Noah got through rehearsal with all of his fingers, and
Father held back his anger the best he could
. He tried to talk to me before I escaped to my chambers, and so did Mother, but I locked myself in my room and curled up on my naked bed for another lonely night.
Shadow had gone into town with Ezily and Everlae had left with Silas to Kylon to visit his family for a day.
I had no one.
My brother Caesar, the idiot, was never around to begin with. He was first heir and yet I knew nothing about him, or his wife. I figured I would eventually have to face them all, but for the moment I didn
’
t dare think about that.
The King of Delentia had given Noah and me five weeks to get to know each other before the wedding and we now had days that I could count on my
fingers
. The idea was for us to fall in love
and grow accustomed to one another
. Instead, I
’
d
f
allen in love with a Hunter
.
S I X T E E N
Ayden
M
other lay in her room, motionless and cold. I
’
d asked how she was feeling the day before to make sure she was tak
ing the vitamins, but of course
she had lied. Sometimes I wondered what went on in her head. It was like she wanted to be sick, and the thought of that
horrified
me. Milo and Misty needed her,
I
needed her. As stubborn as Father was, I knew he needed her as well.
She
’
d been sick for forever, and medication wasn
’
t a possibility.
From the living area I could hear her coughing into her pillow. Father was talking to her about the weather, but she could barely keep her eyes open. Hearing her that way, so despondent and depress
ed, instilled a new kind of fear
in me
—a fear expected by a motherless child
. It made me regret my decision to stop working for the King.
I hadn
’
t worked in days, actually, and I was beginning to see it wasn
’
t one of my brightened ideas.
I sighed and moved from the couch.
“
Ashlynn asked for you today, Carys,
”
Father whispered to her as I stepped into the small room. Mother said nothing to him in response, not even a murmur. Her eyes stared vacantly at the wall in front of her.
“
I
’
d like to talk to her
.
Alone.
”
I dug my hands into my pants pockets and stared down at my Father, who at that moment looked sick himself. He nodded and kissed Mother on her forehead. He
said nothing
to me as he left.
I stood by the door several moments more, working up the courage to say something, anything. There I was, speechless, and my Mother was dying.
I grabbed the chair beside her bed and sat in front of her, perched
my elbows up
on my knees, and held my hands under my chin. A single tear fell from my eye.
“
I remember when I was sixteen, that day we had to move,
and
you told me to follow my heart and it would never steer me wrong. You knew you were sick then, though you always reminded me that family was most important and we only had each other.
”
I shook my head and looked
at
her. She laid still, eyes far off.
“
I
’
m angry with you. You want to be sick, and it
’
s killing me more than it is you. I
’
m afraid, and even though Milo and Misty will always have me, I don
’
t want to be alone.
”
“
Ayden…
”
she murmured. Her eyes moved to mine slowly, and she whispered,
“
I-I
’
m sorry. It
’
s time…
”
I wiped the tear from my face and glanced away from her.
It wasn
’
t fair, but I always knew that. Life was, by nature, not fair and the happy moments that made it seem anything different were always short-lived. Words weren
’
t enough. No matter how much time you spent with someone, when they were gone, they were gone. And it hurt like hell.
I took my mother
’
s hand in mine and said it.
“
I think I
’
m in love. I-I
’
m not sure how strong the feelings are, but they
’
re there. I can
’
t get her out of my head.
”
A faint smile played on her lips and she murmured on, though I couldn
’
t tell what about. I sat staring at her, wishing so badly that my confession weren
’
t true. But Echo drove me to the point of insanity, and that look in her eyes when she
’d
yelled
that
she
misjudged
me still burned in my memory. It felt forever ago, but when I thought about it—which was all the time—it made breathing impossible. Echo Abbey would be the death of me. A girl.
I smiled to myself and shook my head.
“
Ayd,
”
my mother whispered. Her eyes seemed brighter, but she still looked consumed by the illness.
“
Then why are you here?
”
she asked silently.
I laughed and rolled the idea over in my mind. It was crazy, absolutely insane, but Echo
’
s face appeared and pushed out any sudden doubt. Could I just go back to her? Was it that easy? If I explained, would she forgive me? It was ridiculous, I knew. I had only met her weeks ago, and yet I was making promises of love I didn
’
t even understand. I felt like I knew her, really knew her. She wasn
’
t a princess—heartless and cold—
but a dreamer and a girl
soaring
through life with all cares behind her. She was passionate about everything and always spoke her mind. Echo, the girl I had misjudged for just another Royal,
was adamant on stealing a piece of my heart.
“
Okay.
”
I moved to kiss her forehead and her skin was cold beneath my lips. I sighed and stood to my feet.
“
But you
’
re not leaving me until I tell you it
’
s time, damn the gods. I will find you something.
