221

I sat up straight in bed, cold sweat dotting my forehead as Echo nudged me on the inside. “Shit.” I jumped out of bed just as the lamp next to Luciana switched on.

“What’s wrong?”

“My father’s here.”

Her eyes widened slightly as she also got out of bed and pulled on a robe. I left the room as she headed to the bathroom and knocked on Milo’s door. I knew he wouldn’t open it since it was me knocking but I did it anyway. “Dad’s here.”

I opened the front door just as a car pulled up and the rear door opened as Shae jumped out and ran towards me. “Wynterkins!”

“Hey, wild child!” I had her wrapped in my arms and hugged her tightly as her eyes flashed between silver and yellow.

Chusi separated from Shae and stumbled over her tail, landing on the steps with a thud as she looked up sheepishly at me. Echo nudged me to walk down the steps so he could also separate from me. His tail thumped up and down as Chusi rubbed herself against him.

Chusi was much smaller than Echo and she seemed to look even more silvery against his almost black scales. Abeloth separated from Ryder as he climbed out and closed the car door with more force than was necessary.

“Hello, Nova.” I smiled as I hugged her before turning towards Ryder. He seemed pissed off but then again he was always pissed off at me for some reason.

“Dad.”

“Let’s talk.”

“Sure … do you want some coffee?”

“Yes.”

He was really pissed off with me because his words were clipped and his fists clenched and unclenched where he stood in the foyer. His eyes blazed with anger and I had no idea why he was so angry. It couldn’t be about Luciana, not that much anger.

Milo appeared at the top of the staircase and within seconds he stood in front of Ryder and Nova, hugging them both. Ryder hugged Milo tightly and didn’t look at me. Yes, he was definitely pissed at me and only me.

“Mom!” Abby started running down the stairs, tears streaming down her face as Nova grabbed her into a hug and her concerned eyes met Ryder’s.

“What’s wrong Abby?” Nova just held her tighter as Abby broke into a sob.

“He tried to rape me.” Her words had been soft but Ryder’s head snapped towards her and his eyes blazed yellow even though Abeloth was outside.

“Who tried to rape you?” Ryder’s voice had grown deeper and I could physically feel the anger rolling off him.

“Nicu …”

“You bastard.”

My head slammed into the wall as Ryder gripped me around my throat. Black spots danced in front of my eyes and I blinked twice as he slammed my head into the wall. “I’ll take care of her, Dad.”

“I’ll protect her, Dad.” My head slammed into the wall again.  

“I’ve got her, Dad.” I could smell my own blood.

“Trust me, Dad.” Ryder let go of me and I slumped down to the floor and felt the bones in my throat heal themselves. If I wasn’t me, I’d be dead right now.

“I didn’t know.” My voice came out hoarse and Ryder turned around.

“You didn’t know.” His voice was low now, dangerous. “You didn’t know because you let your dick rule your actions! She’s your sister! You looked me in the eye and promised me that you’d die before anything happened to her!”

Ryder was in front of me now, both of his hands on my neck, ready to snap it. He screamed out his anger and I just sat there, letting him do what he needed to do to get his frustrations out. I felt the first bone snap just as Milo grabbed his arm and yanked him away from me. “Let him live with it.”

“Do what you want, Wynter. You fucked up this plan the moment you walked into Florin’s house.”

I didn’t move as Ryder walked towards the door and picked Shae up. I didn’t move when Milo wheeled two suitcases out of the foyer, his duffel bag slung over his shoulder. I didn’t move when Nova gave me a look filled with sadness. I didn’t even move when Ryder started his car and drove away.

I felt lost in an ocean of turmoil as I sat there and looked out of the open front door and that empty void inside me just grew. He was right. I had promised to protect Abigail and I hadn’t. Instead I’d left her in Sinaia and built a new life for myself in Mintia.

Luciana’s face appeared in front of mine and I felt her hands on my face. “Wynter?”

“He hates me and I deserve it.”

“You don’t.”

“You shouldn’t love me, Luciana. I’m my father’s biggest disappointment.” My voice sounded far off to me and I saw Echo as he peered in through the front door.

I sat stunned for a second as Luciana’s hand slapped me hard. I didn’t feel it but I had heard it and the way my head snapped to the side made it real. “Listen to me! You are not a disappointment. I love you and I don’t care if you think I shouldn’t. You always put everyone else first. Snap out of it. Now!”

Echo’s tail thumped up and down again and I swear he was grinning at me. I stood up and walked outside so he could merge with me and settle down. Luciana didn’t say anything else, instead she walked up the stairs, away from me.

