The Forsaken Throne, page 27
part #6 of Kingfountain Series
“I’d forgotten it was morning here,” Trynne said, pulling away. “I’m exhausted.”
Genny squeezed her hands. “You do look tired. But you won’t hasten away? I’d like you to stay a little while.”
“Very well,” Trynne said. “What news?”
“Tell me your news first.”
Trynne nodded and started to pace, but Genny hooked her arm. “Let’s walk as we talk. It’ll help refresh you.”
Trynne accepted the invitation, even though she had been active all day. A servant came to say that breakfast was about to be served in the audience hall, but Genny waved the girl away after inquiring if Trynne was hungry.
She was not. She wasn’t sure she ever would be again.
“It is finished, Genny. We saved as many people as we could. The ships were launched from their various harbors. According to my mother’s vision, we evacuated the most impacted realms first. In the end, Gahalatine was too weak to travel. He stayed at the zenana after his palace burned down. The Dochte Mandar and the Wizrs had fled, along with any hetaera. Sunilik helped drive their influence out. He’s going back to the oasis, where he will rule once again. It will not flood in the desert, thankfully.”
“That is good news,” Genny said, steering her along the corridors. The sunlight shone on the queen’s hair. “Reya will be happy, and she and her husband will enjoy visiting there.”
“So Reya and Elwis were married at last?” Trynne asked.
Genny smiled pleasantly. “Indeed. So much has happened.”
“I want to hear about all of it,” Trynne insisted.
“Your news first. Tell me more about Gahalatine. His death must have been very difficult for you.”
Trynne nodded, feeling the sorrow well inside her. “It was difficult watching someone so hale fail so quickly. He shrank before my eyes. But he was determined. He spoke vigorously about the corruption within Chandigarl, the focus on wealth and riches above all. He defeated the rumors about us and told the truth about what had happened. Most believed him. Many did not—they refused to accept that the flood was coming. They made any number of excuses for why it would not. But it all came down to the fact that they didn’t believe it would happen. He sorrowed because of it, especially since there were so many trappings of belief—the fountains, the prayers, the symbols—throughout the realm. Yet many saw them merely as decorations. They wore their beliefs on the outside, not the inside.”
Genny gave her a sage look. “I fear some of our own people would have done the same.” She sighed. “Even after the miracles that were shown months ago, I’ve already heard whispers that some of the people are doubting what they saw.”
Trynne patted Genny’s arm. “Gahalatine had great faith in the Fountain.”
Genny gave her a sidelong smile. “You helped strengthen it for him, Trynne. Being there in his sickness took great courage. I’m grateful that your mother’s vision showed you’d return to us unharmed. Many of the people who refused to leave probably were unwilling to forsake their treasures. All we have will be reclaimed by the Deep Fathoms eventually. Why cling to what is not truly ours?”
“Well said,” Trynne offered. “I’m at peace with Gahalatine’s death. I’m still not at peace with what Fallon sacrificed. You’re his sister, so I suppose we get to commiserate with each other. How are your parents handling it? Do they mourn?”
Genny looked away, as if the words were too painful. They walked in silence alongside each other for a while before the queen responded. “Both of them, as you can imagine, are hurting still. Yet we’re also proud of him. There was a time, not long ago, when we all feared the worst would come of him. Didn’t we?” She tugged on Trynne’s arm. “He was utterly unpredictable, but he changed. Part of it was because of your father’s influence on his life. But the larger part, I think, was because of you.”
Genny gave her a poignant look that made Trynne want to hide in a closet and cry. But she was determined to be strong. Her mother had promised that everything that could be made right would be. She would trust in that.
“Are you ready for the news, then?” Genny asked somberly. When Trynne nodded, the queen continued. “Morwenna’s trial was completed last week and the Assizes rendered judgment. Nothing was rushed, and copious records were made. Polidoro performed the task of recording the proceedings with great diligence. We will be judged in the future by how we treated Morwenna Argentine.”
“Treated—you mean she’s dead?” Trynne asked, her soul feeling a pang of unexpected sorrow.
