Fragile Reign (Mortal Enchantment Book 2) (14 page)

Lowering her voice, she said, “Taron told me about the akasha journals. He said you’re close to translating them.”

With all this wedding stuff, I hadn’t had a chance to try again. But since she brought it up, maybe she could answer some of my questions. “Why did you believe I was an akasha when I was born?”

Her eyes bore into mine. It was like she was staring into my soul. “I don’t
believe
you are an akasha. I
know
you are.”

I shook my head in disbelief. “How could you know that, Mom? Right now I can’t even read the journals. There’s a good chance I never will.”

Mom put her arm around my shoulders. “When you were born, your skin was covered in symbols. They glowed with a bright light and they moved. Taron told me they were the symbols of each of the four courts.”

I stared down at my freckle filled arms. “What happened to the symbols?”

“When I took you out of Avalon, they faded away. Your father was afraid they might return and your life would be in danger. To keep you safe, he kept you out of Avalon.”

Finally, the truth. “So that’s the real reason you never let me visit Dad.”

The tension in her shoulders released. “Yes.”

All the pieces of the puzzle were falling into place. “Is that why you never visited Dad?”

She looked away, staring solemnly into the distance, as if she was replaying the events in her mind. “How could I come here without you?”

But with Dad unable to leave Avalon, keeping me away meant she could never see him. “You sacrificed your relationship with Dad…for me?”

“I would have sacrificed my life to keep you safe.” Mom cupped my face in her hands. “If you ever have children, you’ll come to understand that. There is no greater love than a mother’s love for her child.”

A few hours later, Bash showed up at my door. He offered to get me away from the castle so I could attempt to read the journals. Two knights followed us as we made our way into the forest outside of the castle. The skies were full of clouds while the temperatures stayed at a comfortable seventy-five degrees. Inside the woodland, the air was a bit cooler. I was happy I brought one of my hoodies with me. I sat by the river’s edge. In the distance, I noticed the canal led to a massive waterfall. I ran my hands through the tepid water.

“Why don’t you join me?” I asked, waving my hand.

Bash shook his head. “No thanks. I’m good back here.”

“What’s the matter? Afraid of a little water?” I teased, cocking my head to the side.

“Afraid of drowning as I plummeted to the bottom of that waterfall is more like it.” His eyes widened as he watched the rapidly moving water. Oh, his fear was real. Just talking about it made his skin pale.

I decided to get up and sit next to him. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to upset you.”

He smiled, showing off his perfectly straight, porcelain-white teeth. “You need to stop apologizing. How would you have known I had a fear of drowning?”

Why
was
I always apologizing? It seemed like it was a recurring thing when he was around. It was like I wasn’t myself in his presence. I was nervous. Although he had been nothing but kind to me, he made me feel inadequate. I seriously needed to pull it together. “You’re right. That’s the last time I’m going to apologize. Well, unless I really need to, but you know what I’m saying.”

He chuckled. “Yes, I do.”

I had to figure out why he made me so uncomfortable. Maybe it was because I knew so little about him, yet he seemed to know everything about me. “Would you mind if I asked you a question?”

Leaning back on his forearms, he replied, “Anything.”

Time to just get it all out in the air. “Your Mom told me you had been preparing for a marriage with me. She made it sound like a training or something. What did she mean?”

His cheeks blushed as if I had embarrassed him. “That’s kind of difficult to answer.”

Had I gotten too personal? “You don’t have to answer. It’s fine.”

Bash waved his hands in front of him. “No, I meant it’s difficult because the answer isn’t simple. Growing up, I had always known you were my betrothed. I doubt I even knew what the word meant as a child. But I was well aware that I was raised differently from most elementals. I spent a large amount of my childhood away from the other elemental children.”

Ariel mentioned she had only seen Bash once during her childhood. He must have been so lonely. “Did you attend a school?”

