The Cursed: Book Three in The Tainted Series

by Anna Hill

  Giving her hand a final squeeze, Liam turned and climbed into the SUV, starting its engine.

  “What was that all about?” Maverick asked bitterly once Rebecca had situated herself in the passenger seat and clicked her seatbelt into place.

  “Nothing.” Leaning back, Rebecca closed her eyes, finally allowing her exhaustion to get the better of her. “It was nothing.”

  Shaking away the memory, Rebecca reopened her eyes and refocused her disconcerted gaze upon the tree line at the edge of the massive property. “You can come closer, you know.” Rebecca couldn’t help but notice that her mother had yet to make a move toward where she sat on the tailgate. “I’m not going to use my ability on you, if that’s what you’re worried about.”

  “Please don’t be contemptuous, Rebecca,” Aileen asserted as she walked over to her daughter. She approached the edge of the truck but refused to take a seat next to Rebecca. They lapsed into silence as the two continued to avoid eye contact. Finally, after a tense moment, Aileen began to speak. “So you didn’t contact your fath--”

  “Did you know?” Rebecca finally met eyes with her mother, a deep sadness tainting her gaze. “Did you know about his other, newer daughter? Did you know that he’d completely moved on from us?”

  Aileen hung her head, sighing heavily. “I knew…” Raising her gaze to meet her daughter’s, Aileen held her face stern, though she could not hide her own sorrow. “But, Rebecca, you have to understand that, from you father’s perspective, we never existed. Charley never moved on from you, or from us, because our history has never been his.”

  “It’s not fair--” Rebecca’s grief quickly turned to anger, but her mother raised a hand, cutting her short.

  “You’re not the only one hurt by this, Rebecca,” Aileen harshly interjected. “I have been forced to watch the man I love find a new life, a new family, a new love, and all the while know that I will never be able to tell him about the one that already existed.”

  “But why haven’t you?” Rebecca snapped. “Why haven’t you shown yourself to him? Why haven’t you forced him to remember us?”

  Aileen shook her head as she answered her daughter honestly, “Because that would only cause more pain. Those memories are gone, wiped entirely from his mind. Trying to explain this to him would not only place him--and his new family--in serious danger from the Aillil, but it would mean pouring my heart out to a man who has no idea who I am, no idea what we went through together…to a man who does not love me.”

  The agonizing heartache written across her mother’s face caused Rebecca to fall silent. She was stunned by the amount of vulnerability Aileen was showing her, by the sincerity of her mother’s words. That night in the woods, Aileen had fought with all her strength to save a man who didn’t even know she existed, a man she’d clearly never stopped loving. But, perhaps more difficult for Rebecca to process, was the realization that her mother had also been trying to keep her safe, to keep her from finding the truth about her father and the life she could never have.

  “I’m sorry for what I did to you that night,” Rebecca whispered, placing a hand on her mother’s arm. It was the first time she’d voluntarily touched Aileen in months, and it was clear the affectionate gesture had caught her mother by surprise. “I allowed my Feiceann side to overpower me and because of it you had to suffer--many had to suffer. But I’m not that person anymore, and I know now that I won’t ever allow myself to be overwhelmed by my Feiceann side again. I promise.”

  Aileen rested her hand on Rebecca’s forearm, grateful for both their closeness and her daughter’s sentiment. “You have no idea how wonderful it is to hear you say that. I know the last few months have been incredibly difficult, and I’m sorry that I wasn’t there for you the way I needed to be. I’ll never forgive myself for that. But you survived. You overcame your Feiceann side, and you did it thanks to your own strength and bravery.” Aileen squeezed her daughter’s arm. “I’m extremely proud of you, Rebecca.”

  She wanted to move closer to her daughter, to hug Rebecca as she had the first time they’d met, but she held herself back. Their relationship had taken a substantial blow, and she knew it would take much more than kind words to repair it.

  After a short moment, Rebecca pulled her arm away and scooted further along the tailgate of the truck, leaving ample space for her mother to sit.

  Aileen nodded in thanks and took a seat beside Rebecca, grateful that her daughter was opening up to her and hopeful of regaining her trust.

  “I guess we have to stick together, since we’re all the family we have left,” Rebecca remarked. And just like that, Aileen’s hope evaporated.

  She clenched her hands together in her lap, dreading her next words. “Actually, that’s one of the reasons I came out here to speak to you.”

  Rebecca raised a skeptical eyebrow, examining her mother’s sudden nervousness.

