Page 49 of Inked in Emeralds (Inkbound #3)

A n hour later, we gathered around a long, battered dining table.

It was loaded with whatever the old woman—called Freya, I’d learned—and the handful of other survivors could scrounge.

Old bread, dried meats, and a few casks of ale.

We’d added the provisions the others had packed before leaving Oz, and while it wasn’t much for as many people as we had, it felt like a feast to every one of us.

Introductions had been chaotic, but Freya had somehow managed to set some order. Then, she rallied everyone into the dining hall, assigning tasks and getting everything set up.

The hall around us was much like the throne room, with cracks running through the stone walls and soot blackening the ceiling beams. But there were signs of care, too; swept floors, sheets as makeshift tablecloths, and candles burning all around in makeshift holders.

Freya and the others had clearly been looking after the place, waiting for this day.

Waiting for me .

I’d taken so damned long, it was a wonder they didn’t hate me…

I looked across the table at her as she beamed at Cissy, who handed her a juicy plum we’d brought from Oz.

Moll and Xander sat nearby, huddled together with an ease and comfort that spoke to the difference in the passage of time. They were happy, and they were in love.

Hook’s fingers brushed mine beneath the table, grounding me.

“You look joyful and terrified all at once. It’s going to take a little time, but we’re all exactly where we’re meant to be.”

Things had changed for so many of us since we’d parted ways. There was a lot to catch up on.

At the next table over, Paddy was howling with laughter at something Billy said, nearly choking on his ale as Scotty slapped him between the shoulders, breaking into a laugh of his own. The pirates sat across from them as they played cards together and chugged pints of ale.

I’d pulled Paddy aside, wanting to explain what’d happened with Billy, but he’d waved me off. She was theirs now, no questions asked.

Family.

The word swelled inside me as I glanced around.

It was great to see everyone getting along and accepting this new reality so easily, but I couldn’t stop thinking about what was to come.

Every person in this room was here because of me, and, as much as I knew deep down that I needed them if we were to succeed, some would not survive the coming battle.

Which meant I’d basically brought them here to die.

Hook leaned in close, his voice for my ears only.

“Tonight, they need to see the queen they’ve been fighting for and celebrate all we’ve accomplished to get you back here.

Tomorrow, we’ll prepare them for the realities of war.

There was no choice to be made. Almira said it herself.

Nowhere is safe. At least together, we have a chance. ”

I knew he was right, but that didn’t make it any easier to swallow. Was I more like Lord Fallowell…more like my father than I’d thought?

Good witch, bad witch. Good witch, bad witch.

“How many people are still living outside these walls?” I asked, forcing my attention back to Freya, who swallowed her last bite of plum with a wistful sigh.

She paused, cloudy eyes drifting upward as she considered the question.

“Perhaps a thousand total, scattered across C’an Saas.

But here in the palace, we’re all that remain—around thirty of us.

We’ve learned to survive in the shadows, scavenging what little we can and not calling too much attention our way. ”

“How have you managed it for so long?”

She smiled, the lines around her mouth creasing deeper into her skin.

“Faith. We knew your mother and Gayelette well. We never forgot Marin’s promise that, one day, you’d return and put things right.

Many lost hope and ventured out on their own over the years, but those who stayed behind are true believers.

We waited, and now you’re here. And it was all worth it. ”

She glanced toward the throne room and then back to me.

“May I ask, my Queen, why you haven’t put on your crown yet?”

I shook my head, bile rising in my throat as I glanced over at the brilliant gold crown she’d brought out at the start of our dinner.

“I haven’t earned it.”

I wondered if anyone truly could. Even if Almira fell tomorrow, the damage done to C’an Saas would take time to repair. This place would need leadership, and I wasn’t about to shirk my duty the way Lord Fallowell had.

“It will be ready when you are.”

Across the table, one of the older girls under Freya’s care, Essie, watched me carefully, her eyes wide and curious. Beside her was Logan, a boy about the same age. They both leaned in whenever I spoke. Behind them, two younger children whispered and watched my every move.

“The orphans of C’an Saas,” she said, reading my thoughts.

“Most of the adults you see around you started as children under my care. When Almira seized power over two decades ago, they lost everything. Their parents, their homes. I took them in as my own.” Her gaze drifted toward the children, the pride evident on her face.

“They’ve never had much reason to hope, and this last year was the hardest yet.

We were beginning to think you’d never come. ”

She turned back to me, staring at me so hard I could barely keep from squirming. “Then, when things seemed darkest, you returned to save us, exactly as Marin promised.”

No pressure at all.

I took her frail hand, giving it a squeeze. “I—I’m going to do everything I can. I hope that your faith hasn’t been misplaced.”

Freya’s voice dropped low, and she leaned in. "We've been training for this moment, Your Highness. Even the youngest among us knows how to wield a blade, at least well enough to defend themselves."

My chest tightened as I glanced at the thin faces of my people, scattered around the hall. "I hope it doesn’t come to that."

