Arkham takes over—which means, we could lose everything. Everything we’ve ever known. Our memories, our identity, our connection to what’s important to us. Our purpose. We could lose it all, and that is a fact that’s far too terrifying to even consider at this moment.
So, I grip the banister tightly and walk up the stairs to Lilly’s room, where she’s sitting on her bed. When her watery eyes connect with mine, she gestures toward the mattress, so I take a seat and wait for her to speak.
After a few moments of silence, she finally says, “I need you to tell me why.”
“Why what?” I ask.
“Why me? Why does this fall on me? I thought I had aunts and uncles.”
She’s looking for answers, and now that I have the freedom to explain to her, I can give her exactly what she needs.
“You do. Two uncles, to be exact, and one aunt. How much do you know?”
“Nothing.” She swipes at a tear. “I know nothing.”
I nod gently. “Pala’s the oldest. She married Clinton, who happens to be the Prince of Marsedale, next in line to the throne. Because of his duty to his family, being the only child, she abdicated and is living with him now.”
“Okay.”
“Rolant is the second born. He wasn’t necessarily built to be a royal.”
“What does that mean?”
“He caused a lot of trouble. Was never doing the right thing and was more of a liability than a help. He never truly appreciated the culture and spent many nights out partying. He ended up being exiled because he haphazardly rolled around on sacred moss.”
“Wait . . . the thousand-year-old moss?”
I nod and watch as the crease in her frown disappears.
“What an idiot.”
I chuckle, feeling better, that maybe this might not be too bad, given the ridiculousness of the family’s history.
“And then there was Sveinn. He married a woman named Kristin.”
“Where is he? Did they have kids?”
I shake my head. “Kristin turned out to be a lesbian and ran away with her lady-in-waiting.”
“Wait, seriously?”
“Unfortunately, yes. Sveinn did not handle it well and took off on a boat. We haven’t heard, seen, or found him yet. It’s been six months.”
“Oh God.”
“Yeah, which brings us to your mom, Margret. And you.”
“Yeah, I guess so.” She looks away and leans back on the headboard of her bed. “This is all kinds of fucked up, you realize that?”
“I do,” I answer.
“I had no idea any of this even existed, and then one day, I’m hosing people down and you show up. I thought coming here was just going to be one giant family reunion, you know?”
I nod. “I do. I’m sorry if it was misleading, but you must know, I was not at liberty to tell you anything until you spoke with King Theo.”
“I know, but it’s just . . . God, I wasn’t expecting any of this. It makes me, well . . . it makes me mad.”
“Mad?”
She brings her legs to her chest and nods. “I’m mad because my parents should have said something. Why did they hide this from me? And why did it take ten years after my mother passed for my grandfather to reach out to me? Why leave me all alone and then . . . not?”
I stare down at my hands, keeping them posed together as I think . . . I know why they hid it from you.
“Wait . . .” Lilly’s fingers slip under my chin and force me to look at her. “Do you . . . do you know, Keller?”
Hell.
I swallow hard. “I’m not at liberty to say.”
“Don’t,” she whispers. “Please don’t start with that bullshit. I know we barely know each other and that your loyalty doesn’t lie with me, but, please, Keller, if I’m going to consider this, I need to know the truth. Why didn’t my mom tell me anything about this part of her life?”
Fuck. She’s right, my loyalty rests with King Theo and Queen Katla, but those crystal-blue eyes are pleading with me. I can see the pain in them, the confusion. They’re a window to her very soul and it’s messing with my head.
She tugs on my arm, her eyes blinking. “Please, Keller.”
They’re mesmerizing, truly a color that feels like it’s piercing to my very core, sweeping through my veins, and bringing me down to my goddamn knees. From the moment I met her I’ve found her to be a flighty, independent free spirit. Someone who doesn’t have responsibilities and therefore doesn’t take much in life seriously. But she’s surprised me with how deeply she’s allowed this to affect her. And if I’m honest, seeing how vulnerable she is, how despondent, it feels like . . . a fracture is forming.