  “The truth is, I haven’t been entirely honest with you. I didn’t lie, necessarily, but I did fail to tell you the full story.” Aileen took a deep breath before continuing, centering her thoughts. “You see, I have a sister--”

  “The Commander!” Rebecca blurted out, catching her mother off guard. “In the woods, I knew she looked familiar. There was something about her face, almost like I’d seen it before. I thought at first that maybe she’d been in one of my dreams, but that wasn’t it. She’s your sister…she’s my aunt.” Rebecca’s eyes went wide with realization. “My aunt has been hunting me. She wanted to kill me? And you didn’t warn me about that!”

  Rebecca suddenly felt sick to her stomach. The only other family she had in the entire world had wanted her dead. Her own aunt had fought desperately to kill her only niece, and, possibly worse, she had tried, and nearly succeeded in, killing her aunt, all because her mother had hidden the truth from her yet again.

  “Why didn’t you tell me?” Rebecca gasped ruefully, hanging her head in her hands. “I could have killed her. I nearly did kill her.”

  “I didn’t want to burden you with more pain when you were already struggling with so much.” Aileen shook her head, “But I see now that that was a mistake. I should have told you the truth. I should have warned you.”

  Rebecca squeezed her eyes shut, sickened by this revelation. “What if she dies? How can I live with myself knowing I murdered my own family?”

  “She won’t die,” Aileen declared, causing Rebecca to look up. “I won’t let her.”

  Rebecca stared into her mother’s resolute eyes. “If she does die,” she warned Aileen, “I’ll never be able to forgive myself, or you.”

  “I would never forgive myself either,” Aileen’s strong voice faltered with the confession. It was clear that Aileen still deeply loved her sister, no matter their differences in beliefs.

  Rebecca shifted her troubled gaze back out to the distant tree line. “I know the Aillil despise what I am. But I don’t understand why my aunt would try to kill me? She doesn’t care at all that we’re related? That I’m your daughter?”

  Aileen sighed heavily, folding her hands in her lap. “My sister and I have a troubled past. While we were growing up, we were incredibly competitive, relentlessly fighting to gain more recognition or outshine the other. I joined the army a year before Neala did and quickly rose through the ranks, creating a name for myself and earning the respect of the generals. When Neala joined, she too performed exceptionally well, but her accomplishments were always eclipsed by my own. Over time, as the army continued to promote me and prepare me for the position of Commander, Neala grew to hate me. By the end of my tenure in the army, before I’d met your father, she and I had lost all contact.

  “After I disappeared, it was Neala who found me with you in my arms. She was the one who ripped you away from me and exposed what I had done and who I had become to the army. She took the opportunity to denounce my name and to inherit the path that had once been made for me. As I faded into oblivion, my sister became the crown jewel of the army, zealous in her pursuit of hono
r and power, and was ultimately promoted to Commander.”

  Rebecca glanced over at her mother to find her face twisted in an expression of sorrow and regret. “How can you still love your sister after everything she’s done to you?”

  Aileen submissively shrugged her shoulders. “There are choices Neala has made that I will never agree with, that I will never understand. But she’s family. And even if she won’t accept it, I can still see good within her. She’s been brainwashed by the army, just as I was. I truly believe that if I can just get through to her, show her the falseness of what she’s been taught, she’ll join us.”

  “Join us,” Rebecca scoffed. “After everything that’s happened, you’re still planning on fighting the Aillil?”

  “Of course,” Aileen answered without hesitation. “Especially after what’s happened.”

  “But why?” Rebecca shook her head again, flabbergasted by her mother’s fervor. “Even if, for some crazy reason, your sister decided to switch sides, there would still be thousands of Aillil, right? How can you think you’d stand a chance against the entire Aillil civilization?”

  “I don’t,” Aileen responded plainly, “but that’s not who I’m fighting. If you want to kill the beast, you must first cut off its head.”

  “The King.”

  “Yes.”

  “You told me he’s the most powerful Aillil?”

  “He is.”

  “And he’s certainly the most heavily guarded Aillil.”

  “He is.”

  “So how in the world would you get to him? How could you possibly be able to kill him?” Rebecca asked exasperatedly.

  “I don’t know, but I’ll die trying,” Aileen proclaimed.

  Resentment flashed in Rebecca’s eyes as she glared at her mother. “Are you telling me that you’d give up your chance at a life with me just to complete your insane vendetta?”