Genny nodded. “Looking at the record of the Maid, it is clear in retrospect that she was Fountain-blessed and only sought to do the Fountain’s will. She was judged harshly and condemned because of politics. We did not want to replicate the mistake, so we refused to rush to judgment. Your evidence played a strong role in the decision, but not yours alone. She was feared at the poisoner school in Pisan. As the pieces came together, the conclusion was inescapable. She had committed treason in every possible way. And so she was condemned.”
Trynne breathed through her nose, trying to suppress a shudder. “Was she chained to the rock like the Maid? In Helvellyn?”
Genny shook her head no. “Sinia had a vision of her execution. In the records, the way to kill a Wizr is to bury them with stones. It was how they tried to kill Myrddin, if you remember the legend.” She laughed softly. “She was taken to a cave without food or drink and a stone was dragged forth to cover it. She railed against the king the entire time, during the trial and after. She didn’t go to her death quietly. Well, at least until the stone covered the door. Your father stood vigil with guards for ten days. When they removed the stone, she was dead.”
Trynne’s voice quavered. “I’m grateful that I didn’t have to be there.”
Genny stopped and touched her shoulder. “Drew insisted you should not be,” she said gently. “He felt—we all felt—you’d been through enough. She is gone forever. Dragan’s end—well, that is a somewhat different story.”
“Truly? Were his memories restored?”
Genny nodded solemnly. “Apparently the anguish of them drove him mad. Perhaps the clarity of the Dryad’s kiss finally made him realize that he was responsible for his daughter’s death, not your father. He hanged himself two days later.”
“Let’s keep walking,” Trynne suggested. “This talk is too gloomy on such a morning.”
“It is indeed,” Genny said. “It needed to be said, though. Not all of Gahalatine’s Wizrs were captured, were they? Any or all of them could prove troublesome later. Drew is watching the Wizr board closely. What happens now that the game has ended? None of us knows. Thankfully, we do have our own Wizr—and that is a comforting thought.”
Trynne smiled, missing her mother very much. She thought of her father having to participate in Morwenna’s execution. He’d never be rid of that memory. The Dryad’s kiss guaranteed it.
“There is one more piece of news. A small matter,” Genny added. They’d walked around the castle in one giant circle. It amazed Trynne that they’d ended up at the part that led to the garden with the magnolia trees. Genny was tugging her toward the door, but Trynne resisted, pulling back.
“I’d rather not go that way,” she said, shaking her head. The memories of that place were more painful than ever now that she was separated from Fallon.
“Come with me,” Genny said, her eyes shining. It was then that Trynne began to sense the presence of another Fountain-blessed coming from the garden. She felt the lapping of the Fountain’s magic, realized it had been growing steadier as they’d neared the gardens. She sensed someone’s presence.
Trynne looked at Genny in confusion. “Is Father here? Mother?”
“They arrived last night,” Genny said with a quivering smile. “They knew you’d arrive this morning.”
Of course they would. She was about to charge through the door to see them, but Genny caught her arm. “As I said, there is one more bit of news.” She paused, licking her lips. “It’s regarding your friend, Captain Staeli.” Genny had tears in her eyes. She swallowed, trying to keep her composure. “It’s why Mariette was crying earlier.”
“Is something wrong? Did something happen to him?” Trynne asked in anguish.
“Yes, in a sense. He . . . he rejected the king’s offer to become a duke. He said”—here she stumbled, the tears spilling from her lashes—“that your happiness was worth more to him than his own. He’s left Kingfountain forever. Willingly.” Genny smiled sadly, her fingers squeezing Trynne’s arms. The realization finally dawned on Trynne, striking her with the force of a hundred waterfalls.
Fallon.
Fallon was here.
“We spent most of the night talking,” Genny said, sniffling, dabbing away her tears. “He’s changed so much. I’m so very proud of him. Go, Trynne. He slipped out of my rooms through the Espion tunnels and said he would meet you here.”
Trynne felt her heart bursting. She pressed a hurried kiss on Genny’s check and rushed through the door and into the immaculate gardens. Where . . . where? She sensed the person who was Fountain-blessed, half-hidden by the trees. The soft grass absorbed her harried march. Her tears were blinding her, her throat swollen to the point she almost couldn’t breathe. Where were her parents? She saw someone standing against one of the magnolia trees, half-hidden.