"We've already sent word beyond the palace. We must move carefully, but I think we’ll be able to get some able-bodied volunteers to join us in the battle.”

Hook's expression darkened as he leaned toward Freya. "What can you tell us about Almira's forces?"

She frowned. "She has a hundred or so men and women from C'an Saas who've sided with her. Traitors, betraying their kin to fill their own bellies. They serve as officers to keep her hordes of flying monkeys in line."

I grimaced, wishing more than anything that those fuckers had stayed trapped in the pages of Oz.

“Do they cause you trouble here?”

“It depends on her mood. Months will go by without an attack. Then we’ll have two in one day.

It used to be that they only struck at night, but there is no day here, now.

Not truly. It’s like her magic has blotted out the sun itself.

” Someone called her name from the side of the room, and she offered me a weary smile.

“I have some matters to attend to, if that’s alright, Your Highness. ”

“Of course.”

She rose from her seat, patting my shoulder before making her way to the cluster of men and women near the doors.

Across the hall, Paddy O'Donnelly was already acting up, as he had Scotty setting a stale loaf of bread onto his head before launching a knife at it with practiced ease. Billy stood off to the side, arms crossed as she shook her head, but there was no hiding that smile as she took in every moment.

"Damn it, Paddy!" Scotty bellowed as crumbs showered over his hair. "You're aiming a bit low there, aren’t ya?"

Paddy cocked an eyebrow. "Seems to me that I’m aiming exactly right, seeing as you’re still alive to whine about it.”

The stuck loaf tumbled off his head and he caught it, pulling the knife free and tossing it to a laughing Caleb before charging right at his brother.

Paddy laughed as he feinted right, sidestepping Scotty and patting him on the ass before sprinting away. Scotty lunged at him, grabbing him by the back of the shirt, and Paddy threw up his arms in surrender.

“Okay, okay! I yield. New game?”

Scotty grinned, tossing him toward a nearby table and yanking up his sleeve. “Arm wrestling it is, then.”

Billy was riveted, chuckling in delight as she nudged Duncan. “Think you can beat him?” she asked, arching an eyebrow.

He faked a yawn, stretching out his arms. “Blindfolded.”

Scotty spun on him, cracking his knuckles.

“Excellent. Been meaning to get back at you for ruining our smuggling hustle in The Smudge, anyways. Let’s see what you got, Your Highness.”

Ah, so these were the Alabaster O’Donnelly’s. I wondered what the Billy from their world was thinking. She was probably worried sick but hiding it by swearing up a storm as she tried to figure out where they’d gone.

Gods willing, I’d return each one to her, whole and hearty. I shot a glance at my Billy and bit my lower lip. Maybe with a spare O’Donnelly for good measure…

“You’ve got to stop. Don’t borrow trouble.” Hook's voice pulled my attention back. "Let them enjoy each other. Tomorrow will come soon enough."

Duncan slammed Scotty’s arm down, sending the hall into peals of laughter and cheers. I smiled and raised my cup, determined to be in the moment.

As the laughter quieted, I rose from my seat, the movement pulling all eyes toward me. The hall fell silent as I glanced at the faces of all my favorite people in the world, my anxiety fading.

“I know all of you must be confused, some more than others. To the people of C’an Saas, your loyalty makes me believe in the goodness of people again.

I am humbled by your faith in me and will do everything I can to make sure I’m worthy of it.

To those I brought here…” I let my gaze travel the room again, committing each to memory.

“Each one of you was selected because you’re special.

Some may bring a skill or talent to this war against evil that just may be the very thing we need to defeat it.

Others might have a gift that can help us rebuild in the aftermath.

But that doesn’t mean we’re lost without you.

If you’d rather go back to the world as you remember it, now is the time to say so.

Know that if you choose to stay, it could cost you your life. ”

“And if we go?” Xander asked, his smile telling me he already knew the answer, but wanted to make sure all the others did as well.

“It could cost you your life,” I said with a nod.

“The witch that is our enemy will rain her fury down on every world. This one, yours, and all those in between. There are no guarantees either way. But the choice is yours. All those who would like to go back to where they came from, raise your hands now. I’ll do my best to return you there with only love in my heart for each of you. ”

Feet shuffled, chairs creaked, but not a single hand was raised.

“Last call,” I murmured, my throat already going tight with emotion.

“Going, going, gone!” Xander leapt from his seat, yanking a half-empty bottle of rum from one of his crewmate’s hands. “You can’t make a proper toast without rum though, Your Highness!” He flashed a grin and handed the bottle up to me with a theatrical bow.

I lofted it high in the air and tried not to let them see my tears of gratitude. “To those we’ve lost, and to those who remain. May our sacrifices not be in vain!”

A chorus of cheers echoed through the hall and pirates thumped their fists against tables, drowning out the last of my insecurity…for the moment.

The chant started softly at first, rising louder with every repetition. The hall shook with their voices, and I tilted the bottle, rum burning down my throat as tears welled up in my eyes…

“Long live the queen!”