The king launched into a tale of Ari as a young man, and Zwaantie fought tears. Thankfully, Leo poked his head in only a few minutes later. Zwaantie wasn’t ready to relive Ari’s life. She needed to hang on to her own memories of him.
“Zwaantie, I didn’t expect to find you here.” Leo’s face was stony.
“Your father and I were discussing my options.”
Leo sat. “Your options?”
“Yes, whether I should stay in Stella or go home.”
Leo creased his eyebrows. “That’s up to you.” At least he wasn’t telling her to go home.
Ajax leaned forward. “We think the best thing for both Stella and Sol is for you to marry Zwaantie.”
Leo’s face fell, and he sank into his chair. “The vipers have stopped. Why bother?”
Zwaantie clutched at her skirt. He wouldn’t even consider the idea. She should’ve expected his rejection, but it stung all the same.
“They may return. We don’t want to risk anything. If you and Zwaantie marry, you will rule over Stella and Sol. Zwaantie and I think this is a good thing for both kingdoms. You will naturally become king regardless.”
Leo sighed. “What if I don’t want it?”
“It is your duty. You are next in line.”
Leo rubbed his face. “And if I refuse?”
“That would not be wise.”
“This still doesn’t explain why you want me to marry Zwaantie.” His face was so serious. Zwaantie wondered what he was thinking.
“We still don’t know if the prophecy is completely fulfilled. When Zwaantie’s father passes on, you will rule over both Stella and Sol. This is a true union. It will be a position of great power and influence. Your skills are needed.”
Leo looked down his nose at Zwaantie.
She wrung her hands. “I’m so sorry, Leo. I didn’t mean to hurt you.”
“You don’t love me.” His words were cold, unfeeling. She took a moment to gather her thoughts before speaking. She would be key in convincing him to do the right thing without alerting him to the real issue.
“But I do love these people, and I’ve come to accept Stella as my home. A marriage between our countries is a good thing. I don’t want to risk the vipers returning with a vengeance. Little Raaf’s life is still on the line. Plus, I have to contend with the Voice, and it is safer for me here than in Sol. If we do not marry, people will wonder what it is I am doing here. They may even blame me for Ari’s death. I promise I will learn to love you. Right now I ache, but that will fade, and I think we could be happy together.” Zwaantie attempted a smile.
He looked at her for a long moment, leaned forward, and kissed her lightly on the lips. She closed her eyes, and when she opened them, she expected to see Ari sitting in front of her. The kiss wasn’t as passionate as Ari’s, but he’d given her quick kisses before. When she saw Leo, it was all she could do to not cry.
“Okay. I think we can pull this off. We will need to be affectionate in public so the Ticker does not get suspicious,” Leo said.
The king stood up. “I’ll call the marriage mage. There is no reason to do anything big at this point, and we should move forward quickly. The people will understand because of Ari’s death. Let’s get you two married so we can get on with our lives.”
Leo raised his eyebrows but didn’t argue. Zwaantie wanted to. She wanted days, weeks, months, years to mourn first.
That was a luxury a queen did not have.
Chapter 5
The Final Wedding
Zwaantie watched Sage dress her for the wedding. A black dress this time in true Stellan fashion. The same one she wore to Astrid’s funeral. The same one she’d wear to Ari’s tomorrow. She wondered if the Stellans would think she was mourning or dressing normal. Sage sniffed and wiped her eyes.
After Zwaantie dressed, Sage wrapped her arms around her and held her tight. Her touch was comforting but still did not drive away the real pain.
“You are a better person than me. I wouldn’t do it. Thank you for being brave.” Sage’s voice broke.
Zwaantie didn’t feel brave. She felt numb. But she was doing the right thing and didn’t really care about the rest. She was more important as a monarch than she was as a person, which had been a fear of hers since she was young. She never imagined it would come about by so much death.
A knock sounded on the door, and Sage opened it. Phoenix gave Zwaantie a small smile as he came into the room. It seemed so long ago that they’d been in love.
“The king sent me to get you. How are you doing?”
