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Chapter Twenty-Two

C inaed:

T he medicine wheel was gone. Erased from the soil like a surgeon removes a malignant growth. The dirt beneath my feet felt cleaner and almost relieved. A gentle breeze brought the scent of prairie grass, open sky, and renewal.

The irony of Blackstone’s downfall, dragged into the fiery depths by a demon prince he’d tried to control, wasn’t lost on me. He’d manipulated my grandfather for decades. Now he faced an eternity of something much worse.

A small remnant of Grandfather’s power hummed inside me.

It wasn’t the energy he’d gifted me to create the new Ward.

I had spent almost all of that fighting Blackstone.

He gave me a part of himself I could only understand because I had a deep connection with the Earth.

Not only did I have a mate, but I was also a guardian.

They were memories, emotions, and connections.

The complex tangle threatened to overwhelm me.

His pride and love as I flew for the first time.

Others called him back, but he told them he was doing something more important.

The moment he first struggled with a dark influence creeping into his thoughts.

At the end, there was so much regret that he hadn’t been stronger.

Underneath it all, he still loved us all, a truth he proved with his sacrifice.

Rod’s steady presence filled me, preventing me from losing myself in these emotions. He tied me to him, and to our newly completed bond.

“You’re thinking about him,” Rod said.

I nodded, not able to put my emotions into words.

Around us, the others were gathering in small groups, voices low and weary.

Bart and Cael stood near the northern edge, holding hands like they were out for a walk on a normal day.

Across from them, Jan and Conall hugged in front of a tired-looking Anso and Leifr.

Leo leaned into Gund, whose eyes still held some of his dragon rage.

To the south, Otto and Thal checked on Percy and Gio, who still showed the effects of Blackstone’s attack.

“He loved you.” Rod squeezed my hand. “At the end, it was that love that sustained him.”

Rod’s emotions wrapped around mine, comforting without trying to diminish the pain. “I know. He left me everything.” I tapped my head. “His love for me. His regret for what happened. His pride I never gave up. His hope for our future. And relief that he could finally make things right.”

With each word I spoke, Grandfather’s emotions swirled around me.

This was a wound that no amount of phoenix magic or regeneration could heal.

Rod never broke our connection. He relived each feeling with me, traveling the complicated path of love, anger, resentment, and sorrow.

He didn’t offer words because none were more powerful than his presence.

“Cinaed.” Father appeared beside me.

His perfect composure had cracked with exhaustion and loss. This wasn’t King Malachy, this was Malachy the grieving son, and the relieved parent.

“Father.” I freed my hand and gave him a fierce hug. We clung to each other, joined by grief and joy. He’d lost a father to save his son. Now he clung to the only thing that eased his pain.

When we separated, tears ran down both our cheeks. “He was himself again at the end,” I said. “The grandfather I remembered from childhood. The father you respected.”

“Yes.” Father’s smile was watery but genuine. “That’s how I’ll remember him. The phoenix who kept the entire court waiting so he could teach you to fly. Who called you his little firebird.”

The grief hit me, sudden and overwhelming.

All the years we’d lost. All the arguments and stony silences.

The pain I’d carried, thinking he hated me, but not fully understanding why.

His intractable refusal to let me be happy.

I resented him even as I kept up hope he’d change his mind. It was never him.

Rod’s presence surrounded me. He didn’t take away my sorrow. He helped me shoulder it, sort through it, and reminded me of the good.

“I wish we’d had more time,” I said through my tears.

“As do I,” Father said, fighting his own emotions. “I want to apologize and tell him we know it wasn’t him. I think he knew when he made his choice. He gave you… us his love. That’s what we’ll always have. We’ll know that even when we couldn’t see it, the love was always there.”

Father was right, and thanks to Grandfather, I knew it with absolute certainty.

“I need to speak to Wilhelm and the others,” Father said. “A lot has changed that needs to be addressed.”

He left, and around us the other survivors moved in weary patterns, taking stock of injuries, checking on friends and family. Blackstone stole from so many. Caused so much pain even in those who followed him. It would take time for the world to heal, but it would.

A flash of purple caught my eye. Bart and Cael approached, their shoulders touching in the unconscious way of bonded pairs.

They still had their stones out, but they were relaxed.

Bart’s face held a mixture of relief and caution.

He was right to be wary. We’d survived, but no one believed we’d found all of Blackstone’s surprises.

