Finally, I’m not fucking putting up with this. He died for the best reasons, and you will not make it seem anything less than that. He is a fucking hero to me, and so is Emerian, so don’t you come in here and tell me we’re insane for thinking they did the right thing!”
His words were like a sword, cutting her open in a fatal blow.
She would find no allies here. She went to find her boots and tugged them on. When someone came after her as she tried to get out the door, Zayden interrupted.
“Stop!” he snapped.
“But—” It was Bryn, sounding heartbroken.
“She’s grieving, and this isn’t an easy thing for someone like her to learn.”
They let her leave. She knew she was in a new place, so she made sure she wasn’t going to crash to the ground. She quickly realized the short fall wouldn’t kill her. She was close enough to the ground to still have stairs.
And she was Alchan’s neighbor now. He was sitting on his porch to her left, but he wasn’t so close he heard her.
“Alchan!” she yelled. “I need to speak to you!”
He looked up, his eyes going wide. She made her way to the ground and walked to him. When they met in the clearing, she poked his chest.
“Would you have done it? What Kian did?”
“I’m not the right male to ask,” he said, frowning. “Why?”
“Because…” She lost her energy right there. He reached out and grabbed her horn, tugging it.
“Sister, I’m not the right male to ask because I need to have an heir first. If I had an heir?” He went silent for a moment, and she looked up into his eyes, wondering what the verdict would be. “Yes. Yes, I would have done it, and I know that’s not what you want to hear—”
“I’m supposed to die for them,” she said weakly, blinking back tears. “Why don’t they understand that?”
“It’s not them who doesn’t understand,” Alchan whispered, releasing her horn to brush her cheek. “And I’m sorry. I don’t know a single female who is comfortable with it, not truly. No one wants to confront the idea of their loved ones dying for them. I’m sorry this happened, and I will miss Kian with everything in me, but he made the right call. He made the only call he could.”
“It’s not fair,” she pleaded. “You’re the king. Change it.”
“No,” he said gently. “You need to come to terms with it. I’m sorry, but there’s a reason these things are the way they are, especially concerning this.”
She tried to fight the tears again and found herself wrapped in his arms. He held on tight as she cried in frustration.
“I’m supposed to die for you,” she growled, hitting his chest.
“No, you’re supposed to win for me,” he retorted. “And aside from this one case, where we have obviously been betrayed, you do.”
She sobbed hard, grabbing onto his armor to hold herself. He kept his arms around her until she was spent again.
When it was done, she pulled away.
“I need to stop doing that,” she mumbled.
“You’re allowed to do it as much as you need or want,” Alchan whispered, pushing her hair off her wet face. “Mave, you said something before you went into the woods…”
“I dream of Kristanya? Yeah,” she confirmed with a snort. “Fucking bitch, that one.”
“So, it’s real?” he frowned. “Why don’t we sit down?”
“Sure.” She shrugged. “Not sure why it matters. She’s the reason Nevyn is so frustrated with me. She’s the secret. I told K…I told Kian about it when we started the mission. It just finally felt like the right time.” She closed her eyes as he led her to the seats in front of his home, now permanent fixtures for anyone hanging out around his place.
“He knew? That…Well, it doesn’t matter anymore.” Alchan held her hand, an odd thing between them. It was comforting, but unlike her husbands, there was nothing else to it. It wasn’t a connection to a male she knew belonged to her. It was exactly Alchan—brother, but also a ruler—keeping some form of contact with a member of his people who needed him.
Since they were talking of Kristanya, Mave thought of her last encounter with the goddess and remembered every single detail.
“Alchan.”
“Yes?”
“Are we going to lose?”
He sighed, letting go of her and leaning over to hold his face out of her sight.
“Yes,” he said, muffled by his hands. When he sat back up, she saw the desperation on his face. “If we