“Not well,” Zwaantie said.
He dropped his eyes. “I know. Me neither. Here, I have something for you.”
In his hand was a blue ribbon. It was somewhat worn, but shiny. There was something familiar about the ribbon, but Zwaantie couldn’t identify what it was. “I don’t understand.”
“It was Luna’s. She wore it at her own wedding. You gave it to her, and I found it in her things. She’d want you to have it.”
Tears pricked Zwaantie’s eyes. In her grief over Ari, she’d nearly forgotten Luna. “Thank you.” A gift like this was rare and special.
Sage took the ribbon and tied it onto the end of Zwaantie’s braid. Phoenix held out his arm, and Zwaantie took it, grateful he was there. Sage took his other side, and he gave her a wide grin.
The walk to the king’s chambers was long, and dread built in Zwaantie’s stomach. The irony of Phoenix escorting her was not lost on Zwaantie. Part of her felt like this was so frivolous. They should be planning how to destroy the Voice, not having a wedding.
She’d have none of her own family present at her wedding. Her mother was still locked up. She’d be going home the next day even if Zwaantie didn’t want her to. Who knew where Raaf was. Zwaantie hoped he was still safe. And her father. Was he really responsible for all the death? Zwaantie tightened her grip on Phoenix’s arm. If he was, he would pay. Zwaantie would see to it. If he wasn’t, they needed to find the real culprit and fast.
Phoenix pushed open the door, revealing a handful of people, including the king and Lyra. Leo narrowed his eyes at Phoenix, and Zwaantie took her place next to him. She wasn’t about to explain Phoenix’s presence, especially since it wasn’t like she went and sought Phoenix out. Besides, he was her friend and would probably always be.
During the ceremony, Leo barely looked at her. When Xandria sliced open Zwaantie’s hand, she welcomed the pain, watching the blood drip into the chalice. The tears that escaped could be explained by the pain in her hands.
A well-placed photographer stood by. No one expected Zwaantie and Leo to be extremely happy, which was good. Ari’s death would cause the entire country to mourn for weeks.
Xandria brought the chalice to Zwaantie, and she tried to compose herself.
“Leo gives you a foundation of love. To that he adds honor, peace, joy, sacrifice, friendship, and safety. Do you accept this gift he has given you and take it upon yourself?”
“I do,” Zwaantie said and took a sip. Leo’s gifts were different. Love was good. Passion was better.
Xandria held the other chalice out for Leo. “Zwaantie gives you a foundation of sacrifice. To that she adds friendship, affection, honor, selflessness, nurturing and peace. Do you accept this gift she has given you and take it upon yourself?”
Leo hesitated just long enough that only Zwaantie noticed. Finally, he said yes. He took a sip, and she worried about his hesitation. Was it because he didn’t love her or because he felt like he was betraying Ari? Or perhaps he was unhappy with the gifts she gave. There was no way she could give love. She wasn’t even sure the blood had been right about affection.
They clasped hands. The marriage mage then took the bowl and began to slowly pour the contents over their hands. The liquid was gold this time. Zwaantie had expected the color to be the same as when she married Ari. Silver, but it was not.
“Do you promise to love each other unconditionally?” Xandria asked.
�
�Yes.” they both responded, and the liquid turned a deep red. It flowed into their hands and disappeared. The remaining potion continued to flow into their hands.
“Do you promise to respect and honor one another till the end of your days?”
“Yes.” The liquid turned a royal blue.
“Do you promise to stay together throughout eternity and dwell together among the stars?”
Leo said yes. Zwaantie did not. She mouthed the word so it appeared as if she did, but she would join Ari in the stars. Not Leo. She wondered how long she would have to wait. Not long if the Voice had its way.
The liquid turned bright white.
“Kiss your wife,” the marriage mage said.
Leo pressed a soft kiss onto her lips. She held the kiss for the pictures. When she pulled away, she saw the agony in Leo’s eyes. He took her hand and grinned. She did the same, trying to look like a happily married woman. She wasn’t sure if she’d succeeded.