“How are you two doing?” Bart’s gaze swept over me but fixed on his brother.

Rod’s emotions swirled in crazy patterns. After the emotional goodbye in the cave, their reunion was an unexpected joy.

“We’re fine,” I said when Rod struggled to find a voice. “Better than fine. We’re whole.”

Bart finally smiled and swooped in to hug his brother. A second later, he pulled me into the embrace and Cael joined us. No words passed, but the joy and relief were a salve to some wounds. For every loss, there was happiness. I had the feeling I’d be seeing a lot of Rod’s brothers.

“When you created the Ward, something happened,” Cael said. “It was there, tethered to our souls, and then it was gone.”

“Yes.” Bart stared at Rod with an expression that bordered on disapproval. “We’re not anchoring the Ward.”

Rod’s hand tightened around mine. His hesitation wasn’t about hiding anything, but stemmed from his uncertainty of their reactions.

“That needs to wait until everyone is together,” I said. “There’s a lot to discuss.”

“Let me call the others,” Rod said. “They should know before everyone else.”

Rod sent a message to all the guardians, old and new. They stopped whatever they were doing and converged on our position.

“Is this about what you did to us when you created the Ward?” Leo arched his brows. “Without asking first?”

“What did we say about being less confrontational?” Gund asked his mate. “And yes, brothers count.”

Laughter surrounded our group. Everyone was in high spirits. Against all expectations, all ten of us survived. Those good vibes would only get better after Rod explained what he’d done.

“Katarina Hollen didn’t design the Great Ward to be linked to the four guardian pairs,” Rod said. “The plan had been for her and Adelais to be the anchor, and you eight were their backups. Unfortunately, they died in the casting, so the duty fell to the Guardians to maintain the spell.”

“Who told you?” Darius asked. “It’s not in the spell book.”

Rod’s doubt crept into his thoughts. He’d planned to tell them before he changed the spell, but once Blackstone destroyed the old Ward, there wasn’t time. “You did the right thing, love,” I told him. “You can tell them the truth.”

“Cinaed.”

Everyone turned to stare at me. I understood their confusion. How could a phoenix teach Rod a component of the spell that only a few mages could cast? Only Percy and Gio didn’t look surprised.

“Before Blackstone corrupted my grandfather, he and I were very close,” I said. “He used to tell me I reminded him of Adelais. Once, when something reminded him of her, he took me to visit the home she and Katarina had shared. Built on a small island in the middle of a wide loch, it was isolated.”

“It was where Mother summoned us to tell us about her plans,” Eldwin said. “Darius, Percy, and Anso helped her conceal and protect their home. Anso always asked the most questions.”

“Grandmother told me to ask as many questions as I had while she was still around.” He smiled, but it quickly faded. “She knew it was likely she wouldn’t survive.”

After visiting their house, they must’ve known Katarina and Adelais wouldn’t come back. “The house was exactly how it had been when they left to save the world,” I said. “Including notes she and Katarina made about the Great Ward. I didn’t understand the concepts, but I read them.”

“Cinaed has an almost photographic memory,” Rod said. “When we figured out we might need to cast the same spell, he opened his thoughts to me.”

“And you, of course, knew what they meant,” Jan said. “Why didn’t you tell us?”

I’d asked the same thing, but after seeing Bart’s reaction in the cave, I understood. “Because you would’ve tried to stop him,” I said. “All of you would’ve offered to shoulder the burden yourselves.”

“We also didn’t know if we’d get the chance,” Rod said. “We almost didn’t. I didn’t want to give you false hope.”

“So let me get this straight,” Leo said. “You two are the anchors, and we’re free?”

“Yes,” Rod said. “You get to remain royal consort to the king.”

“Ha, ha. So funny.” The others laughed, and Leo’s attempt to snarl gave way to him smiling.

“Oh, no.” Thal covered his eyes with his right hand. “Just what we don’t need, another smartass Hollen brother.”

I realized even his brothers didn’t know the playful, happy side hidden under the sadness. “You think he’s bad? Wait until you meet my family.”

“All kidding aside,” Jan said. “It doesn’t seem right that you two took all the risks and now you have to take on all the responsibilities.”

“You eight still have responsibilities,” Rod said. “You’re our backups. If something happens to us, you four take over as anchors. This is how the spell was supposed to work had Adelais and Katarina survived.”