The White Forest (Mages and Kingdoms Book 2) (12 page)

Amelie

Amelie could waste no
time. She recalled Simon saying that the king was fading. She had thought to share the experience with Claudia, but it seemed that would not be possible. She donned her riding cloak feeling more comfortable in a shroud for now. She'd spent so much time in one on these grounds, it felt strange to have so many eyes on her as she moved around the castle. At any moment she felt her pardon would expire and she'd be thrown back into the dungeon.

All the more reason to hurry.

Decorum was now a requirement since she no longer moved in stealth and she paced the garden fountain off the east wing of the palace waiting for Simon. She'd sent a message with a palace page to meet her here. She would have gone to him directly but that sort of behavior did not befit a lady and even more, she had no idea where Claudia had decided to quarter him.

He didn't take long. She recognized his stride with months of exposure to his mannerisms at the cottage and she ran forward to greet him, elated that he hadn't received the same treatment as she upon arrival. She had not seen him since she dismounted her horse and ran to the King's study.

She could see her relief mirrored in his eyes and they picked up speed towards each other until he could capture her in a fierce hug.

"I didn't know where they put you," he said just as she told him, "I was worried they'd given you ill treatment."

Laughing, she kissed him on the cheek. He smiled. "On the contrary, they’ve been very considerate considering I'm a foreign mage. I've been under guard but in a comfortable room. I was allowed out to the gardens, though. As you see."

Amelie grew somber. "I do not think we can get to the king’s quarters.”

“I have spent my time here searching for him,” Simon replied. “I found him in the middle realm. We are close enough I think, here in the garden.”

“Do we have much time?"

Simon shook his head and pressed it to Amelie's forehead, taking her hands in his. "No," he said. "Close your eyes. The time must be now. Slow your breathing and free your mind."

Amelie did as she was instructed, slowing her breathing and allowing her mind to separate from her body. Simon stood before her, blurry and faded. He held out a hand to her.

“Deeper breaths, Amelie,” he encouraged. “Your soul is not supposed to be in the middle realm. You must concentrate or I won’t be able to hold onto you.”

She followed him through the haze and struggled to see. It was like looking through murky water. Simon took her other hand. He pulled her to him. Positioning himself behind her, he pressed into her back, lining up his body with hers. She gasped at the full body touch but as he held her, the murkiness cleared and some of the blurred lines dissipated.

“He is here,” Simon whispered. “His time in the middle realm has not been easy. You can help with that.”

“What do you mean?” Amelie demanded.

But Simon just shook his head. “Listen. Help him.”

And she waited. She stilled her body and sank into Simon’s touch, settling her skin against his. It was some moments before he appeared. He was gaunt. His skin was a wrinkled bag hanging from bones. Gone was his confidence, his calculating eyes, his rough handsomeness. His eyes found hers. They wept as he puddled to the ground.

Amelie knelt before him and she felt Simon lower with her. His arm remained wrapped tightly around her middle.

“My king,” Amelie whispered.

King Byron shuddered and watched her through sunken eyes. “Amelie,” his voice rasped.

Since her power of persuasion had risen inside her, Amelie had made every effort to keep from physical contact with King Byron. She had always stood breaths away from him, tensed at his nearness, and remained poised to fight. Now, in this barren realm and cracking inside at his despair, she ran a tender hand across his forehead and down his wrinkled cheek. Her heart broke for the creature before her.

“Amelie,” he said again, leaning into the touch. “You are alive.”

“I am, my king, but you are not. You linger in this desolate place.”

“I have been waiting. To make sure you are all right.”

“Oh, your Majesty. If I had known, I would have come sooner. I am so sorry. Please. Cross in peace. Please.”

“You are all right?” he repeated.

Amelie couldn’t stop the tears from falling. “I am. Thanks to you.”

He let out a ragged breath. “I am a terrible father. If I truly loved you, I would not have hurt you as I did.”

Amelie turned her head towards Simon. “He cannot be restored?” she pleaded quietly.

Simon squeezed her gently. “He has been adrift for a year. If you don’t help him find peace, he may remain here for many years to come. He’s getting pulled further into the middle realm. It took me quite some time to find him. If he could get back, it would have happened by now.”

“Amelie.” King Byron’s voice was getting weaker.

Amelie took his hand and squeezed. “I am still here.” She struggled for the right words. “We have spent many years at odds. Yes, you made mistakes. But when I needed you to be my father, you were there. That is what matters. Do not stay here and punish yourself, your Majesty. Peace awaits you.”