Inside she was still a grieving widow.
Zwaantie left Leo with his father and found Xandria alone, cleaning up the potions. She wanted to understand how this worked.
“How do you feel?” Xandria asked, placing a hand on her shoulder, concern in her eyes.
“Not good, but I suppose that’s to be expected.” She hesitated. “Why was the liquid gold instead of silver?”
Xandria gave a small smile. “You noticed, didn’t you? It’s because you’re queen.”
“What?”
“The magic recognizes you as queen.”
“Why wasn’t anyone else surprised?” This was not good. Their carefully crafted lie was already unraveling. There were so few who were supposed to know about her marriage to Ari.
“Because the original color of the potion is different for everyone. Most people don’t think much of it. I understand the significance of the colors, but that’s because I’m a good potion mage. There are only a few of us this powerful in the entire kingdom. Only kings and queens get gold. Princes and princesses get silver.”
“What about the other colors?” Zwaantie was now curious about the whole process.
“They usually signify the type of relationship people have. Red is passionate. Green means they don’t love each other. Blue signifies a deep friendship. There are others and different shades mean different things.” Xandria looked across the room, and Zwaantie knew the conversation was over.
“Thank you,” Zwaantie said.
Xandria snapped her eyes back to Zwaantie. “When will the coronation be?”
“I’m not sure.”
“Soon, I hope. My potions haven’t been behaving properly. I was worried about today, but it seemed to go fine.”
“You mean because the old king is still ruling.” Xandria knew more than most. Zwaantie hoped Ajax was aware.
“Yes. Most people won’t notice, but those of us who work complex magic do. Few understand it has to do with the monarch. The sooner Leo and you are crowned the better.”
Chapter 6
The Fight
Leo led Zwaantie to his room and kept close to her, wanting to keep her safe. Viggo and photographers followed. Both Leo and Zwaantie gave big grins when they shut the door in the photographers’ faces. As soon as the door closed, Zwaantie’s smile disappeared. His did as well. This was not how he’d envisioned his life. Trapped in a loveless marriage. He didn’t really have much of a choice though. His father had not so subtly implied that if he didn’t marry Zwaantie, the kingdom would fall apart.
Zwaantie leaned against the door and closed her eyes. Molly greeted her by nosing her hand. To his surprise, instead of pushing Molly away, Zwaantie laid her hand on the dog’s head.
Part of him ached to comfort her, but a bigger part was still angry. He loved her, but he couldn’t bring himself to like her. Plus, he still felt pain over Ari’s death. How was it fair that Leo was with Zwaantie when Ari was dead? It wasn’t. Ari should be here with her, leaving Leo to be pissed in peace. But now he had to reconcile his anger and sadness at once. It was something he didn’t know how to do, and he vacillated between soul-sucking grief and white-hot anger.
Sometimes he still couldn’t quite believe Ari was dead. Leo expected him to walk through the door or call him up and insist Leo go out with him.
Zwaantie sniffed, and he met her eyes but didn’t say anything. He couldn’t imagine what she was going through. Here she was married to him days after she married Ari. He knew why he agreed to it. What he couldn’t figure out was why she did.
“Do you want a glass of wine?” he asked, saying anything to fill the silence but not bring up Ari.
“Sure.”
She followed him to his living area and sank into a chair, her face still a mask. He poured her a glass and sat on the couch across from her. She swirled the liquid and frowned.
“Do you know the details on how my mother will be sent home?” she asked.
He’d heard her mother was going home but hadn’t bothered to ask many questions. Quite frankly, he didn’t care.
“I don’t. My mother is in charge. She will be heavily guarded as long as she remains in Stella. Once she crosses the border, there is nothing we can do.” Zwaantie’s mother was in danger, but she should be safe in Sol. Though if someone put an arrow in her neck on that side of the wall, he wouldn’t cry. There was a lot of corruption in the leadership in Sol, and it needed to be purged. With the exception of Zwaantie.
“Why send her home?” Zwaantie wouldn’t look up, so he had no idea if she was concerned or just making conversation.
