Did she just open up to me? Maybe she was trying for Liam’s sake too.
“I can see it on your face, you know.” Livia handed Allie her cup of steaming hot Chamomile.
“What?” Allie asked.
“I don’t deserve Liam’s kindness. I agree with you. I don’t, but I do appreciate it.” She took the seat opposite Allie, placing her mug on the acrylic coffee table between them.
“Everyone deserves kindness,” Allie said. “Particularly when there are others who aren’t quite ready to give it.” This was the first real exchange they’d had. It felt weird, but Allie dropped the facade she usually kept firmly in place when visiting Livia.
“Why are you here, Allie?” Livia took a sip of her tea. “Why do you insist on coming here, acting like you’re happy to see me when you obviously hate me?”
“Honestly … I don’t know.” Allie sipped from her own mug. “Every few days I just find myself coming down here, like an impulse I can’t ignore.”
“Your clairvoyance guides you?”
Allie’s shoulders tensed. “How did you kn—”
“Relax.” Livia lifted a hand. “No one told me. It’s a logical conclusion given our mother’s gifts and what happened when I came for you last year. You were prepared for my attack.”
“I did see it coming,” Allie relented. “Not that it did much good.” Allie absently dunked her tea bag. “And now my gift wants me to be here, so I’m here.” She shrugged. “You’re my sister. I don’t have to forgive you or like you, but we are flesh and blood, and I have precious little of that in my life. I don’t know, maybe we owe it to Navid to stop this bullshit head butting and try to be real for once. How about we try that today, and if we both hate it, then we can go back to thinly veiled hostility and fake smiles. Deal?”
“All right, then. What do you want to talk about?” Livia crossed her arms over her middle in a protective gesture.
“I don’t know, just tell me something about you I don’t know.” Allie didn’t really care what they talked about. She didn’t think there was anything Livia could say to change her opinions of her sister.
“Fine, I’ll play your game,” Livia agreed. “Once upon a time, I had a father I loved very much. I was Daddy’s little girl, and he would do anything for me. I was a sensitive girl, and I loved my family, but I knew nothing of my father’s evil side back then. And then one day, I had an Awakening, and not long after my powers began to emerge. I was no longer just his little girl—I was Daddy’s secret weapon. I used to think he changed, but I know now he just stopped pretending to be my father. He had plans for me. He trained me day and night, turning me into a warrior. When I was a young woman, all I wanted was his approval. Until the thought of his approval disgusted me as I began to question his motives. I didn’t like the things he asked me to do, or the ways he expected me to use my abilities. That was when he started abusing my mother. Not always physically. His brand of abuse was more emotional. But she was the woman who raised me and loved me no matter what I could or couldn’t do. She became his prisoner long before I realized it. It wasn’t until he started using her to bend me to his will that I saw my mother had always been a prisoner in her own home. So, I had to do whatever my father wanted, or my mother suffered the consequences. There was never a question of whether I was going to be a good person or bad person. There was no question of whether I agreed with his agenda and his ways of achieving his goals. None of that mattered to me or to him. The only thing that ever mattered to me was my mother’s safety and comfort. So, I did whatever Marcus wanted. He didn’t even notice when I stopped seeking his approval. He no longer saw me as a cherished daughter. I was just his right hand, his secret weapon and his dutiful dog. Since then, I’ve had little motivation to do anything other than what was expected of me to keep my mother safe and happy. End of story.”
“That’s horrible,” Allie said. She couldn’t imagine living her life with such fear. “I’m sorry you’ve experienced that kind of abuse from a man who called himself your father.” Allie leaned forward, setting her mug on the table. “I just don’t think I could ever justify sacrificing so many people for my mother’s safety. I love her more than anything in this world, but she wouldn’t want me to become that person just for her.”
Livia stood, taking their empty mugs to the sink in the tiny kitchen across the room.
“It’s different when your mother is the only person you have ever been able to trust; when the one who causes her pain is the one who should care for her more than life itself.”
“I can’t put myself in your shoes, Livia. I just can’t wrap my mind around your decisions. Especially that night. You murdered Chloe’s mother right in front of her.” Allie kept her voice even, just stating the facts.
“Not that it matters now, but at the time, I didn’t think I had a choice,” Livia said, her back to Allie as she rinsed the mugs in the sink and placed them in the dishwasher. Apparently, her sister was the kind of neat freak who washed the dishes before she washed the dishes. “I thought I was fighting for my life. If I had known you guys were going to put me in white-collar prison with bubble baths and handsome jailers, I probably would have come willingly.”
“We always have a choice, Livia. We choose life and we accept the consequences of our actions, even if that means we lose our freedom in the process.”
“I lost my freedom anyway.” Livia returned to her seat across from Allie.
“Maybe you haven’t,” Allie said. “You’re away from your father now. You don’t have to bend to his every wish anymore. Grandmother Alísun said your mother has finally escaped your father’s grasp, and now you have, too. If what you say is true, that’s more freedom than you’ve ever had. You have a chance at a fresh start. It’s up to you what you do with it.” Allie watched as Livia considered her words.
