Page 98 of A Queen Of Broken Realms
“It is. And I promise you, it will be worth it. You’ll see.”
Ashen jostles my shoulder in a wordless request to get moving. He rises and holds a hand for me and I take it, and we head back toward our cliffside home with the jackal following on our heels. Urtur stays back in the sculpture garden as we descend the stairs and pass the threshold of the newly repaired front door, down the path that leads back to the community of demons living within the fog.
We go straight to the Kur, and when we arrive, Eryx, Ediye, and Cole are already there waiting.
“What’s going on, Reaper?” Ediye asks over my shoulder as we embrace. “These two won’t give me shit. Trust me,I’ve tried.”
“Hmm. I’m interested in what methods you might have used. Did it involve Little Mermaid lyrics? Please,tell me more,” I whisper into her hair. A hint of nerves color her scent but it dissolves a little as she laughs. “Seriously though, bitch. You’re holding out on much-needed details.”
“Fine. We’ll break out the tequila tonight and I’ll fill you in.” Ediye presses a kiss to my cheek and keeps hold of my hand as we turn to face Ashen. “Okay, demon. Tell us what the hell is going on.”
Ashen subdues his grin and the gleam in his eye as he nods toward Eryx. “We’re taking a little trip,” the angel says as he pulls a chain from his neck and withdraws the key to the Realm of Light. Cole smiles and pulls the key to the Shadow Realm from his pocket, and they fit the two halves together, twisting them in opposite directions until they find the portal they want.
When we step through the watery barrier between the realms, the House of Virtues lays before us, roller coasters whirling overhead and laughter enveloping us on the churro-scented breeze. The evidence of war still lingers in the little details, like the metronomic clink of a hammer on a chisel as a mason repairs a stone wall, or the shine of fresh paint on the shutters of a house. But this realm is healing, and the souls who reside here greet us warmly.
“Are we doing our date? Is this a quintuple date?” I ask as the little train passes by, tooting a welcome as the children within wave at us. Glee bubbles in my chest like a film over my simmering sadness as I bounce on the balls of my feet. I realize Ashen’s hand isn’t burning hot around mine and raise it up to see white bands glowing around his wrist. Anticipation starts to bubble and froth in my chest when I meet his grin with my own. “We’re going on the rides? And swimming?Surfing?”
The corners of Ashen’s eyes crinkle with the warmth he tries to contain but can’t. “I did promise with blood, vampire.”
My bounce becomes little hops. I try to stride ahead and pull him with me, but he doesn’t budge. “What are we waiting for, Ashen?
“Our tour guide.”
My brow furrows as my confusion deepens. Ashen still keeps his faint smile but something about it softens. A deep swirl of anxiety and anticipation fills my mark. And then I smell it, on the gentle breeze that sweeps over my shoulder. It’s starlight and sage, and something different, something fresh and new. Sunshine on dew. Honey on toast. Sweet and delicate scents.Happiness.
“Mama?..”
Those two syllables seem to hover in the air around us, stretching time, pulling it thin as it sinks into my marrow. All my blood rushes to my heart. My flesh tingles with its absence. My lips part on an unsteady gasp. Tears are already blurring my vision when I turn to look at Ediye. Her muscles are tense but her bones seem to turn to liquid within.
“You are so brave, Mama. I saw you. At the gate to Esagila.”
Every cresting beat of Ediye’s heart is a symphony. She crumples with a shaking hand covering her mouth. Her palm can’t catch the sound that escapes. Eryx grasps her arms and keeps her standing. There are tears in his eyes as he presses a kiss to her forehead and bends to catch her gaze. “It’s not a dream, love. Turn around.”
Eryx turns her slowly and I pivot too, our eyes meeting for a fleeting moment before Ediye faces the boy she lost so many years ago.
Tayo.
Midnight skin, onyx eyes. A wide smile, full lips. He’s thin but strong. Just a boy, destined to never grow old. He looks so much like Ediye that I know with just a glance that it’s her son.
“I missed you, Mama,” he says as tears crest his thick lashes.
Ediye’s cry would never need a vampire’s memory to be remembered. It’s the sound of a heart cracked in half by the kind of joy that feels like anguish when it’s set free.
Ediye rushes forward and crashes to her knees on the cobblestones. She crushes her boy to her chest and his small arms wrap around her, holding her tight. Her body shakes. She whispers things I can’t make out. Tayo cries in her arms. His little hand strokes her bare shoulder with the reverential caress of a love that’s never dimmed, that’s grown brighter with all this waiting finally come to an end.
We watch for a long while, Ashen’s arms wrapped across my middle, his chin resting on my shoulder. Ediye pulls away just enough that she can cup Tayo’s tear-streaked face in her hands and place kisses to his skin until he laughs. It’s a joyous giggle, a hint of mischief hidden in its depths. It leaves me utterly spellbound.
“She glows,” I whisper, as Ashen’s lips press to my shoulder in a kiss that lingers. “I see it now.”
A gentle radiance illuminates Ediye’s skin from within. She’s never been more beautiful. I know I haven’t seen her smile the way she does when she turns toward me, her hands resting on her son’s shoulders. The look that passes between us doesn’t need words. I know I wouldn’t have them anyway. I have no way to contain the happiness I feel within the boundaries of any language I know.
“Greetings, dear friends,” a deep voice says, and we turn to see Aloros, his injured arm renewed, his linen tunic and pants once again pristine, a simple gold crown adorning his short dark hair. He approaches with three unfamiliar angels following close behind, one carrying a white box held on his upturned palms. I cast my gaze across the crowd that’s steadily gathered around us. I notice for the first time just how many souls and angels have come to watch in silence, though they’ve kept back enough to give Ediye space. She rises from the road and wipes her face, her other hand clutching Tayo’s. Aloros drifts to a halt in front of her with a faint smile.
“You helped to arrange this?” Ediye asks, and he gives a single nod. Ediye swallows, trying to keep another rush of tears at bay, though I can still see their glassy sheen. “Thank you.”
“No. We thankyou,” Aloros reaches his hand toward her, and Ediye looks at it as though she’s unsure before she takes it. “You stood for our souls. You held the gate. Protectress of the House of Virtues, we thank you.”
The crowd around us shifts like a wave as they descend to a knee, their heads bent in respect. They stay down on their knees when they turn their faces to her once more, their expressions a mix of hope and awe.