“In the hopes to avoid an all-out war.”
“But Father isn’t even aware something is going on. Why can’t we keep her here until the Voice is eliminated?”
“Your father is ill. He’s probably not the one managing the day-to-day affairs of the kingdom. Eventually someone will get suspicious, and if it appears that we are keeping her against her will, we could lose our food. No one wants to risk that.” He might not have asked many questions about Zwaantie’s mother, but he knew enough about running the kingdom to understand the necessary pains that must be endured to keep the peace with Sol so they wouldn’t risk their food supplies.
Zwaantie nodded but didn’t look up.
“You must be tired,” Leo said, eager to end the conversation.
“I am.”
“I think Sage had some of your clothes moved into my closet. I’m sure she put some nightdresses in there.”
Zwaantie reached out and squeezed his hand and then disappeared into the closet. He appreciated that little bit of affection but was puzzled as to why. She hadn’t been particularly affectionate even before Ari had been in the picture.
Leo figured she’d basically leave him alone as long as they weren’t in front of the discs. He changed into his night shorts and crawled under the covers. He wasn’t sure what tonight was going to bring, but he wasn’t about to kick her out of his bed.
He’d have to let her know he had no intention of doing anything with her for a very long time. Maybe not ever. Though the idea she’d want to do anything with him anytime soon was laughable. She probably wouldn’t even look his way until at least a year had passed. Maybe even longer. As long as their marriage kept the kingdom intact, that’s all he cared about.
She stepped out of the closet wearing a black, very short nightgown that was sheer in all the wrong places. Or right, depending on who you asked. What was she thinking?
He busted up laughing. He couldn’t help himself. It was the last thing he expected and certainly a joke on her part. He didn’t think she had it in her. Sure, she was going to flaunt her entire self in front of him and not let him touch her. It seemed unnecessarily cruel. But maybe she felt the need to remind him he was not her first choice.
Hurt flashed across her face as she crossed the room and shut down his laughter. Everything about this was absurd. Why was she doing this? It didn’t make sense.
She sat on the edge of the bed, closer to him than she should
. “You find my appearance amusing?”
“On the contrary. But I do find it amusing you’d tease me like this.”
She crawled across the covers to him, her face serious. “I’m not teasing.”
He stopped her before she climbed into his lap. “Don’t do this. I have no expectations. I know you’re in love with Ari, and you will mourn him for a very long time. Go put on something decent. Please.”
She jerked back. “Decent? Since when did you turn into the Voice of Sol?”
He creased his eyebrows. She was behaving so bizarrely. “Zwaantie, what are you doing?”
She dropped her gaze to her hands. “I just thought, you know, it’d be a good distraction.”
Distraction? “Sorry, I thought sex was about love. If you want a distraction, go find Phoenix. You seemed pretty cozy with him before the wedding.”
She rolled her eyes. “Phoenix brought me a gift from Luna. There is nothing between us. But ever since I arrived in Stella, I’ve learned sex has nothing to do with love.”
“It does to me. I’m not doing this.” She seemed so blasé about everything. This was not the Zwaantie he knew.
“Why not? You married me.”
“I don’t know what your relationship with Ari was like, but I don’t do sex for the sake of sex.”
She slapped him across the face. He brought his hand up to the sting.
“You know nothing about my relationship with Ari.” Tears fell as she ran back to the closet.
He didn’t have a clue what had gotten into her. He followed her, still frustrated, but knowing she was hurt. He had to get to the bottom of this so it didn’t happen again.
She stood in the middle of the closet, her face in her hands, her back to him, her shoulders shaking. If he were a real man, he’d wrap her in a hug and hold her, but at the moment, he wasn’t feeling very charitable. She’d hurt him. Deeper than he’d admit to anyone.
He loved her with every fiber of his being. Her love for Ari hadn’t changed that. He was better at suppressing his feelings for her though, so no one would ever know.
He watched her for a moment, then reached above her head and pulled out a sheet and blanket. She didn’t turn around.
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