“I…” Gabriel stared at his hands, then back at Kilian. “Truthfully, yes. You’re my brother, and I love you as best as I can, but you and I both know that you’re not a good person.”
“Then why would you have me be king?!”
“Because my love for Selene is greater than my love for my country.”
Kilian frowned. “Is that her name? Selene? The woman you love?”
His brother nodded.
“It sounds Greek.”
“That’s because she is Greek.”
And then, to Gabriel’s surprise, Kilian burst out laughing. “How did we end up so similar when we’re so different?”
Gabriel stared at him, expression dubious. “What on earth do you mean?”
“I’m in love with the magician’s girl,” Kilian said, closing his eyes and reclining his head against the pillow in stupid, nonsensical mirth. “I’m completely, shamelessly in love with her, and she’s desperate to leave Alder, and I cannot go with her.”
“You aren’t…you’re serious, aren’t you?”
He nodded. “Of course I am. She’s been by my side throughout the entire winter. I started acting more like a king for her. I stopped drinking for her. I fixed the weather for her. Not that any of that matters, ultimately.”
“Kilian –”
“Just go, brother. Go back to your Selene and live the life you always wanted to have.”
Even as Kilian spoke the words he hated himself. He didn’t want to be stuck in the castle forever. He wanted to kill his brother and be free of it all. He wanted to run away.
He simply couldn’t do it.
For the first time in what felt like years, genuine affection spread across Gabriel’s face. “Do you mean that?”
“No. Yes. Of course I do. I hate you, but I still can’t force life imprisonment on you…even if you did stab me. So go. Don’t let me see you again.”
Gabriel smiled slightly. “I hope that last part isn’t true. I would love for you to meet Selene one day. And I’d like to meet the magician’s girl –”
“Don’t push your luck,” Kilian interrupted, waving his hand toward the door. “Just…go, Gabriel, before I change my mind and make it so cold outside you freeze to death where you stand.”
When Gabriel ruffled his hair Kilian raised an arm to stop him. The knife was still in his hand; his brother stared at it sadly.
“You really did mean to kill me.”
“I did before. You cannot blame me for it.”
“…I guess I can’t. I’ll come back to see you in summer, Kilian. Try not to destroy the country before then.”
“You don’t get a say in the matter!” Kilian called out as his brother left the room. He sagged against the pillows, dropping the deadly knife to the floor. He’d lost all will to do anything.
I guess this is my life now, he thought, staring sightlessly at the window as the wind and snow and hail finally began to let up. Maintaining my temper and being diplomatic for the sake of other people. Great.
As Kilian drifted off to sleep he almost hoped that, come morning, he wouldn’t wake up.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Elina
“You’ve done such an excellent job of fixing his overcoat, Elina.”
“You’d never have known Kilian bled half to death wearing it.”
“Adrian!”
Elina laughed softly. The three of them were sitting by the fire in her mother’s house, drinking wine whilst Elina finished up the repairs to Kilian’s overcoat. When her mother came in with a tray of food both Adrian and Scarlett’s eyes lit up.
“Thank you, Lily!” Scarlett exclaimed, which was echoed by Adrian. The two of them had grown close to Lily during their stay in Alder; Elina suspected they talked about her mother’s affair with the magician as well as digging up old and embarrassing stories about Elina herself. She was glad for it; her mother relished the company.
“Don’t mention it,” Lily said, sitting down in her favourite chair by the fire before being handed a goblet of wine from Adrian. “You really have done a wonderful job repairing the coat, Elina,” she remarked as she observed the fabric. “When you brought it back to the shop my heart almost broke in two. You worked so hard on it.”
“Yes, well, it was just about the only thing I managed to do of use for Kilian,” she muttered.
Elina hadn’t wanted Kilian to kill his older brother. That didn’t change how distraught she was that Kilian was now stuck forever in a castle he hated, doing a job he’d never wanted in a country he was desperate to escape from. He’d given up everything for his brother’s happiness, even after what Gabriel had done to him. It wasn’t something Elina could understand, since she had no siblings herself, so all she could do was respect Kilian’s decision and support him.
He hadn’t unceremoniously kicked Elina, nor Scarlett and Adrian, from his castle after Gabriel left. But Kilian also hadn’t spoken much, choosing instead to sleep and keep to himself, so the three of them had returned to Alder three days after he’d let his brother go. Elina wanted nothing more than to stay by Kilian’s side and tell him everything would be fine, but she knew it was a lie.
Nothing was fine. And, if Elina was being honest, she wasn’t sure if she had it in her to stay in Alder the rest of her life for Kilian’s sake. He certainly wouldn’t allow her to in the first place – Kilian had made that much very clear from the moment he’d first heard Gabriel was missing. It demonstrated just how much he’d grown as a person, even if Kilian would deny such growth.
It only made Elina feel worse.
Adrian gently kicked her ankle, knocking her out of her reverie. “There’s nothing you can do, Elina, short of chasing after Gabriel and killing him on Kilian’s behalf.”
Elina made a face. “Don’t tempt me.”