The first time Allie really looked at her sister after the night of the battle, the things her gift told her didn’t match what her eyes saw. Allie could read a person’s true character, and at the time, she’d thought she was mistaken. She let her gift examine her sister now, and she saw goodness there. At Livia’s core, she was everything her behavior said she wasn’t. She was loyal, strong, and she loved fiercely. Allie wanted to believe Livia could be that person, but she needed to see the evidence of it.
Livia sat across from Allie, her spine stiff. “Yes, my mother is safe now, and there is no need to go back. But what makes you think you can change me? Or that I even want to change?”
“I can’t. That’s not my job. I just know this hard and hateful woman you present is not you. My gift tells me that much, but I’m beginning to wonder if you even realize it. You’ve been his creature for so long maybe you don’t know yourself as well as you think do. I can imagine what your life has been like up to this point but you have a chance to change that.”
Livia snorted. “You will never know what it’s like to be me, to face the things I’ve had to face. To do the things I’ve had to do. You don’t even realize it, do you?”
“Realize what?” Allie said with a sigh.
“Kassandre and Ashar allowed Marcus to abduct me when I was four years old. They allowed it!” Livia slammed her fist on the acrylic coffee table causing a crack to split the surface. “Our mother saw everything, and together our parents orchestrated every moment of our lives. They pushed me to become this woman I don’t even recognize. While they gave their golden child a cushy life with loving parents and friends and everything you could possibly need, leaving me stranded in a living hell. So don’t sit there and think you can imagine what my life has been like because you haven’t suffered. You don’t know what suffering is.”
“Cushy life?” Allie tilted her head in confusion. “Golden child? Is that what you think? That our parents somehow favored me over you?” Allie felt the slightest twinge of sympathy for her sister. A crack in the armor of her hatred.
Livia stood, her hands clasped behind her as she paced. Resentment burned in her si
lvery eyes. “Every decision they made for my life was so you would live to fulfill some ancient prophecy.”
“Livia, no.” Allie shook her head. “You’ve spent enough time with Navid now to know that’s not true. I know I haven’t experienced the same horrors as you, and I never pretended to, but you don’t know shit about my life. Our parents manipulated every moment of both our lives. I grew up alone and lonely, constantly on the move and thinking the entire world hated me. I’m not stupid, I know that is nothing compared to what you’ve been through, but it’s not nothing to me. They didn’t choose me over you. As much as I’ve hated them for it, our parents gave us the only chance they believed we had. They gave us the best life they could to bring us here, to this moment, where we can be in the same room with each other and have an actual conversation. I don’t know what their end game was, but I do know Navid would never choose me over you.”
“You’ve known him all your life?” Livia’s voice held a note of jealousy. One of the few emotions Allie had seen her display.
“I knew him only as a close family friend until I learned the truth last year. I’m still getting to know Navid as my father, but I can tell you he is the most honorable, kind man you will ever meet.”
Livia nodded as if she agreed. “So what now?” She frowned. “You still hate me. And I’m not sure I even like you. But we’re sisters and I think we both care deeply for our father.”
“I can’t forgive you for what you did to Chloe and her family. I can’t betray her like that.”
“I can live with that,” Livia said. “It’s the least I deserve for destroying a family.”
Allie was surprised by Livia’s admission of guilt and her remorse seemed genuine. She didn’t know what to do with that or this visit. She was prepared to hate Livia forever. But that was before she got a glimpse at the real Livia.
“So, maybe let’s let the past stay in the past,” Allie finally said. “Decisions were made for us, but we are here now and I say it’s time we both look toward a future of our own making. If that includes a future where we are friends … I guess we will have to wait and see what happens.
“You’re different today.” Livia smiled—like a genuine smile. “You’ve got backbone.” She gave a nod. “I prefer this Allie. This girl makes more sense than that sugary sweet girl you’ve been trotting through here for the last year. In case you haven’t noticed, I don’t respond to nice. But I can respect a girl not afraid to say what she means.”
Allie shrugged. “How about let’s not be fake anymore? I don’t like the bitchy I-hate-everyone, Livia. I think I prefer the stone-cold-honest Livia instead.”
“Sounds like we have a truce,” Livia said.
Allie just didn’t know what that meant.
Allie left her sister feeling confused. She still hated her for destroying Chloe’s family, but after today, she got a glimpse of the real woman behind the armor, and Allie’s resolve started to crumble.
“Doesn’t matter,” Allie muttered. “She’s still the reason Ming Lao’s gone.” Chloe was more of a sister than Livia would ever be. Allie’s loyalty would always lie with Chloe. But as Allie made her way through the crypt, she couldn’t shake the feeling that she wanted this chance to get to know Livia, if only to make room in her life for her brother’s Complement.
Allie headed past the cell Quinn and Santi lived in for a short time. After they returned from their captivity, they spent a few weeks behind bars, just to be sure their bond with Soma was truly broken. Allie would never forget that night, nearly a year ago. Her life had changed forever in the span of a few moments. After her judgment gift manifested, and she’d stripped Aidan’s attacker of his immortality, Allie was afraid she would hurt her friends and family. But her gift hadn’t resurfaced since then. She could feel it, flickering just under the surface of her temper, but she had it under control. It was a lot like her ability to lend strength to others. There was no “practicing” involved. It came to her when she needed it. She was still learning to trust in her power and in her own control of that power, but for the moment, she was confident she wouldn’t hurt anyone she loved. It just didn’t sit well with her that her friends didn’t know what she was capable of. Gregg and Liam insisted the fewer who knew about it, the better, so Allie kept it to herself. Even from Aidan. She didn’t want him to know. She feared he would never look at her the same way again if he knew what she’d done to save him that night.