“There is a golden light that warms me,” King Byron said wistfully. “It comes for me but I know if I close my eyes and let it take me, I will fail you.”

“No, father. You saved me.”

King Byron closed his eyes and smiled his thin lips at her words. “It would be nice to finally rest.”

As he spoke these words, Amelie lost the grip on his hand. He became harder to see. Amelie pressed harder into Simon, but King Byron still blurred before her.

“What’s happening?” she cried out.

“Shhhh,” Simon soothed. “Let him pass.”

Piece by piece, he did. His hands dusted away. His robes billowed in a wind that didn’t touch Amelie or Simon. His face crumbled in on itself, chunks dissolving before her eyes until all that was left was his thin smile. And when that was gone, a burst of golden light blinded them for a moment. Then they were alone. In a quiet, bright space. Much like the setting in which she first met Simon.

“This is where we met,” she said softly, looking around.

“Aye,” Simon replied. “But let’s get you back. Too much time here and your fate will mirror your king’s.”

Her vision swirled with colors. They were nauseatingly bright and explosive, popping on her senses. When the streaks of colors stilled, she found they were back in the gardens. She was sitting on the cobbled path and Simon was pressed behind her exactly as they had been in the middle realm. He eased away from her gingerly and stood.

She accepted the hand he held out and allowed herself to be pulled to her feet. His other hand rested on her upper arm to steady her.

“Are you all right?” he asked softly.

Amelie’s eyes misted as she assured him. “Thank you,” she said gratefully. It was one less soul that weighed heavy on her chest. One less soul she was responsible for.

Simon drew her to him in a firm hug. “You’re welcome.”

Seth

Seth paced in his
quarters. His heart raced and his mind burned. Several times his pacing took him to the door just so he could turn on his heel and resume his circled walk in front of his balcony.

Alive. All this time. She was alive.

His fingers itched and he realized they had been left aching to touch her. Traitorous digits. He cursed them but he knew they would disobey his resolve. They wanted her and they were not the first of his body to break free from the logic his mind was desperately trying to employ. His heart was stubbornly fast.

His pacing halted as the scene unfolding outside his window accomplished what his mind could not. His heart lurched as the sight of a dark figure running through the courtyard below, her black hair and red cloak trailed behind her, unable to keep up. His mouth opened to call to her but he choked on the sound when her running stopped suddenly. The mage she rode in with swept up the full force of her impact into an embrace. He set her down gently and she squeezed his cheeks, laughing with what seemed like relief.

Seth lost the air from his chest. His fist tightened on the balcony railing. Amelie kissed the man quickly on the cheek. He took both of her hands in his, pressing them together and encasing them in his fists. Their foreheads came together, they closed their eyes, and even from his elevated vantage point he could see their breaths slow to match one another. So deep were they in their reunion that a dog rounding the corner and scattering a flock of crows nearby did not break their passion.

Seth turned violently from the scene before him and melted into the curtain. His hand clutched the fabric to hold his footing for he feared momentarily he might lose it.

So it appeared she'd moved on in many ways in her year of discovery. She embraced her mage half fully it seemed. Complete with an improvement of prospects. One who will provide her with magically strong offspring.

His mind ceased to burn. His heart no longer raced. Everything cooled. His countenance steadied as he straightened himself. He'd learned to live without Amelie in his life over the last year and it seemed this encounter he witnessed in the courtyard was his final lesson.

Yes. He was quite done with aching for something that was no more.

Amelie

“So he is gone
then?” Claudia asked coldly.

Claudia, Amelie, and Sir Duncan stood in the study. It was where Amelie had finally found her after wandering the palace halls in search of her sister to inform her of King Byron’s passing. In truth, she had been stalling this moment for as long as possible and was relieved to stumble across Sir Duncan first. A third party brought her some strength to relay this sad message to this already angry and torn woman

“Yes.”

“He was fine before you showed up.”

“Claudia, he was not fine. He was wasting away half dead.”

“And you had to help him reach full dead, is that it?”

“You didn’t see him. He was suffering.”

“You saw him?”

“Yes. Simon, the mage who brought me back, can travel to other realms. He took me to the realm where he was trapped. Miserable and in pain and wandering. He showed me how to help him find peace.”

Claudia wiped at her eyes as Amelie spoke. Amelie approached her slowly to comfort her, but Claudia took a forceful step back and tried to compose herself.

“Be silent for a little while longer, if you please,” she finally said, looking Amelie in the eye. “I am not yet ready to take on another battle with the cabinet and this will surely result in such a meeting.”

