold English air whipping at my sweater. I forced my feet to walk toward the graveyard, following the directions that Royce had handed me when we landed. He had stated that he had double-checked the source and that most of the documents matched, meaning that my mother was in this graveyard.
There was no doubt, no fake identity issues to be concerned with.
She was here.
I stepped carefully through the gravestones, some weathered with age, until I came to a cluster of newer ones, their stone gleaming in the cold morning sun. Some had flowers on them, some had little solar lights on stakes, but there was one that didn’t have anything.
My mother’s grave.
I knelt down before it, feeling the cold ground seep into my jeans, and touched the letters carved in the stone.
Irene.
There was no last name, but I didn’t need one. She was here. My chest tightened, but I blinked back the tears, keeping my hand on the stone. “Hey, Mom,” I started out, my voice wavering. “It’s your daughter. I’m sorry it took me so long to get here, but you weren’t easy to find.”
The wind rustled around me, and I likened it to the fact that she was listening, maybe even agreeing to the fact that I had been absent for so long. “I just had to come see it for myself, you know? I wanted to believe that maybe you were alive, but I know you wouldn’t have left me alone if you were.”
I brushed my fingers over the letters, tracing each one with my finger. “I have so much to tell you, but I will give you the abridged version. I’m on my way to finding out if I have more family, Mom. I have friends—well, I don’t know if they are truly friends or not, but they are willing to help me find my family and I can’t turn down this opportunity. I’m at the academy, Weissmore that is, just like my father, and I’ve found Katarina. Needless to say, I’m not her favorite student right now.”
A smile crossed my face and I wiped the tear that had escaped my eye. “I wish you were alive so we could meet in person.” I wanted to wrap my arms around her and inhale her scent, to find out what perfume she preferred or if she had a strong grip or not. I wanted to know what color hair she had and if I had her or my father’s eyes.
More importantly, I wanted to hear her say my name, to tell me that she loved me, and I would feel loved in return. “I don’t know what else to say,” I told her, clasping my hands in my lap. “But I want to say that I am sorry you suffered, Mom. I wish I could have been there to support you, to protect you from her, from them. I hope that you have found your peace beyond the grave, Mom, and know that I am fine. I will be fine.”
I glanced back at the SUV, seeing that the kings were all watching me. “I have friends, Mom, that are going to help me get back at Katarina, and I trust them when they say they want to help me.”
It had taken me some time to come to that conclusion, but I did believe that the headmistress had taken her issues a step too far. Why they were helping was still a mystery and a small part of me knew it was because of my birthright, but I was still happy that they were willing to back me.
Turning back to the gravestone, I touched it one more time, trying to channel her in me. “I’ll come visit you again, Mom, I promise, but I have to go now. Just know that I love you and I hope that you are resting now.”
The wind rustled again as I stood and made my way back to the SUV, my hands in my pockets. “You okay, pauper?” Royce asked softly, his eyes on me.
I drew in a breath, giving him a nod. “I’m fine. This was good for me. Thank you.”
“You’re welcome,” he replied.
“So, what’s next?” Max asked, crossing his arms over his chest. “What’s our plan of attack?”
I looked at them. “I would like to see if I can find any relatives before we go back.” I wanted to know if my mom had any family and if they knew that she rested here. I wanted to know what she had told them about how I came about, and if they even knew I was on this earth.
Most of all, I wanted to find a place that I could truly belong, a heritage that wasn’t filled with anger and lies.
“All right,” Royce said, opening the door. “Then let’s go to my estate and figure it out.”
Arthur stepped forward and laid a hand on my arm. “Are you sure you are okay, Anna?” he asked.
I gave him a sharp nod, his soft expression tearing at me. “Thank you for being here.”
He dropped his touch and turned toward the SUV. I looked back one more time at the small grave, wondering what my mom would think about the kings or the company I kept. She would likely have the same thoughts I had about how handsome and dangerous they were and would warn me to be careful, to guard my heart so that it wouldn’t get broken.
It was too late for that, but I could still be careful around them. They might have pledged their help to me, but they all had given me their ambitions with my birthright. I had to remember that and when the time came, I hoped that they would still be friends. I hadn’t made any decisions, of course, but I would have to soon if I planned to take my father’s money.
Blood money, was how I saw it now.
But he had left it to me even with what had happened to my mother. Was it guilt or something else? I would never know, but I wasn’t about to make him into anything other than the cruel tyrant he had been. He had driven my mom to this graveyard and for that, I could never forgive him.
Yet it didn’t change the fact that I was Anna Kameno, heir to the Roman Empire.
It was time that I started acting like it.
END OF BOOK 2
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LOVE ME: Weissmore Academy Book 3
They can’t make me bend, and I refuse to let myself be broken. Not anymore.
I want to say I could leave Weissmore unscathed and unscarred
But why lie?
I learned what it’s like to be hunted/
What it’s like to be hated by the elites of the campus:
The three kings who were simultaneously my tormentors and only protectors.
But I refuse to let these bully boys to get the best of me.
I refuse to let myself break in front of them.
After all, I belong here, no matter what they or anyone else thinks.
I won’t leave. I won’t give up.
I won’t stop.
Not until they’ve all learned their lesson.
Not until I know what it’s like to be loved.
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