“Fallon?” she called, half croaking with emotions.
Boots disappeared. And then a seed pod sailed from the tree and landed right in front of her. It was well past summer and the season for seed pods. A few crisp white magnolias could still be found amidst the waxy green leaves, and the smell of them filled the garden. She bent down and picked it up, realizing that it was the one Fallon had stolen from the garden in Dochte Abbey.
While she crouched down to retrieve it, she saw him sauntering away from the tree. He’d changed. He looked a little older, a little wiser. There was his knowing smile, the delight that he had kept her in suspense. And it struck her forcibly that the magic of the Fountain was radiating from him.
Cradling the seed pod in her hand, she rushed up to him and they collided with a fierce hug, and he hoisted her off the ground and spun her around. She squeezed him, trying to break him in half with violent affection as he twirled her across the lawn, chuckling softly. Everything was spinning in her mind, but it felt so good to be in this moment, so reassuring. The news was still raw, still fresh, and tears streaked down her cheeks.
The spinning slowed and then Fallon set her back down. He continued to hold her, more gently but still possessively. Their bodies swayed a little and then she felt his lips press against her hair. He was so tall it was insufferable.
The reality of him being there, him being with her inside their garden was almost too much to believe. She found herself pulling back and then she thumped him on the chest with a clenched fist three times, saying, “You . . . you . . . you . . . I’m not even sure what to call you right now.”
“So you missed me?” he asked with a heart-melting smile. “Not as much as I missed you. Trynne . . . I don’t even know where to start. What I’ve learned studying with Myrddin. What I’ve learned staying at the ruins of the abbey.” He shook his head. “We have plenty of time to speak of that later. Seeing you . . .” He shook his head in wonderment, gripping her shoulders with both hands and pushing her back a little. “I just want to drink you in. To savor this moment. How I feel right now.” He sighed deeply. “I’m usually not one to struggle with words.”
“Then don’t start now,” she said, seizing him by the tunic front to pull him even closer. “Captain Staeli . . . he traded places with you?”
Fallon nodded. “I didn’t hope for it. I had no expectations. I only found out when your father came for me . . . yesterday? I can hardly fathom it. I was living at the ruins, in the little kitchen.”
“But what about the soldiers? What about the sheriff’s men? You have to tell me everything!”
“What’s so important about all that?” Fallon scoffed.
She wanted to hit him. “When we left you, I thought you’d been captured!”
“Please, Trynne! You give me no credit at all. The sheriff of Mendenhall is a blazing idiot. I slipped behind the oak tree and pretended to be one of the injured ones. Then I stole away in the confusion and hid in that huge mound of stones.” He snapped his fingers. “It was easy. I hid in the cave outside Myrddin’s lair until he returned from helping you. I could spend weeks telling you all this, but it’s not what I’ve been waiting for. I’ve been waiting for you. Waiting very patiently, I might add.” He looked down at her face and then tipped her chin. “And even your mother has said yes this time. Please don’t tell me no again.”
“I don’t understand,” Trynne said, shaking her head. It felt like the world was still spinning.
His thumb caressed the side of her mouth. “Her visions don’t always show the full future at once. She did see you marry Gahalatine. But she has also seen this.” He leaned down and kissed her where he’d touched her mouth. The brush of his lips awakened a ravenous hunger inside of her.
He pulled back, his expression softening as he looked at her. “Staeli, whom I will esteem forever, saw little worth in a dukedom for an old bachelor like himself. When he heard the story of what I’d done, it gnawed at him like a hound on a bone. He felt it wasn’t right that you’d be left without a husband after all you’ve done. And that I was stranded in another world because of what I’d done. So . . . he went to Lord Owen and asked if he could trade places with me.” He reached up and smoothed some hair from her forehead. His touch made her skin tingle.
“Naturally, Lord Owen consulted with Lady Sinia, who can, as you already know, see the future. She had already seen it and had not said anything because it needed to be done willingly. It didn’t happen right away. She wasn’t sure how long it would take. She saw it happen after Gahalatine’s death, and they have been preparing to fetch me ever since.”