Amelie felt her chest squeeze. “Claudia, I-”

“My father just passed away. Keep quiet until I’ve had a moment to grieve. I’ve had nothing but loss for a year and for once I’d like a break to think of something else besides Candor.”

Amelie swallowed the words in her mouth. Sir Duncan rested a hand on Amelie’s shoulder. The action was not missed by Claudia and her mouth pursed into a thinner line.

“Sir Duncan, please send a page to retrieve the hunting party,” she ordered.  “I will be in my quarters.”

Claudia turned abruptly and left the study. Amelie clenched her fists and tried to calm her mind. Sir Duncan’s hand squeezed support into her shoulder.

“I know he wasn’t your true father,” he said quietly. “But I also know the manner in which he found himself injured. And I’m sorry for your loss.”

“It’s Claudia’s loss,” Amelie whispered.

“And she will receive many condolences while you receive none and bear it alone. It needn’t be. You have mine.”

“I thank you,” Amelie said and meant it. “Please go to her. She needs you as well.”

Sir Duncan bowed slightly and followed the path Claudia took moments earlier.

Amelie

Amelie kept a determined
pace to her sister’s room. If the relationship were to be mended it was she who would have to initiate the healing. She was the older sister. She was the one who had left. Claudia’s actions were a result of hurt feelings and it was Amelie who caused those feelings.

Amelie knew she must rectify the damage.

Her sister’s door was blocked by two of the royal guard. Amelie could recall their names. Owen and Finnigren, two of the captain’s finest. Claudia must feel the heat of the cabinet on her neck now if she felt the need to watch her safety within the palace walls. She approached with a wry smile.

“Step aside. You will allow me entry.”

Skeptical, they twitched but did not move. Used to following Amelie’s orders when the two girls were on the same side, their hesitation illustrated the divide. Who to obey now that Amelie had returned?

“I have no wish to harm you forcing my way in,” Amelie told them. “I need only the captain’s ear to have your guard duty switched to Lord Westling.”

Lord Westling. The cabinet member whose food was always digested poorly and whose evidence of such polluted the air.

Owen and Finnigren scowled but stepped lightly away from each other, parting from the door and granting reluctant permission.

Amelie smiled sweetly. “Thank you, gentlemen.”

Entrance into the chambers revealed a sullen girl, cloaked in dressing robes, sitting upon a straight-backed chair, staring listlessly out the balcony window. If Amelie’s presence surprised her, she didn’t know for no more than a dismissive glance was cast her way before Claudia focused her attention on the purple twilight sky in the distance.

Amelie tried to speak first, but Claudia beat her to it. “Even now, with all my anger towards you, I worried over your temperature in the dungeon. You were always so cold.”

Amelie knew her frequent coldness was due to the expenditure of her persuasive power but she made no comment, not wanting to touch on any sore topics.

“Your power holds fast to me as well, it seems,” Claudia continued. “Would I too die coming to your aid?”

“I do not know,” Amelie answered. “But I would die coming to yours.”

This seemed to stir Claudia out of her lethargy as she read the sincerity in her sister’s eyes. Still, she was rankled over what this last year had held. “A weak statement when you abandoned me all those months ago.”

“I am sorry. My regret will haunt me for years to come. I can promise you, it was not abandonment that drove me to leaving. I thought I was helping you.”

“The cabinet is murderous.” Claudia’s eyes glittered. Her lethargic countenance was replaced with anger. “They clawed at me, piece by fighting piece, pulling apart my orders, my methods, my inheritance with their twisted logic until there was nothing left of me as a ruler but a scared wench hiding behind foreign royalty. I could not stop them on my own. Your so called help has me in fear for my life in my own kingdom.”

“I see my error now. My help was for your immediate happiness. I did not think how you would have to face the burden of the kingdom alone. I am here now if it is not too late.”

The young girl harrumphed. She was set to spar but Amelie’s lack of fight deflated her vigor. Her righteousness hung unsatisfied in the air between them.

“Well, your methods did not serve any purpose,” she replied. “You cannot control the feelings of another. As I have found out.”

Guilt stung Amelie’s chest. She needed to amend all of it. “I should have told you,” she said. “I should have told you my feelings for Seth. Our feelings for each other. The kings had made their decision. I thought distancing myself would give the two of you the best chance at happiness.”

“He thought of nothing but you.”

Happiness swamped with sorrow flooded Amelie and made her dizzy. “I am sorry,” she repeated. Maybe she’d come too empty handed. All she had were apologies and Claudia still scowled at her like a stranger.  And perhaps they were strangers. A year and separate realms was certainly proving to have made them so.