Scarlett sighed into her wine. “It’s not fair. On anyone. Your country will suffer from having a king who does not wish to lead, and their dissent will in turn negatively affect Kilian. And that’s not even touching upon the personal issues the curse brings up. I don’t think Kilian will last all that long locked up.”
“The only reason he’s still alive is that he’s been too much of a coward to kill himself,” Elina admitted, a cold shiver crawling up her spine despite the heat from the fire. “Something tells me he’s becoming less of a coward with every passing day…and that’s not a good thing.”
From her chair in the corner Lily watched her daughter with an expression full of sympathy. “Elina, he might yet prove to be stronger than you all think he is. Didn’t he properly work with those diplomats before? The ones that actually ended the fighting?”
Elina nodded. “But I had to force him to speak to them.”
Her mother smiled. “But even so, Kilian did do his job. And he chose not to kill his brother, even though that meant tying himself to the position of king. I think he’s far more magnanimous than any of us have given him credit for.”
“Mama, that’s not the problem,” Elina said, head drooping sadly. “Kilian could pour his heart and soul into being a good king – and actually manage it – but that doesn’t change the fact that he’s trapped in the castle. He can’t even go out into the castle grounds! And the weather entirely depends on him keeping level-headed. Kilian…he was already halfway to madness when I met him. Being cooped up for the rest of his life will only make things worse.”
There was silence in the room for a long time after that, for Elina spoke the truth. They could all try their best to help with improving Kilian’s circumstances within the boundaries that had been set, but that didn’t change how restrictive those boundaries were in the first place.
Eventually Lily downed her wine and allowed Adrian to pour her another glass. “If only Alesandro were here.”
Elina stared at her. “Who’s Alesandro?”
“Why, your father, of course. Have I – have I never told you his name before?”
“No,” Elina said, shaking her head. “And everyone in
town called him ‘the magician’. I had no idea.”
“That’s…I’m sorry I never told you, Elina.”
Elina waved a dismissive hand. “It doesn’t matter. He’s not my father anyway.”
“And yet his blood runs through you nonetheless.”
A smash by the fireplace caught them both by surprise; Scarlett had dropped her goblet on the hearth, spilling burgundy wine and glass all over the floor. She was staring at Adrian with wide eyes, which he returned with a look of baffled understanding.
“Of course,” he murmured, scratching his chin before beginning to pick up the shards of glass from the floor as if in a trance. “Scarlett, why didn’t we think of that before?”
“We were too set on the curse itself. And this wouldn’t even be a counter-spell. It’s just a…coincidental curse.”
Lily and Elina glanced at each other in confusion before setting their eyes on Adrian. “What are you two talking about? What would be a coincidental curse?”
Adrian grinned wolfishly. “Elina, do you think you could cope staying by the king’s side for the rest of his life?”
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Kilian
Kilian was staring out the window again. This time, however, he wasn’t in his own chambers but in the ballroom. The large, expansive windows along the southern wall faced the back gardens of the castle, much like the dining room windows did. He watched sightlessly as the water in the hot springs bubbled and rose as steam, a keening sense of longing filling the pit of his stomach.
He’d largely recovered from the physical trauma of being stabbed, though the mental trauma of the act was something Kilian doubted he’d ever fully get over. He had been the better person. He had been the bigger man to his brother, who had always been the golden son.
And he’d been punished for it.
With a sigh he rolled off the windowsill, stalking across the ballroom floor towards the exit. He thought of his and Elina’s midnight dance as his footsteps echoed off the walls. It felt like it had happened a thousand years ago when, in truth, it was barely three weeks ago.
So much can happen in so short a space of time, he thought, sighing once more as he made his way up the grand staircase. Kilian didn’t really know where he was going – he didn’t want to return to his chambers, which were beginning to feel suffocating. He wasn’t hungry. He didn’t feel like striking up a conversation with any of the servants, nor reading a book in the parlour room. In frustration he collapsed onto the second-from-bottom stair, leaning against the railing as he stared dispassionately at the main doors into, and out of, the castle.
Kilian thought of finding Elina by them, half-frozen to death. If she hadn’t literally fallen through the gap in the open door onto the castle floor then Kilian would not have been able to drag her inside.
“How stupid,” he muttered, a horrible shudder wracking his body at the thought of having not been able to save Elina because of her father’s curse. His stomach twinged in pain; Kilian bent over double until it subsided.
He had no idea how long he sat on the stairs, silent and alone. There was no wind nor snow nor rain to interfere with the quiet, though the sky remained permanently overcast with thick, grey cloud. Kilian could just about control his temper enough to keep the storms at bay, but he was too miserable to let the sun through. He wondered if he’d ever see it again.
When a loud knock on the front door reverberated around the hall, it took Kilian a moment to respond.
“Who is it?” he called out, leaving the staircase to stand by the heavy wood-and-iron door.
“Kilian?” a familiar but muffled voice exclaimed back. Elina. “What are you doing standing by the door?”
“I don’t know.”
“Are you going to let me in?”
Kilian considered this for a moment. He knew he had to end things with Elina before it became impossible for him to do so. She needed to be free of any and all lingering responsibility towards him in order to leave Alder and finally live her life. But if he never saw her then he never had to end things, so Kilian seriously considered telling her to leave.
