Blooming Life (Fate's Intent Book 10) (23 page)

“That’s simple; what you’ve always done while you waited; continue living your life.”

“With not even a letter like she never existed?”

“Of course not.”

Seth’s head hit the table. It had to hurt and I kind of leaned away to look at him.

“Go up to your room. I’ll send your mother to you or she’ll come running on her own.”

Seth rolled out of his chair without a word and left.

“He’s going to be like this for two years.” Darius said.

“I’ve already came to that conclusion before he knew it was going to be two years.”

“And your plan?” My father asked.

Zayden looked across the table at us.

“Us?” Dirk and I reacted at the same time.

“It needs to be you. He’ll listen to you.”

Dirk and I looked at each other and both laughed.

“Since when?” I asked.

“Since you’re young and want the same things.”

What he was really asking hit me and I became nervous about it while I stood up. “You want us to manipulate Seth with other girls just so he’ll be distracted from her for a while? I can’t do that.”

“I can.” Dirk stood right up after me, being incredibly pompous. “Does that mean any girls or do they have to try to be better than her because you’d be asking for a lot. She was hot.”

I looked over in disgust. “He was right. You are an animal.”

“Just doing what our King wants of us.”

“And that makes you loyal? I’ll pass. I know where I should be loyal and it’s not here.”

“Bryce!” My father stopped me from turning. “He’s just trying to help him.”

“Well, he can’t. No one can. No one but me.”

I left without looking back and instinctively went to Seth. I was a little cautious about going in at first but I did and Seth was standing at his balcony door, looking out.

Rift was the first one to notice me and looked at Seth. Seth didn’t move and I stepped in farther.

“Hey.” I said, just so he knew someone was here. It wasn’t the right time to be surprising him.

He turned his head only long enough to look. “Hey.”

I didn’t know what else to say but I had to say something. He needed to know that I was here to help.

“I know this must be difficult for you and if you ever need someone to—”

“You don’t know anything!”

He snatched at me but I made sure that I didn’t take a step back in fear.

“I saw you.” I said. “I was there, remember? I saw how you were with her and you truly do have something greater than anything I’ve ever felt for a girl. You’re connection was real. I could feel your energy when you were with her.”

“So, what do you want, Bryce?”

“Just for you to know that I’m here for you. You don’t have to be alone. I can take you to her anytime you’d like.”

“Only in mind, not body.”

“But I could work on it.”

He turned, taking his focus completely off staring outside. “You’d be willing to do that?”

“I have to learn some time. If it works, it would be easy for you two to meet somewhere private and you’d be able to get back here in seconds if you needed.”

“But you’d be watching.”

“Only when I get you there and back.”

I could tell he liked the idea but I would need a lot of practice before I could transport a person. I didn’t even know if my father could do that yet or if he has even tried.

“Thank you, Bryce. This means a lot but my father was right. I won’t be able to interfere when she’s off to train or I shouldn’t.”

“There’s still a year until then. I can show you her for now and we can work on getting her attention then transferring notes, only going further from there.”

“How close are you?”

“I’m not sure but I’m willing to try.”

I meant it. I didn’t want him to be drowning in the pressure of having to wait. He always hated to wait for things. It was something he got from Adele but I was confident I could advance quickly if I had a lot of practice and someone there to motivate me. It was worth a try; for both of us.

Chapter 35

Seth

“Seth!”

I was just starting to feel better about Bryce’s effort until my mother stormed in, flailing her worry to the most extreme measures possible.

“Are you all right?!”

She hugged me with a death grip and Bryce started to back towards the door. “I’ll see you later.”

I would have nodded if I could move my head at all. It would have been nice to.

“Why on earth would you leave like that without telling me?”

“Because I knew you wouldn’t let me but I’m not to blame here. I’m sure you know all about that.”

She sighed and leaned herself against my desk. “I did what I had to, Seth and it was the right thing. It was a mistake for your father to have you meet so early.”

“It wasn’t a mistake! What would make you think that?”

“You’re young, Seth and—”

“I’m really tired of hearing that, mother. Being young doesn’t make me stupid. I know when I love something and I love her.”

She didn’t seem as happy for me as I thought she’d be. She sighed again but more in a feeling bad for me kind of way. “Seth, you don’t have to make that decision just yet.”

“I’m not doing it because I have to, mother. I liked her before I found out what you and father did.”

“What your father did, you mean. I had nothing to do with it. In fact, I wasn’t happy with him for a long time.”

I got myself a little side tracked. “You fight about it?”

“No, sweetie. Nothing like that. He just offered it without discussing it with me first and it just came at a surprise. I never intended to plan your future out that way and I always thought your father felt the same way because he hated it when it happened to him.”

