Page 107 of Knight's End
Avia whispered, “Prove it.”
My heart crashed like a star ploughing into the dirt, light extinguished.
If she was saying something like that, I couldn’t begin to imagine what Mayi put her through.
I glanced up at Ryan and Quinn, who waited at the entrance of the cave, guarding us and giving us space. Ryan gave me an encouraging nod.
I racked my brain for a memory that only Avia would know.
“When you were eight, I tried to convince you that you were actually from Lored. I tried to get you to leave with their royal party at the end of a visit. Remember?” my voice cracked.
Avia gave a shaky laugh. “You let me get into their carriage! I think you might have let me go if Connor hadn’t stopped you.”
I shrugged. “Not far. I would have said something by the time you’d gone over the drawbridge.”
Avia smacked me, her eyes a mix of laughter and tears. “Another. Prove it again.”
I took a moment to think and then said softly, “When you were twelve, you remember how you invited several of the courtiers’ daughters to your chambers for a round of games?”
Avia nodded. “And one of those nasty girls dipped every one of my tiaras in ink. I ended up with a black line across my forehead the next day—the day we went outdoors for an archery tournament against the boys.”
I cleared my throat. “The nasty girl might have been me.”
Her jaw dropped. And tears did start then as my little sister hit me repeatedly. “You. Did. Not.”
I shrugged apologetically. It was the best I could do. “I always told you that you’d be the better queen.”
She gave a bitter laugh. “Well, now I believe it.”
We both dissolved then, into a fierce hug—heavy with unspoken words, apologies and love. It felt like sunshine flooded my body. And for a moment, I was content. But we were still in danger. We’d found my sister, but we hadn’t rescued her.
“We need to get out of here,” I told Avia, pulling back to look at her.
Avia shook her head. “I can’t live out of the water right now. She transformed me into this monster!”
I stared at my sister, who was staring at the shining scales on her arms with disgust. Horror crept into my heart. A dark shadow fell over me. I realized … Mayi hadn’t told Avia.
Avia had no idea this was her true form. She had no idea Mayi was her mother.
“Sit down,” I said, stomach churning.
I didn’t want to do this. I didn’t want this burden to fall on me. But I was her older sister. I was supposed to protect her and tell her the truth and keep her from all the bad things in the world. I failed. I constantly failed. But I loved her too much to let her keep believing a lie.
I told my sister everything about Mayi, mother, and the heart. I didn’t leave anything out.
When I was done, Avia looked as if she’d been hit by a runaway carriage. She stared at me for a long minute, not blinking, not saying a word.
I waited. I tried to wait patiently, knowing that if my entire existence had been turned upside down, that I’d need time to adjust.
Avia’s eyes were dull as she stared at me.
I searched her expression for any sign of what she was thinking, feeling, but I couldn’t tell. Her face remained flat.
Finally, her eyes traveled over me, as if she were coming out of a trance and seeing me for the first time. She leaned forward and gave me a hug. “Thank you,” she whispered.
She turned and her eyes went to Ryan and Quinn. She nodded and floated toward them. She tentatively bowed her head toward Posey, always polite, even when faced with a living corpse. “Thank you for helping my sister.”
Posey nodded in response.
