Page 16 of Finding Closure

The meeting went pretty well after that. They basically just wanted to get to know Sean and Marshall. I did get a chance to talk to Mel on the side before leaving.

And she was probably still laughing after I told her how I found out and why I didn’t tell her. She was seriously dying.

“I am sorry this all got sprung on you, but they literally cornered me today and begged me,” I told her. “Like puppy eyes and guilted me so I really didn’t have a chance.”

“Oh, that was clear from the amount of sass you gave,” she forgave, patting my shoulder. “What they said earlier was right. You win people over by just telling things like they are. It’s your best attribute. You lay things out fairly. Do it for your people and give them the chance to make the right call. They’ve been doing that a lot lately from what I’ve heard.”

“Thanks, Mel.”

“I’m always here for you even if our lives took different paths.”

“I know.” I wasn’t going to ask, but then I decided to. “How are things going with Connor?”

“Damn kid is persistent. My brother is stronger, but he makes a valid point that my time in the real world makes me stronger in a way that’s not physical and has everything to do with survival. Seriously, he could talk anyone into almost anything.”

I snorted, knowing that well. “I don’t know your brother well, but you always gave the best advice. Maybe there’s a way to have both worlds, Mel.” I shrugged when she looked at me. “No one said two people can’t have the role. Maybe it wouldn’t eat the person who had it as much as it did your dad. Hudson will be handling security, and I have right hands separate.”

“Good point. That role is normally the queen but… Good point. Thanks, Tams.”

“I’m always here for you too, Mel.”

I felt better when I left. Mel had made up with Izzy too and we’d had brunch a few weeks ago, talking about making it a regular thing, maybe monthly. It felt good—right. Not like we’d broken what we’d had, but it had all simply evolved as we’d grown into the roles we were meant to be in.

Something mature like that.

It felt like that to me at least.

5

“This was a very hard decision to come to,” I said to those gathered at the press conference I was giving just for Faerie.

It was being broadcast live to all the town squares via the cell towers Faerie now had. Some other screens that were also up in other places like the rest stops. There was more, but those were the big ones that I knew about.

I’d sailed through my last midterms, and I decided to get this done the first day of my last spring break before taking some time to relax. It had been weighing on me for a while now and I trusted my gut on this.

“I want us to focus on the future, but you all need the truth to understand the mistakes that were made so we do not make them again,” I continued. “I’ve said that many times, and too many think that means I’m picking on you or blaming you. I try not to. I truly do. Do I think too many had their heads in the sand and missed what was right in front of them? Yes.ButI wasn’t there. I was a baby.

“You all had your own lives and priorities. Too many lived in extreme poverty and simply fought to survive. I’ve said all of this before. I don’t want to repeat it, simply remind you of my feelings before opening this particular Pandora’s box. I’m also keeping my promise to be much more transparent with everyone.

“The fact that you could not know the ordinances of other areas or cities unless you lived there—that’s not normal. That was a huge red flag. I know we’re all nosy, but that’s anormallevel of curiosity. It’s checks and balances.” I let out a slow breath. “So I’m going to release them all as they currently are for everyone to see.

“It willnotbecome a bashing session of the previous queens. Everyone blames them for everything, and as I have repeatedly shown you, so much wasn’t their fault. They were not supported the way they should have been. There was vast corruption from the ancients and constant threats.Bothwere threatened to be forcibly mated or have their children killed.

“So enough with blaming them for everything. This is so we learn from the mistakes made and never blindly trust again. We see the red flags going forward. There should always be this level of transparency. No one is above the law. Certain people not having their thoughts read is a huge red flag.

“I know that sounds like a joke since no one can read mine, but anyone who knows me will tell you that I don’t hide my feelings or thoughts. They wish I did better. I don’t want to. I want to respect you all enough to be honest like I am now. My advisors are split if this is a smart move or it will bring up issues and start problems.

“Or if I won’t pass the last vote of confidence given I’m also publishing the proposed ordinance changes before I’m queen. But I think it’sneeded. One of the first things I’m doing when I become queen is making thingsfair. I’m—there’s no reason there are different ordinances in so many areas. And in the wide range there is.

“Fine, there are some additional ones needed if the city is on the ocean or has something location-specific. But this was corruption. This was ‘grandfathering in’ to old deals and backing queens into corners with threats of not approving them andthrowing the realm into chaos. It waseverythingthey tried to do to me, but I had several aces no previous heir had.

“I was the only damn option.” I let out a slow breath and wiped under my eyes. “You have no idea how the threats upset me—terrified me, and I didn’t grow up with all of this normalized. Iknewhow messed up so much of this was. It breaks my soul to think of all the heirs and queens who have had to accept what was so unacceptable because they had no choice.

“Everyone thinks they had all the power and they did magically, but they were so trapped, and—they were prisoners of this planet and the people—their roles.” I wiped my eyes. “I wish my mother had the choice for so much more. I know my grandmother did something horrible, but I wish she’d lived in a world where she hadn’t felt she had to.

“I wish they both hadn’t been prisoners of this family and responsibilities. I wish they’d had theoptionto abdicate like other royals had. I wish all of my family hadn’t died so fucking young and been eaten by this damn planet and—” I jumped to my feet and walked away from the table.

“Tams?” Neldor worried as he rushed over.

---