Allie stepped through the doorway of the underground prison and ran right into her grandparents.
“Allie-girl, hello,” her grandfather, Alexander, said. His bright smile and quick wit always set Allie at ease. She’d only known him for a short while, but she loved him already.
“Hi Grandpa Alex,” she said.
“We were just taking a tour of this … er … lovely dungeon.”
“Allie, dear.” Her frigid, queenly grandmother gave a curt nod. “It is good to hear you and Livia have been talking. You’ve made progress today.”
“Oh, you heard all that, did you?” Allie murmured, casting her gaze down to her feet. Her grandmother scared the bejesus out of her.
“Darling, eavesdropping is rude,” Alexander whisper-shouted.
“It was your idea,” her frosty grandmother replied.
“Yes, but we weren’t supposed to get caught.” Alexander slowly shook his head and smiled.
Allie hid her laughter. Despite her reservations with her grandmother—the legend, and all-powerful, last Immortal Queen of Indriell—her grandparents together were a riot.
“We didn’t mean to invade your privacy, Allie-girl,” Alexander said. “I know we’re hovering, but we are just so anxious to be part of both our granddaughters’ lives.”
“It’s called helicopter parenting,” Allie said and immediately regretted it.
“What’s a helicopter?” Alísun asked.
“You’ve flown in planes, darling. A helicopter is just smaller … and it hovers.” Alexander guided her back to the stairs.
“Oh, I get it,” Alísun said. “We won’t hover, dear. At least we will try not to. But we do need to stay informed with everything you’re dealing with, Alexis.”
“You’re doing it again, my darling,” Alexander said. “How about a cup of tea with your old grandparents?” he asked, as they returned upstairs to the common room. “We promise we won’t pry.”
“That sounds nice,” Allie said. About as nice as a visit to the dentist.
“I’m coming up,” Aidan called from the trail below.
Allie waited impatiently as he scaled the rope ladder to her tree house high among the branches. With their busy schedules, their dreams didn’t mingle as often as either of them would like and she was eager to get her arms around him.
“I missed you.” She rushed into his arms, inhaling his familiar earthy scent. It wasn’t the same as being together in the waking world, but they lived for these shared moments in the dreamworld.
Allie laid her head against his chest as he buried his nose in her hair.
“I miss you every moment of every day,” Aidan whispered, running a hand across her back.
Allie tilted her head back to meet his lips in a hungry kiss. She slid her hands up his chest to run her fingers through his silky hair. Her pulse pounded and her power churned hot in her chest as Aidan’s hands came to rest gently on her hips.
There are definitely perks to this telepathy thing.
Aidan chuckled, breaking their kiss and pressing his forehead to hers. His rapid breath warm against her face. Once upon a time, that so wasn’t the case.
“We’ve come a long way since that first night in the dreamworld.” Allie smiled up at him. During her busy days with school and training she thought of him often, but these precious moments in the dreamworld reminded her of how much she missed having Aidan in her daily life.
“The tree house is starting to look fancy.” Aidan gazed around the yurt-style room at all the new changes she’d made since the last tim
e he was here. “Like a cozy little retreat just for us.”
“My favorite house growing up was the tree house in the Amazon rainforest. I only got to stay there on weekends, but it was so epic, I wanted share it with you.”
“How do you make it stay here? Everything we imagine disappears once we leave,” Aidan said, taking her hand as he walked around the circular room.
“Navid’s been helping me. I create things, and he makes it permanent with his dream walker mojo.”
“It’s beautiful.” With its thatched roof and open windows draped with soft white fabric billowing in the breeze, it reminded Allie of some of the best moments of her childhood.
An enormous tree trunk ran through the center of the room, its branches held the structure steady, like a giant hand. Comfortable chairs waited for them near the open windows, and a canopy bed draped in a pale blue silk fabric rested against the wall behind them. It was the perfect oasis away from their demanding school schedules.
“I needed this.” Aidan heaved a sigh of relief, as he sat back in the wide bamboo lounge, pulling Allie down on his lap.
“Me too. Today was weird.” She leaned against him, relishing the moment knowing it wouldn’t last long.
“Weird how?” He leaned his head back with his eyes closed, his hand snaking out to take hers, pressing a kiss to her fingertips.
“I had a real conversation with Livia.” Allie rested her head against his chest, relaxing as the tension of the afternoon finally left her.
“Really? How did that go?”
“I don’t really know.”
“Want to talk about it?”
“Not really.” She squeezed his hand. “It was just strange. Everything is strange right now.” She sighed, gazing out across the jungle of her dreamscape.
“Yeah, tell me about it,” Aidan said with a frustrated sigh. She knew his noises as well as her own, something was troubling him.
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