”
Her eyes shifted to the walls again, and she resumed
the
voided stare at nothing
.
I left her in the silence and closed the door behind me. I somewhat envied the place she harbored in now—no worries or cares, just nothing. When she got like that I didn
’
t even know if she remembered me or the twins. She blanked out for weeks and could barely eat. But this time was the worst, even though she
’
d said my name. I saw it in her eyes—that look like she knew she was drifting. Mother always had a way of looking at death so lightly, but the truth hid just beyond the surface. Death was a scary, dark thing that fed on your happiness until you were
an
empty cavi
ty of nothing.
I sat around the house for hours. Milo and Misty were in their room playing and Father had long left. To where, I had no idea, but his absence didn
’
t bother me one bit. My fingers strummed loudly against the kitchen counter as I stared at the clock in front of me. It was ticking louder than us
ual, or was that all in my head?
Should I?
seemed to be the question taunting me. I weighed the pros and cons, but after another hour, I came up with nothing but
pros
. Her face, her
hair, her smile, her smell…and everything about
her.
I grunted and ran out the front door of the house.
Father would be home soon, so I couldn
’
t s
tay long. Though, I could admit
the temptation was strong. The border was but a mile from the house and
it
took only
ten minutes to get there on foot. The guards and I had become accustomed to one another over the years and they didn
’
t even need to ask me my name anymore. They always aske
d why I wanted to cross, though. T
hat was one protocol they couldn
’
t break. Liamik, the gu
ard who was always in command at
the border, motioned me through with five other people and I disappeared behind the walls in search of the Princess with the taste of determination on my tongue.
For
twenty-two
years, I
’
d
held back from everyone. The only person I
’
d ever allowed myself to get close to outside of my family was Feven. Only weeks ago I had thought that was how it would always be,
familiar and safe. But Echo made me realize that life was about taking chances in the smallest ways and
doing courageous things in the biggest. Life was a warzone, yes, but you couldn
’
t win a battle without trying, putting one foot in front of the other and taking that first leap of faith. Working five jobs and stealing wouldn
’
t change a thing u
nless my goal was the fires of H
ell. If I wanted change I had to go get it. And that
’
s exactly what I was doing.
Meredith, the Royal Palace
’
s Servant Keeper, was droning on and on about my lack of responsibility while I sat ignoring her. We were in the palace, close to the Princess, and that was all that mattered to me.
“
You do know that we no longer trust you here?
”
Meredith asked.
I turned back to her and sighed. I
’
d been looking everywhere else but at her, hoping the Princess would
show up.
“
Yes, I know, and I
do
apologize. I
’
ve already begun to make amend
s
for what I did.
”
“
You have?
”
No.
“
Yes.
”
“
And why do you think we need you?
”
She crossed her thick arms across her chest and her eyes stared me down. We were in the kitchen and maids walked about with their dishes and trays. One maid in particular, young and fragile looking, stopped to gawk at me like she knew who I was. I ran my hand through my hair and looked away.
“
You, uh, need
me
because I keep the garden in shape, Meredith. No one can do it quite as well as I can. I
’
ll be a ghost; you won
’
t even notice me here.
”
Meredith sighed and nodded her head.
“
Okay. I shall give you this week. You make one mistake, Hunter, and you
’
ll be facing the King, not I.
”
I grumbled as she walked away and I hung around the kitchen for a moment
longer
,
discreetly
looking for the Princess.
Through the huge glass window
in the kitchen
I saw that the yard had been decorated for the wedding with flowers, lights, and about every shade of gold. The Prince of Delentia stood off to the side, his hands deep in his pockets and eyes somewhere other than on the woman talking to him. It must have been his mother, the Queen, I assumed. I was about to walk away and continue my search when a girl with
short,
dark hair
stepped into my v
iew of the Prince.
I only saw her back profile
, but
I could tell she was petite
and
she barely stood at five foot three
—
familiar in a subtle way
.
She stood with her hands on her hips, whispering to the Prince as the Queen walked away from them. She seemed angry
and annoyed, and by the look on the Prince
’
s face, he
looked
merely amused. The girl threw her hands up and
screamed,
about ready to slap him
,
and I smiled. That is, until she turned around and I caught her blue eyes.
“
Echo,
”
I whispered. She walked up the pathway leading to the door at the rear of the palace and I willed myself to move, but my feet wouldn
’
t listen.
I watched her as she passed the window and barely believed my eyes. She
’
d cut her hair and was wearing leather, of all things. She looked beautiful, of course, but different. I took
her
for another person at first glimpse, but it was
those
eyes that
called me back to her.
I moved from the window and into the hall, hiding behind one of the huge pillars that
stood in every corner
. I heard footsteps on the parquet
,
and then voices.