“I always had private tutors. Mostly they focused on my impending future. I was given a standard elemental education regarding our powers and responsibilities in the mortal word. I also learned about the mortals, the Avalon court system, and simple things like proper manners. Once I became a teenager they added leadership lessons. It was all a grooming process.”

I thought I had it bad when I had to read all those books. My childhood was a cakewalk compared to his. “Did you ever want to sneak away, and I don’t know, just be a kid?”

Bash smiled, shrugging. “Sure. All the time. I was jealous of the other kids for a long while. It wasn’t until I got much older that I appreciated the honor bestowed upon me.”

The honor being his betrothal to me. I cringed. I wasn’t an expert on marriage, but it seems like it should be about love. What he was talking about sounded more like a contract. There was no emotion in anything he said. Really, how could there be? We barely knew each other. “It doesn’t sound like much of an honor to me. It seems like you missed out on a lot.”

“I gained plenty. I’ve had the best kind of education. Spent every day of my life visiting every corner of the world. Not to mention learning from the secret books. Had I not been chosen to be your future husband, I would never have had access.”

The books brought to Mom’s mortal home? The ones I thought were meant for only the royal members of the court? “You mean the books from the caverns?”

Bash nodded. “Yes. I was taught from the same books you were.”

With all his worldly experience, he was more suited to rule than I was. I had spent plenty of years training, but I never left the town I lived in. And since I was always with Mom, I never learned about proper court behavior or how to carry myself like a royal. Instead, my childhood was kept fairly normal. “I guess we have more in common than I thought.”

“Yes, we certainly do.” He tucked a strand of hair behind my ear.

The touch of his fingers sent a tingle down my neck. But immediately after, my insides filled with an overwhelming ache of guilt. As silly as it sounded, sharing a tender moment with Bash―as innocent as it was―made me feel like I was cheating on Rowan. I backed up, putting some much needed space between us. “I’m falling in love with Rowan.” I blurted.

I jolted at the shock of my own words. Was I really in love with Rowan? Had we spent enough time together to actually call it love? Then I noticed the expression on Bash’s face. Total disappointment didn’t begin to describe it. Regardless of my feelings for Rowan, now wasn’t the time to try to figure it out. “I didn’t mean for it to come out so brash. I just don’t think it’s fair to make you hope for something that will never be. You are so fantastic and you deserve to be with someone who can give you their whole heart. But my heart is already taken.”

He rubbed the back of his neck. “I had a feeling you might say that.”

“You did?”

“King Taron warned me.” He said, playing with a piece of grass. “He said if you fell in love with Rowan, he would forfeit the betrothal.”

“My father said that?” I questioned, not sure if I believed what I had heard.

“Yes, he did.”

My chest warmed. Dad did care about my feelings. I worried that he might force me to marry Bash, sighting I had a greater duty to my court than I did to my own heart. He certainly wouldn’t be wrong if he had said that. If I were to be queen of my court, I would be expected to consider the welfare of my people over anything else. No matter how much it broke my heart. “And you’re okay with us being just friends? Even if it means you will never be king?”

“I care about you, Kalin.” Bash took my hand into his. “Sure, I’m disappointed that it didn’t work out. I had hoped you would give us a chance. But if I’m not that guy, I’m okay with it as long as we can be friends.”

Rowan’s warnings echoed loudly in my ears. He was right when he said Bash had everything to lose. Bash arrived at the castle intent on marrying me. The guy was basically bred to be a king. Why would he give up so easily? “I don’t see how you could possibly be okay with this. I’m taking away everything you have spent your whole life planning for. Why aren’t you angry? Why aren’t you fighting for it?”

“You’re right. I guess I should be angry.” He crossed his arms. “But what can I do? Force a marriage?” He shook his head. “I don’t want to spend the rest of my life with someone in love with someone else. And if you’re saying there will never be anything between us, I have nothing to fight for.”

It was as if a hundred pounds of tension had lifted off my shoulders. The last thing I wanted to do was hurt Bash. He was one of the most selfless, understanding elementals I had ever met. “You really have no idea how much this means to me.”

