The Stains of the Crown

Chapter Four

Trigger warning: Past parental death, discussions of murder.

It's a week later that I finally make a decision. Delilah and I had talked extensively about what would happen if I stayed, and then she got out of the hospital, and I still didn't know what to do. I'd talked to the princess about it a lot, too, but that didn't help much, because all we did was talk each other in circles.

"Echodis," the queen says, "can we talk?" I look up from my drawing.

"Yeah, sure."

"Follow me." I stand, trailing behind her until we're out of the castle and walking towards a carriage.

"Where are we going?" She gives me a soft smile.

"I'd like to show you some things." I felt hesitant, but I made sure not to show it. I follow her into the carriage, and it starts moving. She gives me another little smile. I smile back. "It's been four days since your friend was cleared to leave. Jovianne was telling me she thought you'd make the decision that day." I sigh.

"I thought I would've, too. But I can't. Neither decision feels right. I never thought Hunting could feel like the wrong choice. I don't know what to do." She hums.

"Do you think it's possible that the reason you're so afraid to accept my daughter is because of your parents?" I frown.

"How much did she tell you?" She sighs.

"She told me you were abused and abandoned. But she didn't give me any details, if that's what you're concerned about."

"She doesn't know any details. But it's way worse than she thinks. So yeah, maybe I am afraid to accept her because of them, but not because I'm worried she'll do the same things." She hums.

"Are you worried that she won't be able to see past the bad things?" I laugh humorlessly.

"I know she won't be able to see past one of them. She'll see it every time she looks at me." Her face darkens.

"Does it have anything to do with the scar over your eye?" I rub my face, regretting even opening this can of worms.

"Yeah," I say in a voice that sounds exhausted. It had no real power behind it, just sadness. I avoid her eyes, but then her stupid hands are on mine, and it's so stupid and annoying and comforting that I feel tears running down my face.

"I'm not going to ask what happened, because that's clearly still an open wound, but I know this much: you did not deserve it." I sigh, wiping my tears and trying to repair the wall she broke. I take a few deep breaths.

"Did we come out here just to talk about my trauma?" I catch a glimpse of a smile.

"Not quite. I wanted to show you some things. I think if you're going to make a decision, it should be with all the information. You need to learn about my daughter. About what it's like to be with a mate. The good, the bad, and everything in between." The carriage stops, and the queen opens the door. I follow her out, to a large tree that had a little heart shape carved into the bark. She places her hand over it with a sad smile. "This is the place where I first met my mate, Jovianne's dad. His name was Aiden." Her thumb traces the bark where the heart is cut.

"What was he like?"

"He was a little asshole," she laughs, "at least back then. We were just children when we met. And boy, did I hate him. The day we met, my parents were visiting his parents, and they'd brought me with. Aiden stole my favorite toy, a little stuffed lamb that's smaller than the palm of my hand. He was bigger than me, and stronger than me, and he ended up climbing this tree with the lamb. And then he fell out of the tree," she says with a fond smile. "It served him right. Anyways, my family came here every year for the summer ball. And until we were fifteen, he antagonized me. He annoyed me more than anyone. Then everything changed. He grew up and became kind, and gentle, if not a little cocky," she laughs.