“But that was fake, wasn’t it?”

“We didn’t find out about that for a while after. The point is, your father practically hated your grandfather for forcing him into it. I just never thought he would do that to you.”

“But I’m not being forced. I really do love her.”

“We’ll talk about it more when the time comes, okay? I’m just glad you’re home and safe.”

“I’m sorry that I worried you, even if it was your fault.”

She did that sigh again and came over to me. “I was truly honestly thinking about her. I want her to succeed because she deserves it and I’m sorry that it’s going to affect you this way. I didn’t do it to intentionally hurt you.”

“Yeah. I get it but I think I just want to be alone for a while.”

“All right.” She leaned towards me and kissed my forehead. “I’m going to find your father and we’ll take this a day at a time.”

I nodded but I didn’t want time to pass that slowly. I wanted Cadence with me; now. Counting the days would have made everything seem more real and therefore worse.

I was ready to spend the next two years in my room but something intrigued me to follow my mother after she had left. What did she really think about this and was she really as sorry as she made it seem? I had to find out.

“He loves her, Zayden!”

I heard my mother’s yelling before I even got to the door. She wasn’t happy and neither was he but in a defending me sort of way.

“And that’s a bad thing?!”

“Yes!”

“Why?!”

“Zayden, how can you ask me that?! You know exactly what Wyatt is planning to do!”

“Since when does this have to do with Wyatt? I thought we were talking about Seth.”

“We are and we’re not but you know what he plans to do with their union.”

I stayed outside the door and listened more carefully. I didn’t know about any of this.

“No we don’t. You have your list of conspiracies because you hate every man that’s ever came out of that country.”

“And could none of them not be true? Zayden, he wants something with this country and we have a responsibility to stop it.”

“Wait a minute. What are you saying? You’ve already planned to have this ended without telling me? Was this your first step? Keeping Seth away from her and then after the two years, telling him he can never have her?”

All the nerves in my body tightened. This couldn’t happen. When did she turn against me? My own mother was trying to ruin my life before it would even really begin and worse, she’d never want me to find out. I couldn’t stay silent anymore.

“No! How could you?!”

My mother turned and was clearly surprised to see me but I wasn’t going to let it go.

“Seth! What did you hear?”

“Everything! And I can’t believe I’m saying this but—you’ve gone too far and I hate you.”

My eyes blackened and my mother cried instantly but I wasn’t sorry. She was trying to keep me from Cadence and nothing else mattered.

Chapter 36

Adele

For the first time, he turned his black eyes on me and said the only thing no parent ever wants to hear.

Zayden felt the danger and moved me so he was in between us. “Seth!”

“Don’t tell me to apologize because I won’t.”

I watched him leave and I didn’t even know how I should respond.

Zayden turned and his facial expression was evidently concerned. “Love?”

“He hates me.”

“No. He doesn’t hate you.”

“He just said—”

“He was just lashing out to hear what was being said. That’s all.”

“I can’t fix this.”

“There’s nothing to fix. He’ll forget about it soon.”

Soon? It was a pleasant thought but Zayden forgot who he was talking about. Seth possesses my stubborn disposition so I know he won’t forget about this so easily. I know I wouldn’t and I was right.

It was days before I gave in. Seth had never spoken to me. He wouldn’t even look at me. It made meal times unbearable to know my own son loathed my very existence.

I couldn’t stay. Maybe he just needed some time without me so he wouldn’t be constantly reminded of the cruel misdeeds of my worry but I’ll always be worried. I knew from the moment Wyatt even considered their union to save her life that he had a plan and I will forever wonder what happened to me that made me care so much.

Why did I care about saving her? Meg has always been nice but she’s also always gotten in the way. Ruby will never forgive her for the affair with Darius and because of me, she will forever be reminded of it. I’m the one that did this and now Seth says that he’s in love with her daughter. Things were not going how I would have wanted but sometimes we had to live with our mistakes and I did, just not here.

I went back to the mountains with Ruby and Jaylyn for the rest of the summer. There were still things we wanted to do there but the boys stayed behind with their fathers. It was all right. Dirk and Bryce needed to be there for Seth and hopefully get him to realize that this whole thing is just a miss understanding. I wasn’t trying to ruin his life. I was just looking out for the future but it would seem I’d have to rethink it into Seth’s direction. Only it couldn’t be yet and that was my worse regret.