“I think I do.”

I had to do something for him. He certainly deserved it for the sacrifice he was making for me. “I don’t want you to feel like you’ve missed out. When I take the throne, you will play a key role as one of my advisors. I will need elementals around me that I can trust.”

Bash pulled out his pouch, offering it to me. “Shall we drink to that?”

“Absolutely.” I said, accepting his wine pouch. I drank every last drop. “I really need to get a bottle of this. It’s fantastic.”

He smiled, seemingly appreciating the compliment. “I’ll have one sent to your room this evening.”

I glanced at the canvas bag sitting next to Bash, remembering why I had come out here in the first place. “Now, let’s see if I can make sense of these akasha journals.”

“Absolutely,” he said, handing the sack to me.

I reached inside, pulling out one of the leather journals. The tips of my fingers hummed, getting stronger the longer I held the book in my hands. I prayed that was a good sign. Crossing my legs, I opened the book over my lap. To my utter disappointment, the strange hieroglyphics remained on the page. I flipped through several pages. The symbols didn’t move as they had last time. I let out a sigh. “Nothing.”

“You have to keep trying.” Bash insisted. “Don’t give up so easily.”

“You’re right.” I went back to the beginning of the journal. Instead of glancing at one page at a time, I focused on the first symbol only. It was a picture of a bird, head facing left. Its wings were relaxed at its sides, as if it were perched on a branch. I wasn’t sure if the type of bird mattered. The bird twitched. I rubbed my eyes, looking again. Nothing happened. Then, the wing moved. Suddenly, the entire picture contorted. Just as fast, the bird returned to its original picture. Once more, it attempted to shift. It seemed to be fighting against the change.

I had an idea. I concentrated on my vibrating fingers, pushing my power into the tips. The exterior of the book glowed with a yellow hue. Something was happening. I was sure of it. The bird shifted into the letter A. It was working. I couldn’t believe it. All I needed to do was concentrate on each symbol, one at a time. Just as I was filling with optimism, my power flickered. A second later, it shut off completely. I tried to surge my energy once more, but nothing happened. Even the humming in my hands was gone. Staring at my open palms, I said, “What the hell?”

“What happened?” Bash asked, eyebrows drawn together.

“My power…it’s gone.” I said, stuttering. “A symbol had changed into a letter. But when I tried to increase my power, it turned off completely. Now I can’t conjure my magic at all.”

“Your power can’t be gone. Keep trying.”

I closed my eyes attempting to use the meditation techniques Rowan had taught me. I tried to visualize myself but the image was fuzzy. No matter what I did, I couldn’t get into focus. I had a sinking sensation in my stomach. Something had gone terribly wrong. Even when I had exhausted my power I could still see my aura. I could sense my power. Now, when I closed my eyes, my vision was blurred. And beyond the blur, all I could see was blackness, like an empty space.

“This can’t be.” I said, out loud. I wasn’t sure if I was talking to Bash or myself.

“What?” he questioned, pressing his lips together.

My heart pounded in my ears, hands shaking. “My powers are gone.”

Rowan

The last twenty-four hours flew by in a blur.

Fire elementals from all over the territory arrived at the castle. They wished to see their new king, although I had not been officially crowned. A line formed, running down the main hallway. I sat on the lava rock steps—still not ready to sit on the throne. Most elementals had come because they had some sort of dispute to settle. I spent the last fifteen minutes listening to a three foot tall troll make her case against a goblin. She claimed he tried to poison her. Fire elementals would fight over just about anything. It could be something as silly as an argument over wine or as serious as murder. I tried my best to listen and make the right decisions, but many of the disputes weren’t easily resolved. The truth was that the fire court had been in turmoil for many years. Mother kept everyone in line by force, but Liana tended to look the other way. Most fire elementals had become accustomed to living in a constant state of chaos. Getting the court back in order would take some time and a lot of attention.