Trynne felt unworthy of so much devotion. In her mind, she saw Captain Staeli’s gruff manner. He wouldn’t want recognition or thanks. Seeing her happy would please him very much.
“I could cry,” she said, hiccupping. “What’s to become of him?”
“I already have shed plenty of tears,” he boasted. “But your mother’s vision appeased me.”
Trynne looked at him in confusion.
“Apparently, the posterity of our good captain will continue to be of service in the future. Yes, our dear bachelor will find love. Surprising, I know! Your mother had a vision that the mastons would return someday. They will lead the fight against the hetaera. She saw in a vision that a hunter and his hound would protect a banished princess. I don’t recall if it was his grandson or great-grandson, but Staeli is supposed to stay in that world. He’s done the Fountain’s will.”
Trynne tucked the seed pod into her girdle and then squeezed Fallon’s hands. Bringing them to her lips, she kissed them. “I’m so thankful. And you . . . you, Fallon, of all people, have become Fountain-blessed at last? Truly?”
He nodded in a very humble way. “It happened at the grounds of that abbey after I let you go. Myrddin has an extensive library and I read a great deal while I was away. I learned about apple orchards and abandoned kitchens. And I learned I can summon fire from stone. That I can sense danger before it comes. But the greatest gift of the Fountain, the gift that I’ve always wanted, was discernment.” He smiled and placed his hand on her cheek. “I can hear people’s thoughts, Trynne. It’s the same gift Myrddin has. I’m still raw with it. And I have to be cautious not to misuse it. But I’ve always tried to understand people’s true motives. It’s what always attracted me to the Espion. I know when someone is lying, when they are being sincere. I’ve much still to learn, but Myrddin gave me a book of sorts to bring with me. To help me continue to grow this gift.”
Her heart thundered in her chest as he spoke. The joy of this moment was almost too much to bear. “I love you, Fallon Llewellyn. I’ve loved you for a very long time.”
“I know,” he said with a sly look. “You don’t know how much I’ve wanted to hear you say it. You’ll bring Averanche as your marriage portion,” he said with a shrug. “And I fancy that little castle and its view of the bay. But I hope you won’t mind staying in Dundrennan more often? I am still a duke, after all. At least, I think I still am. Genny didn’t say anything about my title being revoked, did she?”
Trynne shook her head and gripped his collar with both fists. “I’ve told you that I love you. Now you’d better return the confession yourself.”
“As my lady commands,” he answered. And he showed her in a kiss, this one even more passionate, more full of promise, than the one they’d shared in the tower of Dundrennan when the night sky was exploding with stars.
EPILOGUE
Leoneyis
The scene felt hauntingly and poignantly familiar. Years ago, Trynne had stood as an onlooker as Genevieve prepared for her wedding nuptials. Some of the same women were present, and it was the same chamber, but this time they were preparing for Trynne’s wedding. As Trynne looked at her reflection in the mirror, she smiled at her friends. Her family. Genny and Lady Evie stood to either side of her, and her mother stood behind her, her hands on her shoulders.
“You look beautiful, Tryneowy,” her mother said, and leaned down, kissing her cheek.
“Thank you,” she said, not feeling fully deserving of the praise, but she reached for her mother’s hand and gave it a gentle squeeze. Their relationship had relaxed substantially following her mother’s return from the Deep Fathoms. There was no longer the pressure of Trynne’s concealed destiny, the mismatched hopes.
Genny had helped Trynne select a dress in the style Fallon preferred, but one that suited her own tastes by being less ornate than others might want. The red velvet gown had a gold trim all around the neck and bodice, sewn with Genevese pearls, and a high girdle set with beads of sea glass that normally would have cost a fortune had the bride not been the daughter of the Duchess of Brythonica. The multilayered sleeves were rolled back, exposing matching cuffs that copied the interior pattern of the dress—which was a beautiful series of tangled vines and butterflies. Sinia had brushed Trynne’s hair to a luxurious shine, and there was a slight curl to it as it lay across her chest.
