by AK Mulford
“I’m here,” she said, gripping his hand tighter.
She wouldn’t promise that it was going to be okay or make meaningless statements of comfort. But she was there, beside him. Always.
They would walk through these hard moments together.
Hale squeezed her hand back and released it. He faltered down the rickety staircase to the front door.
Remy followed in silence.
The driftwood door looked worn by strong winds. Seagrass covered the weathered walls. From the outside it looked intimate rather than run down. Remy had lived in enough taverns to know the difference. Strings of shells hung above the fogged glass window beside the door, clinking in the breeze.
Hale stood before that door, adjusting the bouquet in his one hand. His other hand hung by his side, his thumb nervously rubbing his pointer finger. He lifted his hand twice and put it back down. Remy stood behind him, trying to emanate love and support.
She would stand here all night if he needed, just as he had stood by her so many times before.
The sun was hanging low on the horizon, lighting the clouds in a pink and gold glow. Remy had never seen the sun setting over the ocean before. The sight was breathtaking. The sound of a final, decisive knock on the door drew her back from her awe.
A slender older woman opened it instantly. She froze for a moment, looking at Hale. She had the same chestnut brown hair, but silver streaked through it. Her locks were wavy and tousled, making her look like she was a mermaid emerging from the ocean waves. She had pale eyes like Hale, but hers had the faintest tinge of sage.
She blinked at Hale one more time and then she was moving, throwing her arms around him. Hale wrapped his arms around her and bowed his head, shoulders caving as he hugged his mother into him.
Remy watched, tears filling her eyes, thinking of Heather and the foggy memories of her mother, the Queen.
The sound of a mewling cat pulled her watery gaze to her feet. She reached down, scratching the black cat arching into her outstretched hand.
Purrs rumbled out from the cat as Remy crouched and whispered, “Hello there.” The feline head-butted into her palm in response. “Do you think I’m a witch?”
Remy scratched the cat, watching as the sun began to kiss the horizon and the sky filled with watercolor clouds over the ocean. The mother and son embraced for a long time. The knot in her chest released. Remy whispered goodbye to her doubt and fear—may they set with the sun. When the glowing star rose over the vastness of the ocean tomorrow, she would be ready to be a queen.
Follow Remy’s story from the beginning in this FREE prequel novella!
Plus get a FREE BONUS EPILOGUE with the steamy seaside story Haastmouth Beach and more free content when you sign-up to AK Mulford’s newsletter at www.akmulford.com
The story continues in The Five Crowns of Okrith Book 2: The Witches’ Blade.
If you enjoyed this story, please consider leaving a review!
About the Author
AK Mulford lives in the perfect place for a fantasy author: New Zealand! Mulford grew up craving seeing herself represented in the world of fantasy and is inspired to create diverse and LGBTQ+ fantasy stories that transport readers to new realms of imagination, helping them to fall in love with fantasy for the first time, or, all over again. A former primatologist, Mulford has now swapped raising monkeys for writing fantasy. She lives in Wellington with her husband and two wonderful young kids. In her down time (what is this mythical “down time”?), she spends time with her cat and dog, and makes ridiculous and fun Tiktok videos.
www.akmulford.com
Acknowledgments
First and foremost I want to thank my wonderful husband, Glen. Thank you for supporting my dreams, for putting up with my minor (and major) freak outs, and for holding down the fort while I wrote this story. You are a wonderful husband and father and I am forever grateful that I met you all those many years ago in Guatemala.
Thank you to the bright, shining, vibrant lights that are my children, I love you with all of my heart. Thank you for being patient with me (or at least trying valiantly) while I chase after my dreams. You are probably reading this many years in the future, if not: wow, congratulations, you can read!
To my mom and dad; thank you for always encouraging me to write and continuing to cheer me on even now. I am so thankful that you believed in my storytelling and supported my creativity from a young age.
And to my brother, thanks for daydreaming up fantastical stories with me. You and I always had the souls of storytellers. (Also, what’s up? Call me sometime so we can hang!)
To the amazing community of friends I have made on Tiktok: thank you for all of your support and welcoming me into the best bookish community around! I am grateful for each and every one of you. Right, okay, back to lip-syncing and goofing off. #Ily
To my amazing beta team, thank you for all of your support and feedback making this book the best it could be! I so appreciate all of your notes and reactions to this story!
Thank you to all of my ARC readers! I so appreciate you sharing this story far and wide!
To Hayley, thank you for beta reading for me and being the self-appointed president of my fan club. I am so grateful to have you in my life. Love you babe.
To my crispy taco delights, thanks for always being in my corner and getting me through the tough days! I don’t know what I would do without you.
Thank you to Hannah Close from Reedsy for her amazing editing services and for elevating my story with her editorial assessment.
Thank you Carolyn Bahm for being an amazing editor and for helping me make this story the best it could be!
Thank you to Norma Gambini from Normas Nook Proofreading for all of your support and amazing proofreading skills!
To my podcast wifey, K. Elle Morrison, thank you for cheering me on and keeping from melting down so many times during the production of this story! I love hosting Indies Fully Booked with you!
Thank you to Kelli from KDL editing for your eagle eyes in proofreading!
Thank you to Kristen Timofeev for the beautiful map!
Thank you to Bianca Bordianu www.bbordianudesign.com for the amazing book cover.
And lastly, I’d like to thank Ziggy, my gorgeous labradoodle, for being the most patient, loving dog in the world and for not getting mad at me those times when I was too deep in a story and made him wait for breakfast.