By the time we got back, Seth and the boys started up at the Royal Academy and I wouldn’t see him all day. I guess that made it tolerable but dinners were tense. He sat across from me and would look up to meet my eyes if I said something but he’d never respond and Zayden would change the subject, not to make it a big deal. I didn’t want it to seem like it was but to me, it was. He was my son and he wasn’t saying a word to me. If only I could make it up to him but I couldn’t, not until Cadence was truly ready. That’s what made this so hard on me. He was going to be like this for two years but things somehow managed to get worse.

Chapter 37

Seth

Was I the only one around here that cared what was happening? It’s been weeks without compromise and the silence continued. I didn’t mind being the first to leave dinner these days.

“Come on, Rift.” I walked to the door with a whistle but he wasn’t following. “Rift?”

I whistled again but he wasn’t responding. Everyone at the table shared unusual glances with each other then all looked at my father to speak.

“Seth, we need to talk about him.”

I didn’t like his tone and turned. “Why?”

“He’s already upstairs. He didn’t want to come down.”

My throat tightened to why and I turned again, this time to leave the dining hall and find Rift. He was in my father’s room but didn’t even left his head when he saw me.

“Hey, boy. What’s wrong?”

I knelt down to him and my father came in behind me. “Seth, I think it’s time. Let him go home.”

“What are you talking about? He is home. Get Jaylyn. She can help.”

“No, Seth. She can’t.”

That knot at the back of my throat was only getting tighter and I stood up to turn. “What do you mean? Why not? She has to.”

“No. She doesn’t and this isn’t home. He’s never told you of his family?”

“I’m his family.”

“No. His family was killed a long time ago by humans. He was just a little pup and the only one your uncle could save.”

“Why are you telling me this?” I turned around and felt to my knees with Rift at the floor. I didn’t want to think about where this was going.

“He wasn’t meant to be with people. Ryon tried to get him into other packs but the males would have just killed him so he took him in and I did at discovery of his passing. He loves us. That will never change but he loves those he lost too and misses them. He’s lived much longer than he should have. We always knew he couldn’t be around forever.”

“But father, he’s my best friend.”

I felt a warming hand on my shoulder. “I know but you have to think of him too. You have to let him go this time. It’s what he wants.”

I kept my head hung way down from my father so I wouldn’t shed a tear in front of him or Rift. “Get Jaylyn.”

“It’s too late. You’ll have others to love.”

“Father, don’t say that!”

“Seth, that wasn’t me.”

My head swung up and I looked at Rift. He was still on the floor like he has been but his eyes were closed and he wasn’t moving.

“Rift?” He wasn’t even breathing and I lost it. “No! Rift! Wake up! Please! You have to! Wake up!”

“Seth!” My father grabbed my shoulders and pulled me up. “There’s nothing you can do. Ryon will look after him now.”

I was only getting more upset. I haven’t seen uncle Ryon since I found out he was dead so I knew that only meant I wouldn’t see Rift again either.

“I’ll give you a minute but you should take him outside and―”

“Bury him, father? Like he meant nothing?”

“That’s not what I was going to say. Honor him.”

“I will but where he always belonged. In the wild.”

I was filled with so much regret but I didn’t much have a choice now. I reached down to Rift and lifted his still body in my arms.

“You’re doing the right thing, son.”

I had nothing to say, at least nothing that wouldn’t have come out sounding weak. I left with Rift and walked the long halls of sorrow, trying to ignore everyone that I passed. It got difficult when I got into the main hall because others were walking through from dinner and all their looks were of sympathy. Even my mother but I couldn’t look at any of them for very long. I was just filling with this uncontrollable rage for this loss that I knew no one could understand but me. They didn’t even deserve to be with me while I put him to rest. They didn’t love him like I did and so they wouldn’t be.

I got outside of the palace under the sky and took a leap to get out of the city. It was easy for me and I was instantly alone on a hill of my own.

“Here you go, boy.” I laid Rift down and made a platform under him so I could send him off properly without igniting the entire plains. “I’ll miss you but I’m glad you’re happy.”

I created a spark with a couple of stone and grew the fire to reach him. That’s where I sat. I was a few feet away but I didn’t do anything else but watch my beloved friend leave me forever.

I would always miss him. I liked to think about all the fun times we had together but then again, all the times I had his life prolonged so he could stay with me. I felt pathetic and selfish for doing that to him but I went so long with never understanding him like father could that I guess I just ignored the signs. I didn’t want to think about him gone; I still didn’t but he was and what did I have left?

That’s when I remembered his last words. I would have others to love. He was right wasn’t he? Eventually anyway. It would be quite some time until I ever saw Cadence again but I did already love her. My future still looked bright but just not yet. I had to get through the next couple of years, starting with this and until then―I felt so alone.