Page 25 of Fates of Monsters

“There was no sign of the Rift opening in the remains of the fae castle,” he continues, his arms crossed. As far as we know, the Rift closed on its own at the end of the war, or maybe it was when I made the second sword. The sun shines on his dark hair, which he has cut shorter than I’ve seen before. “The witches and sirens have gone into exile, and we have made it very clear that mercy will not be shown from us.” Every inch of his body is tense at the mere mention of the witches. Not only did they torture him for a few days, but he woke up to find his father killed by them. Emerson hasn’t recovered from the loss of his father, and neither has Lorenzo. I think it has made them even closer. We can’t get into their cities, but we have guards watching the forests. If they try to leave, they won’t get far.

We lost twenty thousand in the war, and they broke their alliance with us. If they had sided with us, maybe the losses would have been less. But we didn’t lose the cities, I remind myself over and over when the grief of everything we lost that day seems to haunt me more than other days. Grief isn’t something that stays forever, so I’ve been told, but instead, it turns into something akin to an old friend. We didn’t lose all our people and family. I touch his arm, stopping him. “Are you okay, Loz?”

He lifts my hand and steps back. “I’m fine. I’m always fine, little faeling queen. I promised Solandis I’d come and see her. She will be missing me.”

I want to tell him to talk to me, make him open up somehow, but I can’t and he walks away. I sense Emerson coming right for me before I look up into the sky to see him soaring above me. My mate lands, grabbing me around the waist and kissing me deeply. I’m breathless by the time we break away. He nuzzles into my neck, sucking in a deep breath. “I missed you this morning.”

Keeping my arms wrapped around his neck, I kiss his cheek. “You had court to deal with, and I wanted to come see her. We did—”

“I know,” he groans, pulling back. I will never get over how beautiful my mate is. His glorious wings are spread out as sunlight streams through them, almost making them shimmer. His thick body easily fills out the black shirt and trousers he has chosen to wear, a silver cloak falling off his shoulders. I love him like this, a king without his crown and more casual than he usually is. Emerson looks over my shoulder, seeing Zurine’s statue in the distance. I can feel his pain like it’s my own. “I miss her.”

“Me too,” I whisper back into his mind. We don’t talk about Zurine half as much as we should, because it’s too painful. I wish I could have saved her and wish, still to this day, that there was another way. She didn’t deserve that fate. But we both know that saving her wasn’t an option. It’s a hard lesson, the most brutal, that death is final and there isn’t always a way to fix everything. Sometimes, you can’t save everybody, and we could have lost so much more in that war if it weren’t for her. I clear my throat, forcing back the tears threatening to fall. The memory of Zurine will never be gone, not while I’m alive to fight for it. The fae are her people, my people too, and I will make sure they are led into a better future. Some treated her wrong, but she always wanted peace for them. She always fought for them, and I think she would be proud of the changes we’re making.

Emerson changes the subject. “Emilana came to court with her baby, Niam.” I raise an eyebrow. What did she want now? We try to have a good relationship with her, even giving her a place in the court, but she does make everything difficult. Emerson and I have taken an interest in making sure Niam grows up well. After all, he is related to Emerson and a fae prince in his own right. Emilana is a great mother, even if she is rude and has a temper. “The usual, a title for Niam and for me to make Niam my heir. I believe she worries you might have a baby soon and push him out.”

I sigh. Emerson runs his hand across my stomach. “As much as I fucking love the idea of filling you with my baby, now isn’t the time for an heir, but I won’t name the baby mine.”

“I don’t know whether the fae would ever want him back as a prince for them officially. After his father…” I pause. “Well, they seem happy with us for now. That can be a problem we deal with in the future, no matter how much she pushes her luck.”

He winks at me. “So, banishing her from my castle isn’t an option?”

I chuckle. “I’m certain she would find a way to annoy us even then.” Emerson stops in front of the gates. “Someone is here to see you. I’ll be right out here, but I think she wants to talk alone?”

