Page 116 of Fragile Oath

Had it really all just been so she could be Queen? Skeletons had come out of the MacBays’ closets one by one, from Gracie’s abusive mother to her absentee father and everything in between. Was it a reason? An excuse?

Worse, I wondered how we had made it so easy for her. The rebellion had only gained traction because of the people’s lack of confidence in us. Perhaps Gracie had stirred that pot, added to it, but we had created it.

MacBay was in attendance as well. He had renounced his title to his eldest son the day after Gracie had died. He looked more defeated than I had ever seen anyone look, his haunted, empty eyes tightening each time another atrocity was added to Gracie’s list.

I took no pleasure in that. In any of it.

Over and over again, I saw the moment Gracie fell, contrasted the sweet girl who would giggle over pastries in my bed with the one who set fire to villages for the sake of a throne, and I couldn’t seem to marry the two.

“You don’t have to stay for this,” Uncle Logan told him in an undertone, not for the first time.

My family surrounded me. There was, at least, relief in knowing that they were safer now.

“It’s what’s best for Lochlann,” Camdyn replied, his tone as hollow as his features.

The worst part was, he wasn’t wrong. The Assembly might not have believed us without MacBay’s support. He hadn’t struggled as much as I thought he would with the truth, not after Fiona was dead when Gracie was the last person to have seen her. Not after the recounting of events that his soldiers gave.

And not after the pages we found detailing the people she had worked with, lists to ensure no one could ever be free of her. There was also the matching cufflink to the one that was found on Tavish, pristine and tucked away in the bottom of her trunk.

It was harrowing, how close she had come to succeeding. Everything felt fragile in the aftermath – our lives, the throne, the kingdom.

Galina’s hand covered mine, as if she sensed my distress. I couldn’t help but glance at the unblemished skin of her neck, picturing it sliced open and dripping with blood. Gallagher had come in time to prevent a scar, but it lingered in my memory all the same, one more thing I hadn’t been able to keep her safe from.

She squeezed my hand, shaking her head slightly.

Anchoring myself to her steady presence, I managed to get through the proceedings without going back down the list of everyone we had lost to these senseless games.

I left before anyone could apologize, or worse, mention Gracie’s name. Galina wordlessly followed me through the halls and up to our room. She didn’t stop there, tugging my arm gently to lead me out the door and up the stairs until we were standing on a frigid rooftop under the stars.

Malishka followed, happily curling up in a sheltered corner near the stairs.

The night was mostly clear, but small flakes of snow blew in from scattered, puffy clouds, settling on our hair and clothes. It was quiet and still, a much-needed reprieve from the insanity of the day. The month. The year.

I took a deep breath, inhaling the icy air and letting myself sink into the peace that only Galina could instill in me. She didn’t try to speak or comfort me with empty words, but she did pull out a small flask, handing it over to me.

It was intricately carved and studded with tiny diamonds.

“Gwyn?” I asked.

“Your mother, actually,” she corrected.

“Closet lush, that one,” I said drily, taking a small sip of the aged, oaky whiskey.

It was delicious… To me, anyway. Entirely not to Galina’s taste, though. She had brought it just for my sake. Several more minutes passed in silence before I finally took a breath to speak.

“I don’t know where to go from here,” I admitted quietly, staring out at the night sky.

She looked over at me, snow falling gently onto her lashes. “I don’t, either.”

A truth, one that would have been impossible for her to admit before.

Then she leaned closer to me, entwining her hand with mine. “But…I’m glad we don’t have to figure it out alone.”

She was right, and it wasn’t something I would take for granted ever again. Not when it was so hard won. Looking at her now, I thought back to every version of her on every rooftop, each of them stubborn and proud and gorgeous andher.

I put an arm around her, spinning her gently toward me and leaning down to capture her lips with mine. They were cold, a contrast to her warm tongue when she opened her mouth to deepen the kiss.

I pulled away far too soon.

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