I found Luciana standing in our room looking out of the window. I stopped behind her and my arms encircled her waist, my hands on her stomach. “I’m sorry.”

“Nobody’s perfect, Wynter. Milo didn’t know either so why are you the only one being blamed?”

She was right, again. Milo had initially done the background checks on them and neither of us had found anything to suggest that Abigail could possibly be in danger. “I’m his son, I’m supposed to be better.”

“That’s not fair and you know it.”

She turned in my arms and kissed me gently before letting go of me. “Go shower and wash the blood from your hair.”

I did just that and when I went downstairs to look for her she had just finished cleaning my blood from the wall. It wasn’t how I’d planned for things to go and now I wasn’t sure where my life was leading me but I did know that Luciana would be right there with me, no matter where we went.

The days passed and Milo declined every call and after four days I stopped trying to call him. Ryder remained quiet and distant and I didn’t want to put Nova in a position where Ryder would be angry with her for talking to me.

On the next Friday the official notice of my annulment arrived and the Elders celebrated it by hosting a banquet in my honour. It was also the first time I took Luciana out in public as my girlfriend and she was received warmly.

“To our Duke that’s not a Duke and to the woman that keeps him on his toes!” A wild chorus of cheers erupted and I laughed as Luciana gripped my hand tightly.

“Thank you, Elder Codrin!”

We ate and danced and I drank like my life depended on it. It was a night filled with celebration and Luciana was accepted into the ranks of being the Duke’s girlfriend. Ivan stumbled over his feet a few times and in general I had the time of my life.

My life in Mintia had settled down and Luciana and I started planning the nursery. The doctor in town confirmed that we were having a little girl and Luciana was beyond excited. She surprised me yet again when she said she didn’t want a pink nursery.

We spent as much time together as we could and on her birthday when she was four months pregnant, I officially proposed to her. It wasn’t big or romantic; just the two of us in bed with a ring in my hand. Her eyes had lit up and she’d cried when I kissed her.

She was also adamant about helping me with the town and she took certain things over without me even realizing it. She had meetings with women and tried to empower them, helped to create jobs and the few daycares in town was now the best you could find.

She amazed me every day with her ideas and how she put it all into action. Nothing fazed her and no problem was too big. At night we’d lay in bed and talk about how our day had been and what else she had planned for the week ahead.

Weekends were spent walking the wooded areas surrounding the castle, visiting the orphanage and making sure those kids had everything they needed. Every child’s birthday was noted and celebrated and she made sure that their facilities were upgraded as well.

“You’re going to be an amazing mother.”

“You’re going to be an amazing father too. I hope you know that.”

“Together we’ll be just short of fantastic.”

I found myself doing pregnancy yoga with her in the mornings before I trained with the warriors and once or twice I caught them watching me in confusion. I ignored the jabs Ivan took at me and before I knew it, Maya’s due date was around the corner.

I hadn’t spoken to her in what felt like weeks and I dialed her number, tapping my fingers on the desk in front of me as the line rang and rang. The phone went to voicemail and I dialed her number again and listened to it ring.

“Hello.”

“Hey, it’s me. I wanted to talk to yo …” A sob came from the other end and I shifted in the chair. “Maya?”

“I’m so sorry, Wynter.”

“What’s wrong?” My heart was beating wildly in my chest and Echo sat up too.

“There wasn’t a heartbeat … the doctor couldn’t find it.”

I swallowed down tears that had just sprang into my eyes as I listened to her cry. “I’ll be there as soon as I can.”

“I couldn’t tell you. He died, Wynter … they had to induce me and … he’s dead.”

“When?”

“Last week.”

Anger and pain flowed through me. He’d been a boy and he’d already been dead a week and nobody'd bothered to tell me. He would’ve already had his funeral ceremony and that just angered me more.

“You burned him without me.” It wasn’t a question and her sob on the other end of the line confirmed it.

“Daddy burned him without me too. I was hysterical and he had them sedate me.”

I put the phone down in her ear. I couldn’t listen to it anymore. I sat in my office for what felt like hours and cried out my grief alone. He would’ve been my first born and like I wasn’t there during the pregnancy I hadn’t been there for him when he died or when he went to the afterlife.

Luciana found me in my office just as the sun started to set and the tears on my face were still there. She sat down in my lap and just held me as I cried on her shoulder for the son I’d never seen and never would.

“When you’re ready to talk, I’ll listen.”

“My son is dead.”