11. Avery

Chapter eleven

Avery

Finnian and I silently walked down the stairs of the townhouse to find Lia tending to the small flames she had lit within the fireplace. She turned around to face us and gave a soft smile as she gestured to the settee. We made our way to it and sat side by side as Lia hesitantly sat across from us next to the fire.

She anxiously rubbed her knees with both hands as she twisted in the chair to reluctantly face us, her eyes lifting to mine as she bit her bottom lip.

“Lia, is everything okay?” I asked nervously.

“No,” she whispered.

Finn leaned forward next to me and said, “Lia, you can tell us anything. I would’ve hoped you’d know that.”

“I’m a monster,” she answered.

My eyes widened at what she had just called herself. “Lia, you are many things, my sister and best friend being at the very top of the list, but I promise you…a monster is not one of those things.”

“Kai is dead.”

My jaw popped open from shock while Finn jumped up from the settee next to me, but the whole time, Lia refused to break our stares.

“I’m so sorry,” she whispered nervously. “Well, sorry that regardless of everything, he was also your brother, but I can’t sit here and lie to you saying that I’m sorry he’s dead.”

I blinked at her repeatedly as my mind tried to process what she was saying. Kai was dead—the evil, vile, murderous heir was no longer among the living…and she was sorry?

“Did you kill him?” Finn cut in before I had a chance to speak, and my head snapped in his direction.

Lia cleared her throat. “Not directly. It was Nox that killed him, but I also won’t say to you that I wouldn’t have done it if Nox hadn’t beaten me to it. He actually saved me. Between being blinded by my rage, feeling the pain of Jace’s injury, and exhaustion, Kai managed to corner me.”

Finn blew out a breath, and he reached up to nervously scratch the back of his neck as his eyes remained wide.

“And that’s why you believe yourself to be a monster?” I cut in before Finn said something else.

“Does it not make me one?” she asked as her gaze leisurely wandered to the flickering flames in the fireplace. “Perhaps if I had been thinking more clearly, I could have captured him as our prisoner instead.”

“No,” Finn and I said in tandem, and then her eyes lifted back up to us.

“That doesn’t make you a monster,” Finn added.

“You speak of giving him kindness that he would never warrant to you. Kai would’ve done his absolute worst to you, Lia,” I said. “That’s all he’s thought and spoken of for months. I can’t even believe he traveled all the way here himself. It just proves that whatever he had in store, he wanted to personally make you suffer.”

“He has done despicable things,” Finn chimed in. “To all sorts of innocent beings. It never would’ve stopped, Lia. We are here because of that, and you sat there and thought we would think that you’re the monster in this situation?” He paused for a moment. “I think it's safe to say that both Avery and I hoped that Kai wouldn’t survive this war. If he survived, it would mean that you didn’t, and neither would we.”

I nodded rapidly in agreement as our brother spoke these words to her before adding, “Mother may have tried to save us, but once Kai was crowned, it would sign our death sentences.”

Lia’s eyes darted back and forth between the two of us, and then she bowed her head. “I, of course, know that you hated him, but he was still your brother, and for that, I am sorry.”

“Well, we aren’t.”

She snorted at that. Thank the gods.

“Tell us what happened,” Finn stated. “What prompted you to rush out of here after everything? Did you just want to catch up to them?”

She audibly swallowed. “I knew Lukas was dead. I knew it, but my heart refused to believe it. I couldn’t accept it yet—couldn’t bear it. He helped me escape the dungeons and sacrificed himself for me. I think this entire time, I was just pretending it wasn’t real and that he was fine, and so was our father. My foolish heart denied what our reality has become.” She gestured to our surroundings. “I don’t regret this, of course. I could never regret seeing what truly lay inside the castle walls and finding my mate, but I do wish I had been smart enough to have done things differently. Including the events of the past few days. I allowed myself to act on impulsive rage.”

I stood from the couch and approached her slowly. While lowering myself down onto my knees, I gently placed my hand on hers. I looked up into my sister’s haunted green stare and said, “You are still so young in terms of our race. You weren’t raised to know the ways of what it takes to rule; you were taught to destroy the enemy. And that’s exactly what you did, Lia. That will never make you a monster. You acted appropriately to a viable threat. What you did does not define the kind of queen you will be in a negative light. If anything, it goes to show how much you care for and love your people.”

“She’s right,” Finn announced from where he remained on the settee.

Lia’s face softened, as if the entire realm had been lifted off her shoulders. “I thought you were both going to hate me, or at the very least, be upset in some way.”

I chuckled. “Well, maybe we’re the true monsters, then.”

She let out an abrupt laugh, and I smiled as I stood and reached my hand out for hers.

Lia stood up on her own and wrapped her arms around me, embracing me in the tightest hug I had ever received. “Thank you,” she said softly as if my words had healed a part of her that she desperately needed .

Once she loosened her grip, I took her hands in mine as we smiled gently at each other.

“There’s something I wish to show you. Something I should have the moment we arrived a few days ago, but time has moved so quickly between the madness that I forgot I had it. I will be right back.” I turned from her and bolted up the stairs on silent feet.

I ran into my bedroom and dropped to my knees as I searched through my pack I arrived with. Pulling out our father’s leather-bound journal, I traced my fingers over its cover and rose to stand.

When I arrived back at the bottom of the stairs, I was met with the curious, concerned eyes of both my siblings, and then Finn dipped his chin in recognition as he noticed the book.

“This was Father’s journal. It’s how we learned the truth of his past—what he wished for you and what he truly felt for the queen. It’s also how we convinced others to flee with us when they hadn’t been entirely convinced by Lukas’ final words.” Extending my arm out to Lia as I approached, I handed her the journal. She took it with trembling hands as her gaze was fixated on it. “I want you to have it.”

Her eyes snapped to mine. “This should be for all of us. King Jameson was your father, too.”

I shrugged a shoulder in response, but then Finn spoke. “Hold on to it for us all, then.” He reached out and rubbed her arm. “We’ll know where to find it.” He winked.

Lia let out a noise that was half laugh and half sob as she carefully flipped through the pages with her fingers. A smile formed on her face, and I nearly blew out a breath of relief when I saw it meet her eyes. “That I can do.” She threw her arms around each of our shoulders. “Thank you both so much,” she whispered.

Suddenly, loud footsteps sounded from above, and we all turned toward the staircase to be met with Gage standing there, curiously eyeing the three of us.

“My lady, Avery,” he started, and my cheeks flushed as my fingers flew to cover my mouth.

Lia chuckled softly. “Gage, what are you up to so early?”

“Early?!” he gasped. “My queen, dawn is on the horizon. There is much to do to prepare the people to head to Alaia whenever you deem fit.”

Lia answered him with a proud smile.