  “No.” Aileen grabbed Rebecca’s arm, earnestly trying to make her daughter understand. “Can’t you see that this is all about you! I’m doing this for you, for everyone like you. I would give my life to prevent you from facing any more pain. I would gladly die if it meant that you could be free of the horrible burden that the bigotry of the Aillil Royalty has thrust upon you. I need you to understand that, Rebecca. I’m not going to war to get justice for what they did to me. That’s in the past--what’s done is done. I’ll always live with that pain. I’m going to war--everyone who has pledged to join us--is going to war to prevent anyone else--Aillil, human, or Truaillithe--from ever having to feel that pain again. It’s time we stood up and fought for what’s right. There’s no room in this world for racism and hatred, and only by uniting against it can we wipe it from the earth.”

  Rebecca stared silently at her mother. She could hear the conviction and feel the emotion behind Aileen’s words, see the passion burning in her mother’s eyes. Rebecca wanted to admonish her mother and blame her for choosing war over her own daughter, but she knew the truth of Aileen’s sentiment. The pain brought about by the Royal Family’s fanatical discrimination needed to end. This was why Maverick had begun saving the Truaillithe children. This was why Liam had risked his life to find his brother. This was why Rebecca had attacked the Commander. Everything had been building toward this, had been guiding her toward this. And yet, Rebecca still fought against it, unable to accept what she knew she must do. Only she could kill the King. Only she held the power to end the Royal family’s tyrannical reign. Allowing the rebels to fight without her would be like signing their death warrant.

  “I’m afraid,” Rebecca whispered, hanging her head. “What if by fighting the King and unleashing my ability, I allow my Feiceann side back in? I’ve contained the darkness for now, but it’ll always be there. If I’m not careful it could resurface.”

  “Rebecca,” her mother placed a hand under Rebecca’s chin and lifted her head back up, “I’m not asking you to fight--”

  “But you can’t do it without me!” Rebecca asserted, interrupting her mother and pulling her face away. “You’ll all die if I don’t fight!”

  “You don’t know th--”

  “Yes, I do,” Rebecca retorted, “and so do you!”

  They fell into silence. Aileen now fully understood the danger her daughter was up against. No matter how strong Rebecca became, she would never truly be free of her Feiceann ancestry. Aileen had been wrong to try to strong-arm her daughter into joining their cause, to try to use Rebecca’s terrible ability for her own devices. She was just about to say as much, to tell Rebecca that she now understood that her daughter’s mental state and safety was more important than any war, when Rebecca spoke.

  “I’ll do it,” Rebecca stated decisively, sitting tall and locking her resolute gaze with her mothers.

  Aileen’s eyes went wide with alarm. “No, Rebecca, you can’t--”

  “Stop,” Rebecca interjected. “I’ve made my decision. I won’t watch my family and friends die for a cause that’s just as much mine as it is theirs.”

  “But what about your Feiceann ancestry? You still haven’t fully mastered it. If there’s even a chance of it controlling you again, then I won’t let you fight!”

  “Then I better start training again.”

  Aileen, momentarily speechless, took a second to gather her reeling thoughts before she stood up from the truck and turned to face her daughter. “You need to know that you’re not expected to join us. That no one will think any less of you if you choose not embroil yourself in this.”

  “I’ll think less of myself,” Rebecca admitted, standing up from the truck as well.

  After a long silence, a soft smile parted Aileen’s lips, though sorrow still lit her gaze. “Perhaps we are more alike than we’d realized.”

  Rebecca returned her mother’s troubled smile, a blend of trepidation and vulnerability settling within her stomach. And yet, as afraid as she was for what was to come, she also felt a small flame of courage ignite within her chest. It was time she stood for something. It was time for her to fight for what she knew was right. It was time for the Aillil army to pay for what they’d done to her family--to so many families--and to every Truaillithe child. It was time to bring justice to an archaic civilization that was built upon hatred and an antiquated system of beliefs.

  It was time for the Aillil King to die.

  Author Note

  Thank you so much for taking the time to read one of my books! Writing these stories has been a

  life long goal of mine. It took years to create the world of the Aillil and Truaillithe and the characters who inhabit it. From Liam to Maverick, from Faolan to Etain, these Characters and their individual stories have grown not only from my imagination but from real life stories of our world. I hope the time you've spent with them has made you love them as much as I do!

  My goal for the story of Rebecca and the other Truaillithe is to inspire others to spend time in nature,

  to explore and love the natural world that we live in, and to appreciate and accept others for who they are.

  A review of the book on Amazon would help immensely to be able to share this message with others. I read every individual review and take all notes from readers very seriously. I love having feedback and use it all to help shape and grow the world.

  Thank you again so much for joining the story of the Trauillithe and being a part of their journey!