“I can practically hear what you’re thinking, Your Royal Highness,” Elina said sarcastically.
“Technically it’s Your Majesty, now,” he quipped back. He drooped his head in resignation as he struggled to open the heavy door. “Fine; you can come in.”
Elina was stark and beautiful against the snow, in a green dress the colour of pine needles that was astounding layered over the golden tones of her skin. In her arms was a familiar box.
“I come bearing gifts,” she announced. “Well, the same gift as before. I repaired your coat.”
“I thought you didn’t have a green dress,” Kilian said, frowning when Elina made no move to enter the castle. “Aren’t you going to come in? It’s cold by the door.”
“I never said I didn’t have a green dress – only that I didn’t want to wear green,” she replied, decidedly avoiding Kilian’s question. She twirled on the spot, allowing the skirt of her dress to spin around her. “Do you like it? My mother made it for my eighteenth birthday. I can’t believe I was too self-conscious about the way I looked to wear it. Seems pointless now.”
Kilian crossed his arms. “It’s lovely. Now come in. I can’t feel my fingers.”
She flashed a mischievous smile. “Why don’t you come out here and let me warm them up?”
“Are you drunk, Elina? How could I leave the castle?”
“Just try it.”
“No.”
“Do it for me.”
“Elina,” Kilian complained, running a hand over his face in exasperation. “I’m not in the mood for whatever game it is you’re playing.”
But Elina’s face had turned serious. “I’m not playing a game. Try and take a step outside, Kilian.”
“Elina –”
“Please.”
Kilian felt wretched. Whatever it was Elina was hoping for wasn’t going to work. After all, what had changed? Absolutely nothing. But clearly it was important to her, so reluctantly he edged his feet to the door’s threshold. He looked at Elina. “I’m not wearing shoes.”
She shrugged. “Doesn’t matter. Just try it.”
Kilian’s heart sped up despite himself, thinking that what he was about to do was incredibly stupid. As soon as he reached out to take a step some invisible force would prevent him from doing so, and that would be the end of it. He inched a foot forward.
Nothing happened.
Frowning, Kilian tentatively took a step out onto the snow, and then another. There was no hook pulling him back inside, nor a wall stopping him moving forward. No, there was only freezing, biting snow beneath his feet, urging him to walk faster and faster until he reached Elina’s side.
He stared at her in wonder. “What happened? What did you – what did you do, Elina?”
She beamed. “Adrian and Scarlett have cursed me.”
“They’ve – what?!” Kilian sputtered. “Have you lost your mind?”
Elina merely laughed. “It’s nothing bad. In fact, I’d say it’s fairly wonderful.”
“…what did they do to you?”
“It was my mother’s idea, technically,” Elina explained, opening the box in her arms and taking out the beautiful overcoat she’d made for Kilian before passing it over to him. He dutifully shrugged it on. “She said something about me having my father’s blood. Magician’s blood.”
“I don’t understand,” Kilian complained. “I thought we already established you don’t possess any magical ability?”
“No, but I still contain the blood of the one who created the spell cast upon the Hale family,” she said. “So Adrian managed to weave some…balancing magic, if you will, against your curse. Or maybe ‘neutralising’ is a better word for it.” Elina seemed to ponder this for a moment before shaking her head. “Either way, it negates your own curse. There’s only one condition.”
“I don’t like the sound of that. Elina, I
don’t want you to have to give up anything for my –”
“Let me finish, Kilian,” she laughed. “The condition is that I have to stay by your side. The spell is distance-sensitive, so I can’t be further than a few metres away from you in order to keep your curse at bay. Adrian thinks up to ten, maybe, but told me not to push it –”
Kilian cut her off with his mouth upon hers. He couldn’t believe what he was hearing. The curse put on him would be lifted and Elina would stay with him? Moreover, Elina was the literal reason he could be free of everything in the first place?
“You’d really stay with me for me to be free?” he asked, voice trembling as tears filled his eyes. Kilian didn’t care if he looked weak. Not in front of Elina.
She brought a hand up to cup his cheek; above them the sun just barely managed to break through the clouds, lighting the very edges of her hair on fire and adding gold to the green of her eyes. “Of course I’ll stay by your side, Kilian. You love me, don’t you?”
He choked on a laugh. “I love you? And what about the other way around?”
Elina wrinkled her nose. “That’s up for debate. I guess you’ll have to put up with me first and find out.”
“This really isn’t all a dream? This is really happening?”
“Yes, you idiot.”
“Then for the love of god can we get back inside? Otherwise I’ll have no feet left with which to wander the world with you.”
Elina’s lips curled into a sly smile.
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
Epilogue
Elina
“That’s – Your Majesty! Oh my – Gill, get the good wine out! Your Majesty, I –”
“I’d prefer vodka, if you have it,” Kilian said mildly, his expression blatantly amused at the looks of shock on the faces of everyone in the tavern. When Elina spied her mother, Scarlett and Adrian sitting at the back of the tavern she linked an arm through Kilian’s and wound him through the throng of stunned townspeople.
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