Page 130 of The Forgotten Queen
“New Hope hosted the last Council of Essentials. King Bryant is the hosting king and kingdom for everything until the next meeting in nine years,” Davin explained.
“So you’re going to New Hope?” Emree asked.
Davin pulled her close. “I have to.”
Queen Myka
The Kingdom of Tolsten
“Princess Seran is going tohateme,”Myka said, throwing herself onto her bed next to Drake. “My father tried to have her killed, kidnapped her, and held her hostage.”
“Seran’s not like that,” Drake said as he played with the ends of her hair that were scattered around him. “And you’re not your father.”
“I can’t believe she was in a coma in the basement of Tolsten house all that time.” Myka shook her head. “I should have known.”
“There’s no way you could have possibly known. Your father, Stoddard, and Von did this. It’s not your fault.”
She twisted her neck so she could see him. “I hate Stoddard.”
“I know you do.”
“He’s going to get away with everything again.”
“We’ll keep searching for him.”
Myka sighed. “At least we have Doctor Von in custody.”
“And Marx,” Drake added.
“Do you think Marx is guilty?”
“I didn’t like the guy when I met him at the last Council of Essentials. He only cared about himself.”
Myka shrugged. “That doesn’t mean he’s guilty.”
Drake leaned down, pressing a kiss to her forehead. “That’s foryouto decide. Not me.”
41
Seran
The Kingdom of New Hope
After a week and a half of travel, Seran was finally home. She stepped out of the transporter and surveyed the New Hope Government Center. The building felt plain compared to the glistening stone and unique design of Cristole Castle. Even the landscaping felt bland. There were no palm trees or exotic plants and flowers, no butterfly terrariums, just green cut grass with a few scattered trees. The building felt vaguely familiar. She’d thought seeing it would bring back her entire memory, but so far, that wasn’t how things had worked. Remembering came in pieces. There was no rhyme or reason to the flashbacks. She had to be patient.
“Welcome home.” Her father smiled. He radiated happiness all of the time. It was exhausting and annoying. He’d been chatting for days, telling her stories from her childhood, naming every servant and guard at the Government Center. She wanted to scream at him and tell him she didn’t care. She shouldn’t be so hard on him. He’d just gotten his daughter back. He was the happiest man in all seven kingdoms. The problem was, she was the saddest woman.
She didn’t care about her past…not like she used to. In the beginning, when she’d woken up from her coma, getting her memories back had consumed her, but now, it didn’t seem to matter. She knew who she was, and the realization overwhelmed her to the point that she wanted to escape and hide.
“Come say hello to Mariele,” her father said, coaxing her toward the house.
Queen Mariele smiled cautiously back at her. Her eyes welled up with tears, and she shook her head, visibly overcome with emotion. The woman clearly loved her, but it was hard for Seran. She didn’t remember their love or their relationship. She had more flashbacks of her real mother, Queen Isadora.
She stepped forward. “Hello,” she said, being polite like the good girl she was supposed to be.
Mariele placed her hand over her heart. “You look amazing. Better than before.”
Seran doubted that.
