Page 73 of Coerced Queen

Anya’s smile is grateful.She shifts down, settling on her side next to Claire with her hand resting protectively on her baby’s stomach.

I do the same, stretching out on the other side of Claire.Her soft, even breathing has a strangely calming effect on me.I’m not keen on disturbing the agreeable moment, but I have things to say, and Anya’s eyes are already drooping.

“Your mother came to the house,” I start carefully.

Wide awake now, Anya’s golden gaze flares with alarm.“What did she want?”

“To see you and Claire, but something about the whole thing seemed off.”

Anya frowns.“She probably wanted money again.”

“She said she had a job.”

“Really?”Anya raises a brow, a look of hopefulness flashing across her features.“Doing what?”

“Typing.”

She observes me for a moment.“You say that as if you don’t believe it.”

“Honestly, I don’t know what to make of it.”

“What did you say?”

“That I wanted her employer’s details and to see her rental contract.”

“And?”Anya asks with futile optimism.

Her hope is about to be squashed, and I hate Mary for it.“She left.”

“Oh.”Anya’s face drops.“How did she look?I mean, was she okay?”

“Good, actually.”Surprisingly, because Mary hasn’t changed overnight.She didn’t go from vindictive and destructive to a cleaned-up, doting mother and grandmother in the span of a few weeks.“You didn’t tell me she showed up here before.”

Anya strokes Claire’s chest.“So many things were happening.You were still in the ICU.Later, when you were getting better, I forgot.”She sucks her bottom lip into her mouth.“I’m just glad she’s not dead.I call the morgue and the hospitals every day, and each time, I expect the worst.”

Reaching over Claire, I rub Anya’s arm.The comfort is measly.I’d much rather fix this for her, but I have a feeling there’s never going to be any fixing Mary.“What do you want to do?”

“Nothing.”Anya’s pretty mouth hardens.“For now.I’m willing to help her if she proves she’s ready to change.”

“That’s more or less what I told her.”

“I offered to pay for her stay at the center until she’s showed me that she’s clean and sober.If I give her money, she’s just going to end up spending it on pills and alcohol.It sounds mean not to trust her, but she’s only disappointed me time and again.”

Resting my head in my hand, I study Anya’s pale skin and those cute freckles on her nose.I want to kiss each one.Unable not to touch her, I hook a stray curl behind her ear.“It’s not mean.It’s responsible.She’s proven she can’t be trusted.Until that changes, you’re right to be careful.She’s put both your lives in danger in the past.That’s not something anyone can take lightly.”

She nods, averting her eyes.

“There’s something else,” I say.

At the graveness of my tone, she looks up.

“When the attacks on Raphael start, you, Claire, and Livy are staying in the house.I want you here where you’re safe and protected.I won’t risk you going in to After Dark.”

“What if I go with the guards?”

My answer leaves no room for argument.“No.”In this, I’m not willing to budge, no matter how much they defy me.

“How long do you think it will last?”

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