He kisses me softly and nods his head to the gate. I turn, going still, when I see my best friend. Nerry. A sob crawls up my throat. Nerelyth and Nathiel left after the war, after Nerry easily killed all the witches in the castle and left them in a pile in the throne room—and the children safely tucked away in the rooms. She left me a letter, telling me that she was going with Nathiel to his family and that she needed some space alone to heal. That Nathiel would protect her.

I cover my mouth with my hand, unable to move. She looks amazing, like she did before everything happened. Her skin is glowing like moonlight, her long red hair is in two braids that fall to her chest, and a long black cloak covers her. Nathiel is behind her, waiting in the shadows, and he bows his head my way. I incline my head to him before staring at Nerelyth.

I missed her. So, so much. Selfishly, I’ve wished her back here a million times over, even when I know her healing had to come first. My hand slips to my throat when the wind blows her cloak to the side, and I see that she’s holding a bundle in her arms. Not a bundle, but a baby, in a carrier strapped to her chest. I can just about make out the baby’s chunky legs at the bottom of the carrier and red hair at the top.

She comes over, stopping in front of me. The baby’s scent finds me, and I know that scent. Nerelyth and… Louie’s. She was pregnant when she left. “I’m s—”

“No,” she stops me and shakes her head once. “That’s why I couldn’t stay. My baby deserved to be born in peace and without judgment. I know you don’t mean it, but it is not her fault how she came to be. Despite how she came to be, I love her, and I always will be thankful she exists.”

Tears wet my cheeks as Nerry takes my hand, linking our fingers. “I’ve missed you.” The baby coos and she smiles down at her daughter. My best friend has a daughter. “I found out just before the war. When the witches attacked and the water hit us, I just knew I was carrying a child. The water told me as much. She gave me a reason to fight, to want to try to live. Nathiel helped me survive for her and, in time, for myself too.”

I step closer, looking down at the adorable little baby. “This is your aunt Calliophe. She is a badass queen, and she is where your middle name came from.” A joyful sob echoes from me. “Calli, meet my daughter. Leia Calliophe Zurine Mist. Named after the most amazing females in my life, beginning with my own mother.”

“She should have your name as a middle name then too,” I whisper, touching Leia’s soft rosy cheek. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, little Leia. I promise to be the best aunt.” She doesn’t look much like Louie until she opens her eyes once, looking at me, and I see she’s got Louie’s eyes. The eyes he had before he became a monster in the Rift. Before he was a monster, he was a good person, a wonderful child. I hope she doesn’t inherit much from her father after he became a monster, but before. The goodness that shone through. I look at Nerry. “Are you okay? Have you been alright?”

“I’m okay,” she answers, looking over her shoulder at Nathiel. Emerson is with him now, both of them talking. “I needed to get away, and Nath was happy to take me. His family is amazing, and they’ve treated me like their own. I guess they needed to heal from Felix too, and together, it just worked. I’m ready to be back in your court, to show my daughter the world. If you will have us?”

I give her a side hug. “You’re always welcome here. You are our family. Both of you.”

We head over to Nathiel and Emerson, and Nerry introduces Emerson to Leia. Eventually we walk back into the city, and the guys are in front of us, but Nathiel looks back every now and then.

I can smell him all over Nerry, and I have to ask. “Are you two together?”

She nods. “Yes. I don’t know how Felix would feel about it, but we’ve grown very close. He protects me, cares for me. He was there when I gave birth and through the many, many struggles I had. I don’t know if it’s wrong because of Felix, but I know life is too short to not be with the ones you fell in love with.”

I look up at the city around us. “I believe Felix would be happy to know that his brother is protecting you and loving you. He only ever wanted to keep everyone safe. Don’t feel bad for love. We all find love in different places, our lives woven together for a reason.”

“Zurine… everyone you lost. How have you been?”

“Better,” I softly tell her.

“I wanted to come back here for the funeral, but…” She pauses. “I was in an awful place. I just couldn’t.”

I rest my head on her shoulder for a second. “She would understand why.” The funeral was a blur to me and for anyone else, I bet. It felt wrong to be saying goodbye to her at all.

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